Philippines’ Ever Bilena rides next wave of cosmetics growth

The brand is banking on Gen Zs in the rapidly evolving beauty product landscape. 

Ever Bilena continues to keep up with the times by listening to the insights of Gen Z consumers in the Philippines, where skincare and cosmetics have transitioned from being a luxury to a necessity. 

And in the business of trying to look and feel good, presentation and feelings matter a lot, Denice Sy, chief sales and marketing Officer at Ever Bilena, told Retail Asia. 

“If you go to social media platforms, you see a lot of younger visuals, more creative or coquettish, and they focus on femininity and have a mix of sweet and romantic elements — very pink,” she pointed out. 

“The unique selling proposition of your product should no longer be just about functionality. It is a lot about their feelings and affinity to the product,” she added. 

The Philippine cosmetics market is projected to grow 1.2% annually in the next five years from $794.20m in 2024, according to German business intelligence platform Statista. The bigger Asian market is expected to grow 3.3% annually from $254.20b now. 

Most Filipino Gen Zs (51%) now consider beauty and cosmetics integral to their daily lives – a need rather than a want, according to consumer-focused venture capital fund DSG Consumer Partners. 

About a third of Gen Z consumers in the Philippines planned to boost their spending on beauty products in the next six months, compared with 22% of millennials, it said in an October 2023 report. 

Sy, who joined the company of her father Dioceldo — the CEO and “father of Philippine cosmetics” — in 2014, said cosmetic trends come and go. “As the trends evolve, we will adapt to them as well.” 

Ever Bilena, which her father founded in 1983, is sold in 6,000 retail stores and by a quarter-million direct sellers all over the Philippines, making inventory management a key challenge. 

But product loyalty does not exist in a vacuum, and the beauty product maker still must innovate to stay on top. “We innovate every month but we are still very mindful of what we develop,” Sy said. 

“We can’t just be launching products for the sake of saying we innovated this month. It should be products that people will enjoy using and keep returning to.” 

Ever Bilena offers one-time limited-edition items. “Then there are products that we hope will become a new core item in their beauty kits,” Sy said. 

For example, Ever Bilena’s bullet matte lipstick in the shade “Toast of New York” has been incorporated in several of the brand’s lip products due to popular demand. 

Sy also cited the brand’s strong online presence amidst stiff competition. It has had about 825,000 likes from 121,000 followers on Tiktok. It also has about 336,000 subscribers on Instagram. 

Sy expects competition to be more cut-throat in the next five years. “It is going to be consumers dictating what they want, and us finding out how we can fit into that story in their lives.”