Please note: this article is not an endorsement of any one product. None of the products mentioned are clients and there was no remuneration related as this is an independent blog about marketing, culture and the internet as it relates to marketing.

While working in the Fortune 100 world, dry office air was an issue for me, and my search for a topical solution led me to Noevir, a high end Japanese skin care line. With my very sensitive skin, I was fascinated that I had found a product that I could not only tolerate, but it was pleasant and did appear to help the appearance of my skin. It is also a product name that resonated with many Americans of Japanese descent here (notably the Nisei) who were familiar with the brand. Thus began a fascination for Japanese Skin care.

Many of Noevir skin care products are designed to be at least a five step process. First there was the make-up removal. This was not a hurried process, but it integrated as a facial massage, as well. The next step would be a “soap” used with water, that would help remove the impurities that the massage cleansing cream took out of your pores. This would be followed up by a balancing lotion, designed to help the skin’s PH and to tighten pores, and then a moisturizing lotion. At this point, my face would feel so moisturized that using their moisturizing lotion was like icing on a cake.

Noevir is an MLM and as such, has rules about how their products can be retailed. Generally, unless you are a high end salon, the products are sold via independent reps. The multistep process seems daunting for the time poverty stricken North Americans, but when you consider what each step is designed to do, it makes sense that so many users of these types of skin care lines who do the entire line, often have the appearance of nice looking skin as proof of at least the process.

Having dabbled with a variety of skin care options, and not having been thrilled at any of them when used for a month or so, I’ve been drawn back to Japanese skin care. I’ve often wondered about scalability, because many of the high end lines require an investment of well over $300 for their lines. Personally I’ve found the higher end lines have been more effective for myself, as I’ve gotten older. This changes the price mix for me considerably as the entire line of my favorite is over $400 if paying full retail. This pales in comparison to some of the high end lines sold in high end stores, where one bottle of product is nearly $400.

From a consumer behavior standpoint, one must ask what the differentiating factor is. In my case, it is not only that the line is Japanese skincare, as I’ve tried many of them and while they all seem to feel better than anything else I’ve tried, there are still wide variations and discrepancies in how my skin and the product interacts. This doesn’t seem to matter whether it is a high end product or a sub-line.

Recently I was at Mitsuwa, in Arlington Heights, and I decided to do a little in person research on some of their skin care products. I found one product marked as “Organic Natural Skin Cream” although a review of the ingredient list didn’t quite make me feel like I was using something I could whip up in my kitchen. What I did notice, however, is that it did not irritate my skin, and it helped measurably with some patches of dry skin where anything else I had been trying had not helped.

The skin care section at Mitsuwa also included many skin care lines, some of which are recognizable brands here, such as Biore, and DHS. DHS is generally sold via mail order, and the company includes generous quantities of samples of their products. I say “generous” in comparison to some of the rather minute samples other companies have offered. With DHS samples, you can actually get a decent idea whether the product item works for you or not.

One of the items I also picked up was a bottle that was mostly in Japanese. Having tried it, I was very pleased with it as the price point was fairly reasonable. After closer inspection, I discovered that it was also made by Noevir, but clearly not retailed in any way that would compete with their higher end MLM lines. However, the one bottle of lotion purchased was intended to be part of an entire set.

There are other high end Japanese skin care lines besides Noevir, amongst the more well known are Pola, Sheiseido, Shu Uemura and Kanebo; these range from what could be labeled designer, versus couture. While I haven’t tried them all, I can say that the regimen of using a Japanese skin care product alone requires a lifestyle adaptation and an attitude change. The multi step process leaves my skin feeling cleaner, and with all the creams and toners, it is impossible not to feel like you are treating yourself to a facial spa every day. Herein lies the difference between consumer behavior of most women in Japan, versus in the USA. Here, we tend to look at anything that slows down the time we need to go from” Point A to Point B” differently, since we tend to be of a short term time orientation. This is different from most group oriented cultures, which also look at long term orientation. In this case, this translates to investing in your skin care now, so that it maintains a clarity in the future.

There is also an excellent article on Japanese Skin Care in Ubiki Magazine, written by Yuko Enomoto. Click on the link to read it.