As the global cosmetics industry enters a new phase of technological competition and brand rivalry, domestic Chinese beauty brands have evolved beyond the initial model of simply exporting products. They are now transitioning towards high-level global competition centered on brand power, scientific research capabilities, and cultural influence. Against this backdrop of industry transformation, Proya Cosmetics Co.,Ltd., as the first leading enterprise in China's beauty industry to achieve a scale of over ten billion yuan, is continuously expanding the international expression boundaries of domestic brands, with a core focus on scientific innovation and value output.
From March 26 to 28 local time in Italy, the 57th Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna, the international beauty exhibition, was held in Bologna. Proya Cosmetics Co.,Ltd. participated once again, bringing its flagship brand Proya, the professional makeup artist brand Timage, and the Asian scalp holistic care expert Off&Relax. The company showcased its latest scientific research achievements and innovative products, while also providing insights into global beauty trends.
Following its debut appearance, Proya's second participation in Cosmoprof extends far beyond merely "exhibiting." Transitioning from product display to value expression, and from brand exposure to concept dissemination, the event resembles a profound dialogue demonstrating China's technological prowess in beauty, brand ambition, and commitment to sustainable development. Moving from a leading position in China to a world-class stature represents a critical step for Proya in shifting from "going out" to "integrating deeply" into global markets.
Public information indicates that Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna was founded in 1967 and is one of the world's most prestigious and influential beauty industry exhibitions. After 59 years of development, the status of Cosmoprof in the global beauty industry is comparable to that of Paris Fashion Week in the fashion world. It is not only a leading global platform covering the entire cosmetics industry chain but also a global center for beauty trend releases and a rigorous testing ground for capabilities.
It is understood that this year's Cosmoprof exhibition gathered over 3,000 exhibiting companies and 250,000 professional visitors, with influence extending to more than 160 countries and regions, involving tens of thousands of brands. Therefore, for any brand aspiring to go global, Cosmoprof is not just a display window but also a touchstone for its strength and determination. Consequently, Proya's renewed participation signifies that the internationalization of China's leading beauty enterprises has progressed from the early stages of channel experimentation and product exportation into the "deep water" phase of engaging in global dialogue with systematic brand value, scientific research systems, and industry standards. This is no longer a choice of "whether to internationalize" but an era-defining question of "how to integrate into and influence the global industrial ecosystem with a specific posture and contribution."
Proya's consistently cultivated robust scientific research strength is the most solid foundation for its participation in international competition. Upon arriving at the Proya booth, one first perceives its long-term adherence to the principle that "technology is the primary productive force." It is understood that, relying on a global R&D network established through its Hangzhou Longwu, Shanghai, and European Science and Innovation Centers, Proya is continuously expanding the boundaries of its scientific research capabilities. Simultaneously, it has established in-depth collaborations with over a hundred global top-tier supply chain partners, including Germany's BASF, America's Ashland, and the Netherlands' DSM-Firmenich.
Building on this foundation, Proya is gradually establishing a full-chain innovation system spanning from raw material development and formula optimization to efficacy verification, forming a product competitiveness driven by scientific research. This powerful R&D capability is also intuitively reflected in the series of star products and innovative achievements displayed on site.
At this exhibition, Proya appeared in a coordinated "brand family" format, attracting numerous international professionals for exchanges. As the company's primary brand, Proya showcased its core王牌 product lines, including the Energy Series, Super Film Sunscreen, Source Power, Dual Anti-Aging, and Ruby Series. Within the "Energy Series 2.0" products, three key items—the Essence Water, Repairing Lotion, and Cream—have already incorporated the Cellergy pro™ composite formula. This formula was developed jointly by Proya Cosmetics Co.,Ltd. and Zhejiang University. It utilizes AI-driven deep learning technology to efficiently screen active compounds with the potential to enhance mitochondrial function and delay skin aging, with their effects validated through high-throughput image analysis and biological experiments. Based on this breakthrough discovery, the research team successfully developed the Cellergy pro™ composite formula, which can significantly improve the energy metabolism level of damaged cells, repair mitochondrial structural abnormalities, and ameliorate skin aging issues.
