Innovations: Beauty Love or Beauty Overload?!
There was a time, not so long ago, when the pandemic made us believe in a new world. A less superficial world, even in the bathroom. With their beauty routine shaken up, many women gave up their lipstick, the first collateral victim of mask usage. Or even other kinds of makeup. Finally, a little relief from the diktats of appearance? This wasn't counting on the harsh reality of Zoom and its impact on the cosmetic surgery sector.
The backlash was not long to come: if skinimalism is on everyone's lips, the range of beauty offers has never been so wild. Connected devices, hyper-customized or holistic solutions, in & out approaches... By 2026, the beauty industry is expected to reach $558 billion with a compound annual growth rate of +4.82%. Enough to fuel these New Roaring 20's with all kinds of innovations. But at what price?
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☕ A new day dawns on your beauty routine. You head to the kitchen for a breakfast that's as rich in flavor as it is in cosmetic promises. With a retinol drink in hand, you grab a collagen yogurt before diving into the anti-aging granola pouch. Does your skin really need a second Beauty Food cookie? Save it for your 11 A.M. break: it'll go great with a Fable and Mane latte boosted with vitamin B12 to strengthen your hair.
🚿 Time is pressing, especially since the bathroom schedule looks busy. You kick off with a beauty gym session thanks to your Gua Sha that promotes lymphatic drainage while performing some dry brush movements to energize the body, a ritual that is practiced standing on your bath mat that also serves as a scale. After the shower, you thought you only needed your body stone, a small moisturizing pebble that melts instantly when placed against the skin. But that won't be enough to fight the winter dryness. For great evils, great remedies: you draw a mask for the belly, another for the bum. Heads and tails. Just the right time to give your hair a little clean-up with this foam to dry shampoo (the scalp scrub and lamellar water can wait for the weekend). Still a little groggy after a good night's sleep — obviously your anti-insomnia soap is working — you could use a little boost.
A fresh kick! After a psshiit of fermented sake hydrating spray, you go to the freezer to grab those famous facial ice globes you saw on TikTok, as well as your jar of Vue de Pulang, a gel whose texture, under the effect of cold, turns into a hydrating granita. Suddenly you're in doubt: how far along are you in your eye contour microdosing? Instead of relying on the benefits of cryotherapy, wouldn't it have been better to soothe your skin with a melatonin day cream? Should you have applied your Tula serum infused with probiotics before breakfast? Do retinol and vitamin B12 really work together?
💄 Somewhat puzzled, you move on to the next step, makeup. It's already been a few weeks since you dropped the makeup filters created especially for teleconferences. What you need now is something concrete, something down to earth. Your new Mango People lip balm with ayurvedic herbs and fruit pigments sounds like a promise of back to basics. At the same time... you're tempted by this brand whose ultra-contemporary design reinvents the way you apply eyeliner. And it wouldn't take much to convince you to adopt Unseen and its makeup that changes color under the effect of flashes.
📅 🚶 This is it. Casually wrapped in a cloud of Vyrao, a perfume infused with healing crystals, you'll soon face this new day still feeling like you've already accomplished quite a bit in front of your sink. And without forgetting to slip a couple of hyaluronic acid gummies, a matcha glow stick and your fidget LED phototherapy device into your bag.
✨ Tonight will be the beginning of a new routine. Still animated by the evocation of this morning's granita and its promise of summer, perhaps you'll pull out this cleansing AND self-tanning machine from Tan Revel from your drawer, right after you've conscientiously fixed your eyebrows with a brow soap. Maybe you'll place that weighted blanket over your eyes after filling out one of the Curology or Noie personalized beauty questionnaires. Maybe you'll take a few minutes to take Veracity's "Skin + Health" saliva test, which will send you products tailored to your hormonal balance and PH level based on your biofactors. Or maybe you'll simply go to bed with this makeup designed to be worn even while sleeping.
Mirror, my beautiful (connected) mirror. At a time when vanity cases have never been so well-stocked, these XXL routines reflect new experiences, new desires and new needs at the heart of an offer as fascinating as it is complex. But while the crisis has brought self-care considerations to the forefront, the realm of mental fatigue regarding the "better self" tends to creep into our daily lives. And the situation could even intensify as the first beauty partnerships in the metaverse are already emerging. Would you care for a slice of virtual collagen?
Marie
Translated from French and co-written with my friend Mathilde Audenaert.