‘Osiao’: Estée Lauder’s First Chinese Beauty Brand

After opening a research and development center in Shanghai in June 2011, Estée Lauder will introduce its first China-specific beauty brand next month

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Courtesy of Estée Lauder

After opening a research and development center in Shanghai in June 2011, Estée Lauder will introduce Osiao, its first China-specific beauty brand, next month. The cosmetics company already offers 12 of its 28 brands in China, reports the New York Times, but Osiao was developed specifically for the Chinese customer. And if Estée Lauder’s attention to detail in creating Osiao is any indication, Chinese women are the beauty industry’s next great influencers.

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Everything about the brand is focused on the Chinese consumer, from product formula to the line’s name. Osiao has five letters, which Estée Lauder executives described as a lucky number in China (the “O” on either end of the word is also meant to reflect balance in skin). Products will contain Chinese plants, such as ginseng. Before the October unveil, the company tested the product on several thousand women in China, as well as Korea and Japan. And while development may have been focused on China, distribution of the brand won’t be: If Osiao is as big a blockbuster as executives hope, Estée Lauder says the company may offer it in other markets, too.