As a representative of professional makeup brands, Timage interprets the value of professional makeup with precise product efficacy, from concealers and contouring products to bestselling base makeup items, becoming a crucial part of Proya's multi-brand matrix and global layout. This time, Timage showcased star products such as the Dual-Cushion Compact, Master Concealer Palette, Contouring Palette, Face Palette, and Primer at the exhibition, fully demonstrating that Chinese color cosmetics already possess quality and creativity comparable to top international brands.
Furthermore, Off&Relax, the Asian scalp holistic care expert, participated with its three core product lines targeting dandruff removal, anti-hair loss, and Star Silk Repair, presenting a full-chain hair care solution covering scalp health and hair texture on the international stage. Over the past five years, Off&Relax has consistently adhered to a gentle yet powerful "long-term maintenance philosophy," not only establishing a distinct positioning of "holistic scalp care" in its field but also showcasing Proya's professional dedication and systematic capabilities in the scalp care segment to the international community.
By presenting its multi-brand, multi-category, and multi-segment layout on the global stage, Proya clearly communicates to the industry that it has built a product ecosystem adaptable to globalized and diversified market demands, possessing the comprehensive ability to systematically output brand value and product solutions.
Innovation extends beyond technology to ensuring that each product becomes the optimal solution for user pain points. At Cosmoprof, a highly competitive arena, product innovation is key to impressing professional audiences and earning respect. At this year's exhibition, two new products launched by Proya last year—the Timage Dual-Cushion Compact and the Off&Relax Anti-Hair Loss & Hair Strengthening Ampoule Serum—both received nominations for the 2026 Cosmoprof Awards. This objective selection by global beauty professionals undoubtedly serves as the most direct and powerful international certification of Proya's R&D and innovation capabilities.
This recognition also signifies that leading domestic beauty brands, represented by Proya, are gaining acceptance from global professional systems for their product innovations based on solving user pain points. This breaks the old path of "the West defining standards, the East following with applications," demonstrating the feasibility of original innovation based on differentiated market demands.
For instance, the Timage Dual-Cushion Compact directly addresses consumers' base makeup pain points. Its dual-layer integrated design effectively tackles common issues such as the difficulty of balancing coverage with a lightweight feel, cakey makeup on dry skin, makeup melt-off on oily skin, and cumbersome application steps. It is understood that the upper cushion of this product uses 0.25-micron ultra-fine powder for a lightweight, skin-adhering finish. The lower layer is paired with a concealer in a similar shade for precise blemish correction, achieving both a translucent effect and high coverage. Additionally, magnetically-adhering powder combined with dynamic "light-catching micro-particles" creates a plump, porcelain-glow complexion. Dual oil-control technology and hyaluronic acid-encapsulated powder provide precise hydration for dry areas, achieving anti-oxidation, long-lasting wear, and smudge-proofing in one step.
Currently, anti-hair loss has become a consensus "essential needs" market. Public data shows that the number of people in China concerned about hair loss has exceeded 250 million, with androgenetic alopecia being the primary type. The Off&Relax Anti-Hair Loss & Hair Strengthening Ampoule Serum delves into researching Type XVII collagen, a key factor affecting the activity and differentiation of hair follicle stem cells, pushing the anti-hair loss category from "superficial care" towards "source intervention."
It is worth mentioning that in January this year, Off&Relax launched a new Star Silk Repair series. Specifically designed for Asian hair severely damaged by perming, dyeing, and bleaching, this series includes the Star Silk Shampoo, Star Silk Hair Mask, and Star Silk Hair Milk Oil. Centered around the "Star Silk Luxurious Repair Trilogy," it employs a "Dual-Axis Core" repair principle: internally repairing the Hair Core Regeneration Axis with the core ingredient Human Hair Core Peptide, and externally repairing the Hair Strand Structure & Light Axis paired with rare Cashmere Soft Protein, repairing hair strands from the inside out to create a silky texture.
