Known for their long, lustrous black hair, Red Yao women maintain their hair with a traditional beauty regimen of washing their hair with fermented rice water.
Guangzhou-based startup Yao Secret was founded in 2021 by Chinese-British duo Xim Jiao and Nadine Katherine.
The two saw an opportunity to develop an eco-friendly solid hair care product based on fermented rice water.
“Based on our research, we realized that there is a big market for things like shampoo bars. I’m starting to notice. ” With a background in e-commerce and marketing, Jiao said:
The product went through several iterations before being highly praised by the women of Red Yao.
The company launched one shampoo bar and one conditioner bar, as well as a range of hair styling tools. Since then, the company’s sales have been modest, with the majority of purchases coming from Europe and Australia.
According to Catherine, the brand resonates with consumers in these markets because environmental awareness is a top priority and solid beauty products are readily accepted.
Europe and Australia will continue to be important markets for the brand. It is currently available mainly through online stores and Amazon.
However, there are plans to go offline and we are in talks with distributors to enter brick-and-mortar stores in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
At the same time, we are expanding into Asia through Singapore, where we have launched services on Shopee.
According to Jiao, Singapore would be an ideal starting point as the barriers to entry are lower than in markets such as China.
Additionally, Katherine said she believes Singapore gives her the impression of a green city and that consumers are more willing to spend money on sustainable products.
The former fashion photographer emphasized that penetration of solid beauty products is not as high as in Europe or Australia, giving Yao Secret an opportunity to fill the gap.
Lush Cosmetics Singapore previously said Cosmetic Design AsiaOn the possibility that waterless beauty products will become mainstream in the future.
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Yao Secret sources fermented rice water directly from the Yao tribe and manufactures it in Guangzhou. Jiao reveals that he tried to ferment his own rice water, but failed despite following the tribe’s instructions.
“You can see that the color of rice koji water is different. It’s pure white, but if you ferment rice water at home, it turns black. I don’t know how they did it – it’s a secret.said Zhao.
Over the next 12 months, one of the key priorities for brands is to increase brand awareness and consumer education.
It uses its own blog to raise awareness about its leading Yao women and sustainability. She also utilizes her social media platforms such as Instagram and her TikTok.
According to Jiao, the Yao community has already found success using Chinese live-streaming platforms such as Douyin to trade home-made products.
The company also plans to expand its product line with a focus on sustainability. Future products will maintain a solid format to reduce reliance on plastic and glass packaging materials.
Regarding product development, “Skinification”Added Catherine for hair care. “Scalp care is the new skin care”.na
Looking ahead, Jiao said Yao Secret’s long-term ambition is to support the Yao community.
“We work directly with them. We source everything from them. I want to do more work from home. We also want to support the education of local children. If you live in the mountains, it will take an hour, an hour and a half by car, depending on traffic conditions. We want to create jobs for women so they can support their families. ”na
