, Columnist
A Beautiful Opportunity in China
A more open and humane trade regime can't come too soon for foreign cosmetics brands.
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Since they started breaking into the Chinese cosmetics market several decades ago, foreign beauty brands have been presented with a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't problem.
Driven by activism from animal welfare groups, companies such as L'Oreal SA's Body Shop have been trying to reassure consumers their makeup, skin creams and soaps aren't tested on animals. At the same time, regulations in China -- now the world's largest cosmetics market, according to Morgan Stanley -- effectively mandate animal testing on a vast array of products.