Eco-friendly innovations

Due to the fact that we are an official media partner of the COSSMA magazine since the end of 2022, we had and have the privilege to present ourselves and our partners in the cosmetics industry in combination with the COSSMA trade magazine. The magazine is a very important and absolutely informative source for us when it comes to topics in the cosmetics industry, especially topics around the complete supply chain. Through this great opportunity of cooperation, we had the honor of visiting Cosmoprof/Cosmopack in Asia in November 2022. An absolutely amazing show and a must-attend platform for anyone involved in the cosmetics industry. From all over the world, companies that are at home in the cosmetics industry come together. Whether raw material suppliers, product development, contract filling, contract packaging, packaging material manufacturers or even packaging machine manufacturers, all are represented and present themselves and their new developments or innovations on this large exhibition platform. We as a company, whose main focus is the packaging industry, had put our focus on the Asian section to deal with the supply chain of the cosmetics industry. From raw material suppliers, contract developers/-fillers, contract packers and packaging material suppliers to packaging machine manufacturers, it was all interesting for us. This is a great opportunity for us to establish international contacts and to discover new developments as well as innovations.

Trade fair trends

During the fair, it was clearly confirmed that the following trend topics are currently still very present and occupy the market of the cosmetics industry. At the moment, topics such as sustainable and recyclable packaging materials are a big issue in this industry. We had the opportunity to see many innovative and ingenious new product developments, and we were able to take away a lot of new information. Here are a few examples of inventions that we particularly liked: Innovative implementations that stuck in our minds were, for example, the cosmetic vials or dispensers that have a “balloon” inside the of them. This balloon can only be filled and processed by the responsible manufacturer using a special machine. The technology behind this is a method designed to ensure that the product in the balloon can be consumed more than 99 percent with virtually no product residue. Nowadays, dispensing bottles of cosmetic creams, are emptied through a so-called dispenser, which isn’t quite sustainable. The reason for this is the difficult - and full consumption of the product, which until now was barely possible. Studies have shown that dispensers can have a product residue of up to 25 percent. This is not sustainable when consuming the product and later when disposing of the individual components (product and packaging components). 

Impressive innovations

The “new” packaging method supports the consumption of the product and ensures that less than 1 percent of product residue remains in the dispenser. The product residues either stick to the dispensing bottle wall or in other additionally inserted packaging films, which should help to separate the product from the dispenser wall and support consumption. However, the product often gets stuck in the folds of the packaging created during consumption.  With this “new” technology, product consumption has increased significantly, promoting a more sustainable product life cycle, as up to 99 percent of the product can be used effectively, leaving less than 1 percent residue. Likewise, all components used (product and packaging components) can be recycled individually. So not only can product residue be avoided, but so can the waste generated in the process. A very impressive and new development – as far as the consumption of products in the cosmetics industry is concerned – as we think.

Fully recyclable product packaging

Another feature that we noticed is the variety of product packaging that is now completely recyclable. One thing that really caught our eye was the focus that has been put on dispensers. Until now, many dispenser closures had a kind of metal spring built into the inside of the closure, making the design robust and ensuring optimum func­tionality. The challenge of developing a dispenser closure made entirely of the same material as the corresponding bottle has been taken to heart by many, and they have successfully entered this field. The focus is also led on the material used for the dispensers. The manufacturers had set themselves the task of creating a completely recyclable dispenser closure. Many companies have already succeeded in doing this. For this reason, we were able to see many product packages at the trade show, that have already realised the sustainable solutions mentioned. From our point of view, these products are also new developments that have become more and more important due to the vital trend topics of sustainability and recallability. Picking up this specific theme has caused everyone to rethink and finally act.

"The fair is a great opportunity to establish international contacts and to discover new developments as well as innovations."

Our conclusions

The following conclusions can be drawn from the trends and the resulting innovations that we were able to see up close at the trade fair in Asia. Rethinking and thinking along is very important and necessary in today’s world and in the rapid economic changes. It is not said for nothing that: “he who stands still, loses!” For this reason, we have made it our mission to always be up-to-date with trends from the cosmetics industry. 

As the first marketplace for matches in the sourcing universe of the packaging industry, it is a duty for us to strive for expert status. We want to generate added value for our customers and partners in order to always have the right solution ready or find the right one.

 Our common goal for the future, with COSSMA magazine and the large community of the cosmetics industry connected to it, is to gain even deeper insights into the complete supply chain of the cosmetics industry. Together we want to experience the latest trends, movements and innovations up close, be there and inform. 

The direct personal or digital exchange is enormously important to us. True to the motto: “Revolutionizing the cosmetics industry together!”

Prospects

Cosmoprof/Cosmopack Asia 2022 has taken place in a smaller scale in Singapore, due to the still ongoing corona pandemic. In the current year 2023, the show will be held again in Hong Kong and with all probability in triple size. We are very much looking forward to enjoying the fair Asia to the fullest in 2023 and participate as visitors. As well, we are looking forward to the other trade shows we will be attending in 2023.

Be curious about the trending topics we will report from our next trade show visits. We are already looking forward to an advance exchange with us on topics along the supply chain in the cosmetics industry.