Shiseido Launches POSME, a New Open Innovation Project

Shiseido Company, Limited (Shiseido) will launch its new open innovation project POSME in January 2018. POSME will offer a variety of consumer goods and services, which are jointly created by high school girls and various industries and companies. This is the first project promoted by Innovation Design Lab., Shiseido’s internal organization established in January 2017 with the aim of fostering innovation, which is a part of the company’s initiatives under its mid- to long-term strategy, VISION 2020.

High school girls have been garnering attention as a source of a new pop culture, following the millennials in Japan. For this project, Shiseido gathered high school girls full of talent and potential and formed a team called POSME ＆ Co. The high school girls will engage in a licensing business, partnering with various industries and companies to develop products and services beyond cosmetics. POSME ＆ Co. members will come up with unique ideas while partner companies will realize these ideas in the form of products and services of guaranteed quality, and launch them under the name of POSME brand. New products will include items favored by high school girls, such as sweets, stationery, fashionable accessories, etc.

To start with, POSME will launch a multi-use color item, Play Color Chip, that can be used in a variety of ways, e.g. as eye color or blush. Thanks to its design, it is easy to carry around and swap with friends.

Innovation Design Lab. creating new businesses

Innovation Design Lab. was set up to create new businesses based on out-of-the-box thinking, free from the existing internal systems and frameworks. It will foster innovation by taking a flexible approach towards fields that are totally new to Shiseido. Young talents in the lab freely and actively bring up ideas and pursue their commercialization through speedy decision-making, striving to deliver new products and services indispensable to the society in a swift manner.

High school girls team, POSME ＆ Co.

These days, high school girls are actively networking with the world, unlimited by the constraints of age or neighborhood. While they have a wider outlook and stronger communicative power, they are no longer satisfied with just following the existing brands and expressing their views and tastes on them, and instead are looking for opportunities to create a new pop culture by themselves. In response to that, Shiseido aims to encourage the communication between POSME ＆ Co. members and stimulate their ideas which will be the starting point for new, original products and services. Currently, the team consists of 40 members who live mainly in Tokyo, but going forward, Shiseido plans to gather hundreds of members throughout Japan. Furthermore, Shiseido is also launching a new shop, POSME LAB SHIBUYA, on Friday, January 26, 2018, which will serve as a communication space for POSME ＆ Co. members.

The first product, Play Color Chip

Play Color Chip is a multi-use color item that can be easily applied on lips, cheeks, eyes or eyebrows. This product was developed through communication with more than 150 high school girls and will be sold in a set of six disposable chips of the same color. Play Color Chip marks a change in cosmetics, transforming an item to be used individually into something that can be “shared or swapped,” thus creating a new form of enjoyment. The new chips offer more freedom in makeup, allowing users to coordinate colors with friends, try a new color more easily, or enjoy a special color for a special occasion. According to a survey conducted by Shiseido, 93% of female school girls perceived the novelty of the items because they can be swapped with friends, are easy to carry around, are good for a gift, and are perfect to try a new color. (Year of survey: 2017; number of respondents: 115)

【Product image】

Download Small Image[46.9KB] Download Large Image[384KB]

【Design that is easy to carry around】

Download Small Image[38.9KB] Download Large Image[1194KB]

Product name Play Color Chip　
Lineup One product, 21 varieties (to be expanded)
Release date Eight colors on January 26, eight colors on February 23, and five colors on March 16, 2018.
Suggested retail price 300 JPY (excl. tax) , 324 JPY (incl. tax)
Distributor Axe Co., Ltd.
How to use Remove the cover film, pick up some color with your fingertips, and blend.
Apply using a finger. No special technique required.
Design Features illustrations with fun motifs. More variations will be offered based on high school girls’ ideas.
Where to buy Launch in January at designated stores in Tokyo and Kansai regions. Also available via website and at POSME LAB SHIBUYA (open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only). The number of stores to be expanded from March onwards. Please check the HP for the latest information.
Brand movie https://youtu.be/ZQzq79M8tjw (release on January 16, 2018)
Inquiries about products http://posme.town (launch on January 26, 2018)

logo

Download Small Image[51.5KB] Download Large Image[741KB]