Welcome back to Skin by TBS.
This week, science is finally catching up to what we've known all along—that skin of colour requires different approaches, different testing, and different tech. Beyond the lab, watch India closely. Between HUL's tax navigation, Swiss Beauty's ₹600 crore skincare bet, and powerhouse conversations on Nikhil Kamath's podcast, the subcontinent is rewriting beauty's playbook in real-time.
Plus: Korea Town's 50-store Gulf ambition, Nigeria's skincare acceleration, and three AI-powered Indian startups winning L'Oréal's Big Bang program.
Here's what matters this week.
Warm wishes,
Deepa
What Matters Right Now
Halal Beauty's $118bn Trajectory: Halal beauty market projected to reach $118 billion by 2028, fueled by GCC government funding and intensified anti-counterfeit measures. Why it matters: Growing Muslim consumer base across Middle East, Southeast Asia, and South Asia represents one of beauty's fastest-growing segments with specific formulation and certification requirements.
Strategic Moves
Korea Town's Gulf Ambition: K-beauty retailer plans aggressive 50-store expansion across the Gulf region by 2027. Why it matters: Move signals Middle East as critical growth frontier for Korean beauty brands seeking markets beyond traditional Asia-Pacific strongholds.
HUL Navigates GST Tax Changes: Hindustan Unilever anticipates temporary sales disruption following India's GST cuts on consumer products. The bottom line: Short-term pain as the market adjusts to new pricing dynamics across beauty and personal care categories.
Sephora's Experience-First Strategy: Global beauty retailer doubles down on brand exclusivity and immersive in-store experiences to fuel worldwide expansion. This move prioritizes differentiation over price competition in increasingly crowded beauty retail landscape.
Korean Textile Giant Enters Beauty: Taekwang Industrial acquires controlling stake in Aekyung Industrial, marking major conglomerate's entry into K-beauty sector. This strategic acquisition signals continued consolidation and institutional investment in Korean beauty manufacturing.
Brand Intel
Swiss Beauty's Skincare Push: Indian color cosmetics giant invests ₹10 crore in new skincare vertical and targets ₹600 crore annual revenue from skincare within five years.
Darling Hair Deepens African Roots: Nigerian haircare brand strengthens commitment to African fashion industry through strategic partnerships and focuses on celebrating and supporting homegrown beauty excellence.
The Act Brings Russian Formulas to SA: Conscious beauty brand from Russia enters South African market with clean ingredient philosophy positioning itself as a premium alternative in growing clean beauty segment.
🎧 Tune in
🇮🇳 Industry Leaders on India's Beauty Boom: A must-listen podcast episode featuring Bhakti Modi (Tira), Shantanu Deshpande (Bombay Shaving Company), and Diipa Khosla (Inde Wild) on Nikhil Kamath’s podcast.
Consumer Intelligence
Rise of the dreamy era: Khaamakya Arani's Glamhour lip kits sold out within 24 hours of launch. Dreamy aesthetics and thoughtful forumation helped drive organic fans and hype.
Celebrity Beauty Brands Face Reality Check: Analysis reveals Bollywood's biggest names doesn’t necessarily translate that star power into sustainable beauty businesses as the market demands authentic differentiation beyond celebrity endorsements.
🇳🇬 Nigeria's Skincare Boom Accelerates: Local and international brands race to capture share in Nigeria's rapidly expanding skincare market. Industry insiders reveal strategies for navigating distribution challenges and consumer preferences.
Australia Faces Influencer Diversity Reckoning: Beauty influencer controversy exposes persistent lack of diverse representation in Australian creator economy. Industry confronts uncomfortable questions about who gets brand partnerships and visibility.
New Brands to Watch
Captive Hair: With her platform Captive Hair, Olivia Emeodi has pioneered over ten faux loc styles and fifteen techniques specifically designed for Afro hair that are lightweight, painless, and protective,
India's Next-Gen Beauty Tech Innovators: Infloso AI (creator & marketing platform) Sravathi AI (silico chemistry AI platform that develops advanced pharma) and Without (by Ashaya) (unrecyclable waste into high-quality, recyclable materials and products) were the winners of L'Oréal’s Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Program.
