150 specialists and professionals took part on Tuesday June 12, 2018, in the 9th edition of Connexions R&D, high-level meetings between research and the cosmetics industry, organized in Orléans by Cosmetic Valley with the support of the Centre - Val de Loire Region, its historic partner. A world leader and champion of the French economy, the cosmetics industry examines and tests its ideas, projects and discoveries every year, through an unquestionable international scientific filter.
Half the cosmetics products that will be sold in the next 5 years are not yet known. Every twelve months, several hundred new products are presented to European consumers! In a highly competitive market where, alongside established rivals such as the United States, Japan and Italy, new players such as Taiwan and Korea are appearing, the industry needs to structure and strengthen its innovation dynamic if it is to maintain its positions.
Of course, it does so with the sector's major groups and their laboratories. But we also work with and for SMEs, with public laboratories and universities. These direct exchanges are the originality of our technological partnerships. This unique diversity of players is our comparative advantage in global competition, a scientific and intellectual added value that other players don't have.
For the Pôle de Compétitivité, these meetings also serve to highlight a triple reality. Firstly, they bear witness to the cluster's change of scale, since the French government entrusted it with the task of organizing the industry on a national scale, rather than simply structuring it locally. Secondly, they remind us that the industry's strength lies in its capacity to innovate, a pillar of Made in France in its markets, alongside product authenticity, consumer safety and environmental protection. Finally, they demonstrate that the Group is now taking an interest in all segments of its ecosystem, whether they be functional, as with the Cosvapex project, evaluated less than a week ago in Rouen, which offers unprecedented solutions for international transport, customs clearance or the fight against counterfeiting, they are thematic: Cosmetic Valley is expanding its competencies to include fragrances, skincare and make-up, which alone represent a fast-growing market of 66 billion USD, coveted by the world's leading companies.
In order to respond to this specific challenge, Cosmetic Valley has been leading a working group for the past year, bringing together major brands, façonniers, raw material and packaging suppliers, which launched a call for Make-up projects at the beginning of 2018. It was the success of this initiative - 37 projects received to date - that prompted Cosmetic Valley to dedicate the 2018 edition of Connexions R&D to it, giving innovative project leaders the opportunity to find partners to develop concepts and products. From then on, the communications and conferences that formed the backbone of these meetings, preceding the pitches of 20 project developers and a flock of BtoB meetings, saw the participation of companies particularly involved in this field: Japanese company Daito Kasei will be talking about pigments, Chanel and Clarins colors, an SME "Orléans Cosmetics" associated with Grenn ultrafine particles, Albéa Group packaging and the start-up Bouche Rouge which, hosted by Dior Recherches in Saint-Jean-de-Braye, has just launched a revolutionary lipstick concept.
Marc - Antoine Jamet, President of the competitiveness cluster, commented: "Innovation is the Holy Grail of our cluster, its growth driver and its life insurance policy. I'm delighted to see the creativity of French players in the make-up sector, driven by young people, social networks and the need for made-to-measure products. The prospects of this market, which is developing in Asia, offer new outlets, particularly for our SMEs and start-ups. Cosmetic Valley must continue to ramp up its Make-up program, with the first objective of creating a FabLab for the make-up of tomorrow. It's not a question of imitating what is already being done very well in France or Italy, or of compensating or catching up, but of identifying today the trends, components and products of the future.
