As for the exhibition itself, the organizer has announced an offering mostly focused on CSR, as will be seen with the innovation totems put forward by the 220 exhibitors. “CSR is really getting global in our sector. Companies had already made commitments regarding products and ingredients, so now they are deploying their actions on all levels: processes, logistics, consumer experience, Human Resources, packaging… And all this is conveyed by a number of innovations to discover throughout the event,” explains Franckie Béchereau, the show’s Director.
360° innovation
As an example, for the first time, a new animation zone will gather the Glass Valley players, who will introduce their own CSR strategy. And the Cosmétopée Zone sponsored by Greentech and focused on new sourcing approaches will offer the public an entertaining and interactive Quiz Challenge.
Likewise, the digital offering was strengthened, in particular with Artificial Intelligence systems to analyze consumer needs in real time. The animation created by incubator The Place will highlight the possibilities provided by massive data analysis by manufacturing makeup products in real time based on the information collected on the first day of the show, at the entrance.
Innovation again: The Tech Corner area is designed to highlight future technologies. And this year, the Paper Touch developed by the LGP2 laboratory of the French University of Grenoble will be in the spotlight: this innovative process is intended for manufacturing interactive paper for illuminated and communicating packaging applications.
Once again, the Startup Zone will be quite busy, with 30 young, less than 5-year-old cosmeto-digital companies coming with new, disruptive solutions. The area will feature the main trends of the exhibition, in particular with a well-represented hair care offering.
The Hackathon will again be organized by the LVMH Group and its Maisons: this year, the main theme is “Sustainable Beauty”, and over 50 young participants are expected.
But another trend will also be highlighted: wellbeing associated with notions of positive and inclusive beauty, but also clean beauty and nutricosmetics. “We will welcome many exhibitors in the field of superfood, like Finnish laboratory VTT, and much will be related to CBD-based products, as the branch is getting structured,” adds Franckie Béchereau.
Lastly, under the banner Activist Beauty”, the paid conference programme will be focused on companies’ responsible economic, social, and environmental strategies.
Business and networking
This year, networking and contact schemes will be further enhanced through several initiatives. Open Innovation will offer project designers the opportunity to meet six market leaders: Nuxe, Chanel, L’Oréal Research & Innovation, LVMH Research, Rodan + Fields, but also IFF, a player positioned a bit more upstream. Over 200 events are scheduled throughout the show.
In addition, Cosmetic 360 has always been the place for global clusters to meet. The 4th annual Cosmetics Clusters Rendez-Vous will gather about a hundred professionals to discuss collaborative projects, especially in the research area.
The show’s global dimension will also be enhanced, with 30% foreign exhibitors, including from new countries, like Finland, Sweden, or New Zealand. The country in the spotlight this year, the US, will be represented in the US Block through the main trends it conveys. “So many things come from the US and eventually influence our industry in terms of distribution, social media, indie brands, CBD, wellness, beauty tech, and others,” says Franckie Béchereau. Visitors will learn more about these themes with the talk shows organized in the central area. On the agenda: for the first time in Europe, the Mink startup will showcase their 3D printer that instantaneously generates its own makeup based on pictures.
The private gala marking the show’s 5th anniversary will take place at the Lido at the end of the first day, and the Awards ceremony will be held on October 17.
Qualified visitors
Since it was created, Cosmetic 360 has always banked on favouring qualified visitors and selecting exhibitors according to the relevance of their innovations.
“That is how synergies are made possible. Our approach is definitely pyramidal: we invite the highest function of every service and welcome visitors you will never see elsewhere. Likewise, we are very demanding with exhibitors,” explains the event’s Director.
“What satisfies us most is that there is an increasing number of Korean visitors coming separately. That is quite significant, given the importance of innovation in this country”, she concludes.
