2020 was a year of significant upheaval on a global scale, resulting in profound changes across all sectors, including cosmetics.
The new landscape shaped by the spread of Covid-19 prompted consumers to reassess their habits and consumption patterns, prioritizing every aspect of their lives around the protection of their health.
It is not surprising, therefore, that the criteria governing the purchase of cosmetic products reflect the historical moment we are experiencing. In the current fluctuation of needs, hand sanitizers and cleaning products are witnessing an incredible surge, while the fragrance and makeup sectors, particularly lip products, are struggling. However, it is not just about purchasing tendencies; we are witnessing a more general revolution.
The newly established practices to ensure prevention and personal hygiene have led to a new perspective on hand contact and the issue of contamination, whether bacterial or viral in origin. This has had a direct impact on the beauty sector: a desire, mixed with the necessity, to rethink packaging and the nature of the product.
Naked cosmetics, alternative packaging, and jar containers are memories giving way to sprays, sticks, and pump dispensers. Special mention goes to airless packaging, which are containers without propellants but equipped with a mechanical pump and a sealed reservoir that allows for complete dispensing without waste, protecting against air and any form of external contamination.
In general, there is a focus today on the entire range of containers that dispense products while avoiding direct contact with hands, thereby safeguarding both the cosmetic and the consumer.
Furthermore, it should be noted that technology has become the true engine of innovation in product packaging, attracting increasing interest and resources. It has indeed transformed into a central element for success because it can contribute to functionality: it serves as both a container and a protective element, but also, thanks to specific applications, as a vehicle that releases active or antimicrobial substances, and can even be modulated and equipped with a “self-cleaning” system capable of removing forms of third-party contamination after contact. This metamorphosis applies not only in the retail field but also beyond: touchless or touch-free packaging, thanks to site-localized sensors, ensure contactless dispensing and are a reality for dispensers located in public areas or for replacing fragrance testers, enabling a sensory in-store experience but with safety.
In a supply chain where everything is interconnected, changing one piece has repercussions, in this case on the nature of the product. Choosing safe and high-performance packaging allows for a reconsideration of the type of preservative system and improves the average shelf life and expiration date of the product. Thanks to studies on content/container interaction, the absolute safety of the packaged system can be demonstrated and transparently presented to consumers.
Thus begins the era of safe beauty, which directs all its attention to product safety, perfectly in line with the times.
This new attitude represents a dual commitment: for the cosmetic company, it is an incentive for evolution, demonstrating willingness and reliability in communicating stability and safety data to the market; for the consumer, it is a reminder of how to use and store the product, avoiding waste and bad habits.
This change does not necessarily seem negative but certainly represents a sharp reversal compared to recent years. Green beauty and clean beauty had redefined new standards for cosmetics, centered on sustainability, transparency, and a cleaner, more circular economy, especially regarding product packaging. Chemical synthetic ingredients and preservatives have long been viewed with suspicion. Yet, it is precisely these two elements that today drive the market and are necessary to ensure safety.
This raises a reflection: how can safe beauty be integrated with existing trends? How can the issue of safety and personal hygiene be reconciled with environmental protection?
Now more than ever, it seems necessary to find a new balance between current needs and attention to the environment to meet the growing expectations of new generations who do not want to compromise on any aspect.
In a climate of general uncertainty, focusing efforts on product packaging seems, paradoxically, the first step to take.
Traditional containers could make way for functional packaging capable of ensuring continuous use and prolonged product stability over time. Dispensers equipped with new technologies can serve a wide audience while also helping to overcome single-use packaging.
In managing the average shelf life of products, the key to reducing waste and managing resources better could be found, without abandoning the path paved by previous trends.
These are just some initial steps on a long and ambitious journey that is, undoubtedly, possible.