In recent months, the beauty world has been noticing a trend towards Japanese skin care and makeup. Headlines asking if J-beauty was the new K-beauty were aplenty, but a few were quick to point out that this wasn't technically the case. Yes, there's been a surge in popularity lately, but with juggernauts like Shiseido dating back several decades on U.S. soil, it's clear that Japanese beauty has deep roots.
Deep though these roots may be, it is true that Japanese beauty brands haven't always been as visible as their neighbors across the Korea Strait. Victoria Tsai, the Chinese American genius behind Tatcha accredits this to certain cultural values. "I think one of the reasons why Japanese beauty had not taken off here or outside of Japan for so long is because in Japan it's a culture of excellence and humility," she said when we chatted with her at Sephoria last month.
According to Tsai, the money that a typical brand might spend on marketing, a Japanese beauty brand might instead invest in research and development and customer service. "Because that's the heart of Japanese quality," asserts Tsai. "They don't put as much time or money into talking about how great they are." Which is precisely why Tsai has made it her mission — and Tatcha's — to spread the good word. "My whole thing is, 'I will brag on you because I love you. And I'm not ashamed to brag on you because it's not my culture.'"
Interestingly, the very fact that it's not her native culture makes Tsai hypersensitive to accuracy. "Everything in the ritual comes from a 400-year-old tradition in Japan. When I'm creating something from a very, very real history and tradition, it's super important to us that we are sharing elements of that history in a way that honors that history authentically."
This is expressed in a variety of ways, including the brand's gorgeous packaging. "The shape of our packaging comes from natsume tea caddies, which is the shape of the tea caddies they use in a green tea ceremony, which is one of the classical arts of Japan." (You might recognize this distinctive shape from Tatcha favorites like the popular The Rice Polish, $65, or the gorgeously lightweight The Water Cream, $68). The same ideology holds true for the logo, which is dually inspired by obidome (the "little jewels that geisha wear") as well as traditional Japanese mon, or family crests.
In addition to certain visual cues, the Tatcha formulas are also very Japanese. "Everything is made in Japan; sourced in Japan," says Tsai. And Tatcha's core ingredient, Hadasei-3 (which makes up an impressive 98 .7 percent of the brand's popular The Essence, $95) is completely made from traditional Japanese superfoods: green tea, rice and seaweed, which are fermented twice to "really unlock the nutrients." "I think we're just still tapping into how powerful these natural technologies are — like fermentation — but also natural ingredients," says Tsai.
No matter how you cut it, Tsai clearly has a deep love for Japanese beauty. "We always say we started Tatcha to share the treasures that I'm finding on my journeys," says Tsai. And given the brand's covet-worthy lineup of products — of which even Meghan Markle reportedly counts herself a fan — it's safe to say she's doing an excellent job of it.