Sonni: A suncare brand that is focusing on mineral SPFs for all skintones with an advanced zinc technology. Launching with two ranges: Sunday (a lightweight mineral SPF face serum, SPF 40/moisturiser and body balm) and Sundown (an electrolyte face mask). Founded by Eliana Field-Marsham and Megan Black.
Skin of Color Science
Eczema sensor eliminates skin tone bias: Heriot-Watt University developed a vibroacoustic sensor that detects changes in every skin layer using surface vibrations, working equally well across all skin tones and identifying treatment effectiveness within one week instead of the traditional six-to-eight-week trial period.
Why it matters: Current eczema diagnosis relies on visual assessment of skin redness, which Professor Richard Weller notes is "easier to see in alabaster white skin than somebody with a darker skin type," leading to undertreatment and diagnostic delays for patients of colour.
Exosomes for melanin-rich skin: Exosomes—cell-derived vesicles packed with growth factors and proteins—are gaining traction as regenerative skincare for skin of colour, addressing collagen production, hyperpigmentation, and acne scars at the cellular level with less irritation than traditional retinoids.
Be smart: On melanated skin with more melanocytes, Dr Indigo says exosomes may provide more apparent brightening effects and help with skin barrier repair due to anti-inflammatory properties, though they're not yet FDA-approved and sourcing standards vary widely across brands.
IBD complications on darker skin: A new review published in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases provides images and descriptions of how IBD-related skin complications like erythema nodosum appear differently on skin of colour—showing up as purple-brown hyperpigmentation rather than the classic red presentation documented in medical literature.
Testing inequality: Cosmo’s Keeks Reid speaks to Tumi Siwoku, principal chemist at Beauty Science Labs one of the few Black formulators in the UK who says the blame is with testing houses as testing houses tend to recruit locally from predominantly white areas. Why it matters: Powerful ingredients like retinoids, AHAs, benzoyl peroxide, and high-strength vitamin C (15-20%) require cautious use on Fitzpatrick types 4-6.
Specialized care expands: University of Michigan Health's Skin of Color Clinic at Ypsilanti Health Center, led by Dr. Severine Cao, provides expert dermatology care for melanated skin, understanding specific treatment considerations, cultural hair routines, and outcomes that vary based on skin pigmentation.
Shopping Heroes
Editor-approved guides & latest launches.
Scalp & Hair:
Philip Kingsley: Flaky/Itchy Scalp Hydrating Curl Shampoo has been added to their Flaky/Itchy line specifically for coarse, curly, and coiled hair types.
Arey: The Masque is a weightless and deeply hydrating hair treatment which is suitable for all hair types and is “ideal for textured, dry, coarse, or damaged hair in need of intensive moisture and visible repair”.
Skin & Makeup:
Sachi Skin: The Ayurvedic skincare brand has launched the Future Veil Peptide Cream.
Good Weather Skin: The One Warm Glow is an SPF 30 that has a sun-kissed finish that works for all skin tones.
Patrick Ta: Major Dimension Eye Illusion Eyeshadow Duos
Editor Approved Guides:
Two-toned lip perfection: Who What Wear's Maya Thomas explores the viral two-toned lip trend with guidance from Alexandra McCormick, Hourglass's director of global artistry development, highlighting how the technique enhances naturally melanin-tinted dual-toned lips with strategic liner, lipstick, and gloss combinations.
Fall blush dimension: Ariel Baker shares her seven-step fall blush routine mixing textures, colors, and finishes—from cream-to-powder hybrids like Danessa Myricks's Spice Latte to satin formulas like Saie's Ciao that create editorial-worthy cheeks on deeper skin tones.
Mineral sunscreens decoded: Stixx Mathews rounds up top-rated mineral sunscreens that actually disappear on every skin tone, featuring Merit's The Uniform tinted mineral sunscreen praised for offering customizable coverage from sheer to full with no white cast on deeper hues.
Stay Connected
Thank you for being here!
If this week's intelligence was useful, share it with someone you know. The more connected we become as an industry, the stronger our collective impact.
Follow along on @skinbytbs for quick takes between newsletters, and don't hesitate to reply with stories, corrections, or introductions you think I should know about.
