SK-II
Parent Procter & Gamble | | |
Website | www.sk-ii.com |
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SK-II (pronounced S-K-Two) is a Japanese-based multinational cosmetics brand launched in the early 1980s, based on a compound derived from yeast. It is owned by parent company Procter & Gamble (P&G) and is sold and marketed as a premium skin care solution in East Asia as well as North America, Europe and Australia.
History
SK-II was developed in the 1970s by Japanese scientists investigating the use of more naturally derived ingredients after it was observed that elderly workers at a sake brewery had smooth, clear and young-looking hands from years of submerging them in the fermented yeast.[1] A yeast extract that the company calls pitera was eventually isolated for cosmetic use and the brand was launched in the early 1980s.[2][3] P&G acquired the brand with its purchase of Max Factor in 1991,[4] and expanded its sale from Japan to China, South Korea, in 2000 to the UK, and subsequently to the US, restricting initial sales to a few high-end stores where "consultants" introduced customers to the brand.[2][3] As of 2018[update], it is also sold in Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Spain, and Thailand.[5]
Controversies in China and South Korea
In April 2005, P&G agreed to pay a 200,000
References
- ^ "TOKYO BEAUTY BOOKSKII- The secret to achieving the enviable Japanese complexion". TOKYO BEAUTY BOOK. 2015-09-29. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
- ^ Advertising Age. Retrieved 2018-08-17.
- ^ a b "Birth of an Icon: SK-II". Procter & Gamble. 2012-11-26.
- ^ "SK-II | Brand History". home. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- ^ Procter & Gamble. "SK-II" (PDF) (press release). Retrieved 2018-08-17.
- ^ Normandy Madden (2005-04-25). "P&G to pay fine over SK-II in China". Advertising Age. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- ^ "China to halt imports of SK-II if problems show up again". China View. 2006-09-21. Archived from the original on 2008-10-07 – via Newsgd.
- Xinhua. 2006-09-22. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- ^ Kineta Hung; Richard Farmer (2008-01-11). Case Study: SK-II: Damage Control in China. Harvard Business Review.
- ^ a b "P&G to resume SK-II China sales in early December". Reuters. 2007-01-19 [2006-11-15]. Retrieved 2018-06-25.
- ISSN 0447-5763. Retrieved 2018-10-06.