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SK-II is a Japanese company, who create, market and distribute high-end skincare products to various retail outlets globally. The company has been established for over 37 years and markets its products globally to a primarily female audience. They have also been involved in the social media campaign #changedestiny.

History
The active ingredient in SK-II’s products was first discovered in the 1970’s. Scientists on a routine visit to a sake brewery in Japan noticed that the faces of the brewery’s elderly workers showed the typical signs of aging, but their hands did not. They also noticed that the brewery’s employees spent a lot of the day with their hands submerged in Sake yeast and postulated that there might be a link between sake yeast and soft skin.

Upon further research scientists were able to isolate a strain of yeast which was rich in vitamins, amino acids and organic acids similar to the skin’s Natural Moisturizing Factors. They referred to this strain as PITERA™ and found that it works by supporting the skin’s natural surface rejuvenation process.

Products
Every product from SK-II contains its signature ingredient PITERA™. Well-known SK-II products include; Facial Treatment Essence, Genoptics Aura Essence, R.N.A Power Radical New Age Cream.

One of SK-II most popular products, Facial Treatment Essence, also known as “Miracle Water” (Ref 7), contains over 90% PITERA™. Facial Treatment Essence is known for its cult status and its effect on the skin's texture, radiance, firmness and clarity.

Campaigns
In 2013, SK-II launched #changedestiny; an ongoing social media campaign which challenged the assertion that destiny is preordained. It is hoped that the campaign will encourage more women to adopt a more existentialist worldview.

In 2016, SK-II released a film “Marriage Market” (Link) which aimed to raise awareness of Chinese women being pressured into marriage before the age of 25. The campaign prompted conversations across social media particularly in China where netizens heavily discussed the issue on social networks like Weibo and Wechat.

The film gained over 46 million views. and won 2 wards at the Cannes Lion International Festival of Creativity, a Glass Lion award for their work on promoting discourse on gender equality and a Gold Lion for PR award for promoting corporate social responsibility.

In June 2017, SK-II launched a new campaign #INeverExpire. The campaign encourages women to define their own destinies by challenging societal norms of age related timelines. As part of this, SK-II created the film “The Expiry Date” a moving film about age related pressure which powerfully showcases the proverbial “expiration date” that many women experience. This film gained over 100 million views. and sparked a pan-Asian discussion around age pressure on social media.

Brand Ambassadors and Spokespersons
The brand is represented by professional actresses, Tangwei, Haruka Ayase, Ni Ni, Kasumi Arimura who are all loyal users of the brand. One of SK-II’s longest running brand ambassadors is Japanese actress- Kaori Momoi who is said to have been using SK-II products for more than 20 years.

In 2017, SK-II partnered with several trend influencers including supermodel Behati Prinsloo, K-Pop singer Choi Soo Young and fashion icon Chiara Ferragni in a bid to increase the brand’s profile across social media.