Russian cosmetics: Ancestral curse or bad management?

by Ольга Мурадова

NOBEL

Scandals around the most prestigious award in the world aren’t a rarity. This year was no exception. Only a lazy one didn’t write about Russia being deprived twice.

The discoveries, nominated in “Chemistry” and “Physiology and medicine” were virtually totally made by Russian scientists. So, the scientists from USA, Israel and Great Britain will get the awards for the research of ribosomes instead of Russian academician Alexander Spirin. And three USA citizens are invited to Stockholm due to their discovery of telomerase ferment, which is “in charge” of ageing and cancer.

So our scientists plod away at their researches – and it looks like it is in vain

Anyway, getting back to the point. This history reminded me of the condition of Russian cosmetics industry. All those petides and ferments are too familiar to us, journalists, knowing the ropes of those “scientific” press-releases, provided by cosmetic corporations. This is done in order to convince us – philologists, psychologists, historians and other our humanitarian brethren and sisters – why that particular new compound is so effective. Of course, there’s some profanity of the product’s quality: severe competition in the high-profit beauty industry doesn’t allow waiting for a new discovery every day. And that’s where marketing comes into play. But these are the new technologies, which let deluxe cosmetic companies stay on the top of the hill. And if we have a look at Russian cosmetic business, it seems that our science just couldn’t be worse.

FIGURES

“It’s a pity for me that all those pots of money go abroad” – admitted an employee of one cosmetic company, promoting European products on Russian market. And I understand his feelings.

“A real source of national pride: it was Russia, which happened to become one of those countries, where the basics of modern perfume and cosmetic industry were laid down”, – that’s the beginning of the history of “Nevskaya Kosmetika” company, published on its website
Nowadays Russia ranks sixth in the world’s consumption of cosmetic production. Not because Russia has a really large number of inhabitants, but because of the fact that Russian women are ready to spend their last money on a necessary cream. I often hear some stories, told by deluxe cosmetic brands, about their customers, who put money aside to buy an expensive and effective product. “Our clients don’t view creams and serums as luxury items. That’s an investment for them” – says Maike Kiessling, Managing Director International of La Prairie Group.

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