Whether it's Timage responding to the dual demands for "natural skin finish" and "long-lasting wear," or Off&Relax's continuous R&D investment focused on the hair loss concerns of Chinese people, the underlying logic is the same: starting from real consumer needs to drive product innovation. Products are the most direct language at an exhibition. The array of star products on Proya's booth not only demonstrates the company's solid strength in product innovation but also highlights that its R&D system already possesses the capability to continuously incubate products that are both market-forward and technologically leading, pushing product quality towards international first-class standards.
Thereby, Proya also demonstrates to the industry a pragmatic path for Chinese beauty brands to go global. Truly globally competitive brands are never simple replicas of international paradigms. Instead, they are based on local insights, deeply cultivating segmented needs, and using verifiable, perceptible, and replicable product innovation to build a bridge for dialogue between Eastern beauty and the global market. When R&D is no longer just for catching up but for solving real problems, domestic brands gain the core confidence to stand on the international stage for the long term, transcending price and channel advantages.
Simultaneously, sustainable development has become an irreversible major trend in the global beauty industry, and the popularization of green consumption concepts is profoundly influencing industry direction. Faced with increasingly urgent global climate challenges, the wave of green consumption continues to reshape industry development requirements. "Sustainable products" have emerged accordingly, further driving the supply chain and brand sides to accelerate their sustainable transformation.
Undoubtedly, products are an important carrier for Proya to convey its sustainable philosophy. Proya has referenced international cutting-edge industry standards, authoritative certifications, and rating systems to establish a "Sustainable Product Assessment Model" covering the entire product lifecycle. By scientifically assessing the sustainable attributes of products, it has taken a significant step towards providing consumers with transparent information. Currently, Proya's sustainable development efforts are standardized, quantifiable, and constitute a systematic project covering the entire chain, resonating with the latest international ESG trends and providing a referable Chinese solution for the green transformation of the global beauty industry.
Beyond commercial and product displays, Proya actively participates in global dialogue. At the Cosmotalks roundtable forum held concurrently with the exhibition, Dr. Lieve Declercq, Proya's Chief Scientific Advisor and Vice President of the European Science and Innovation Center, served as a representative of Chinese beauty brands in scientific research. She engaged in discussions with experts from data research, scientific innovation, and global distribution fields, exploring the topic "Chinese Beauty Breakthrough: How Local Emerging Brands are Reshaping the Chinese Beauty Market and Their Global Significance."
During the forum exchange, Dr. Lieve Declercq shared that Chinese consumers' attention to long-term health management and concepts related to "skin longevity" is continuously rising. Unlike overseas markets where such needs often emerge from a mature consumption stage, Chinese consumers are starting earlier to understand skincare from a long-term perspective, viewing it as a future-oriented health investment. At the same time, Chinese consumers are becoming more knowledgeable about products and ingredients, focusing not only on efficacy itself but also increasingly valuing the mechanism of action, ingredient logic, and the scientific explanation behind products. This change is driving Chinese beauty brands further towards a R&D logic that emphasizes prevention, long-termism, and scientific evidence.
She also mentioned that the competitiveness of Chinese brands is no longer limited to cost-performance advantages. In higher price segments and more professional product dimensions, they are also beginning to demonstrate relatively strong growth capabilities. Furthermore, the continuous enhancement of local brand influence on online platforms further confirms the comprehensive advancement of Chinese brands in consumer understanding, product innovation, and channel operation.
"A very interesting phenomenon is that some concepts characteristic of Chinese lifestyles, such as health skincare and traditional Chinese wellness, are also being disseminated overseas through social media, attracting increasing attention from international practitioners, social media KOLs, and consumers. The international expression of Chinese beauty brands is being endowed with more distinct scientific connotations and cultural identity," stated Dr. Lieve Declercq.
Dr. Declercq's remarks, to some extent, reflect Proya's vision and confidence in actively participating in the construction of the global beauty discourse system. This is not only a demonstration of the strength of Chinese beauty going global but also injects new vitality into the diversified development of the global beauty industry. As the industry enters a new stage of competing based on comprehensive strength, the dimensions of competition are being entirely reconfigured—from product hard power to sustainable standards, and from industry thought leadership to global discourse power. Proya is no longer just a participant but is adopting a more responsible and visionary posture to export China's innovation capabilities and development paradigms in beauty to the world.
