Shanghai to create 'Oriental Beauty Valley' to develop and promote local cosmetic brands globally

Shanghai aims to create an "Oriental Beauty Valley" that will develop and promote local cosmetic brands globally and help turn the city into Asia's largest "beauty and health" industry base, the city's economic commission said today.

Research and development on cosmetics and perfumes, healthcare and bio-pharmaceutical products as well as medical instruments and sports equipment will be the focus of the world's top pharmaceutical and cosmetics brands attracted to set up base in the valley, said Chen Yuehua, deputy director with the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Informatization.

The core site is mainly based in South Shanghai’s Fengxian District, known as the “Oriental Beauty Valley", which will research, design, manufacture and test products. The valley aims to be on par with France's Cosmetic Valley in Ile-de-France and Japan's Saito Life Science Park in northern Osaka. 

A full industry chain on cosmetic and health products valued at 100 billion yuan (US$15.1 billion) will be created by 2025 in Fengxian's beauty valley, Chen said.

The valley, the first of its kind in Shanghai, includes a 20-square-kilometer central industrial park to serve the headquarters of domestic and international companies, said Gu Yi, deputy director of Fengxian.

It has drawn 73 cosmetics companies from home and abroad and they generate over 40 percent of the total output value of the city's cosmetics industry, said Xu Jianlong, director with the district's economic commission. They include well-known global brands such as Nu Skin from the US and South Korea’s Cosmax as well as local brands such as Pechoin and Jala.

The district government said they would set up a 2 billion yuan fund to attract and assist more companies to base themselves in the valley.