Premium Beauty News – How is SGD Pharma doing in the beauty market?
Sheherazade Chamlou – The Beauty & Care division of SGD Pharma is now widely present in the beauty sector. Boasting over 20 years of experience, the company prevails in the Asia-Pacific market (APAC), and we are more and more present for our clients in North America and Europe. Luxury brands increasingly invest in high-end packaging solutions, and glass has become a preferred choice, driven by environmental concerns and enhanced compatibility with formulas. We support brands with this transition by offering our expertise and production capacity in China, as well as our global network of sales offices.
Premium Beauty News – Do you offer standardized or tailor-made solutions?
Sheherazade Chamlou – At SGD Pharma, we combine the two approaches. For brands seeking turnkey solutions, we have Constellations, a premium range of packaging made from glass, with various models and sizes adapted to skincare, makeup, and nutricosmetics products. Several customization options are available thanks to advanced decoration techniques.
For brands that prefer unique creations, we offer tailor-made solutions combining innovation and excellence. This way, we support them in developing packaging designs that stand out, in line with market trends, while ensuring flawless quality. We have adopted an agile approach to offer quick and flexible development, meeting efficacy and smoothness needs in project management.
Premium Beauty News – What client profiles do you work with?
Sheherazade Chamlou – We serve a diversified customer base in the beauty industry, including global brands, with premium glass packaging solutions compliant with international standards. In addition, we work with local, independent young brands by offering turnkey, customised packaging to help reduce time-to-market. Lastly, the company provides the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical sectors with packaging solutions adapted to food supplements and health items.
Premium Beauty News – How is the group’s production structured?
Sheherazade Chamlou – SGD Pharma has five production sites in Europe and Asia, each specializing in particular aspects of glass packaging designed for the pharmaceutical and beauty industries.
Our site in Zhanjiang, China, is our center of excellence for beauty. It is meant for both customized and standard solutions. The plant received significant investments to optimize energy performance and broaden our production capacities. It now offers feeder coloration and a range of colored glass options, mainly for luxury beauty products.
The decoration workshop of the Zhanjiang plant provides our customers with sophisticated techniques which meet luxury brands’ finishing needs, including lacquering, frosting, silk screening, pad printing, and hot stamping. Other techniques such as metallization, labelling, decoration by Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD), and digital printing, are also available through a network of specialized partners.
Premium Beauty News – How do you meet market eco-design expectations?
Sheherazade Chamlou – The R&D team focused on the 3Rs rule: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
As an example, the Nova range is a lightweight glass solution which significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions, while preserving the aesthetic and functional qualities of glass. These bottles are made using the Narrow Neck Press and Blow (NNPB) technology for producing pharmaceutical bottles. The new model offers a 215-ml brimful volume and a weight of only 140 g for an extremely low weight-volume ratio of 0.65, while preserving the same properties thanks to glass distribution optimization to ensure better mechanical strength.
As for the Eclipse range, it offers a tailor-made, refillable eco-designed packaging solution. Endowed with a Twist & Lock system, it makes it possible for customers to reuse glass bottles with a refillable system based on capsules.
SGD Pharma China integrates up to 20% of Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) glass cullet to its production, thus complying with FEVE’s standards. PCR glass helps reduce both the use of virgin materials and carbon emissions through reduced energy consumption during the melting process. It provides cosmetics brands with a more sustainable primary packaging option to reduce their Scope 3 emissions. PCR glass production is an integral part of SGD Pharma’s overall target to reduce its carbon footprint by 35% by 2030 and by 65% by 2040 (Scope 1 & 2), compared to 2020 results, and to achieve the 1.5°C SBTi trajectory (Science Based Targets) to which the group is committed.
Last month, SGD Pharma received the EcoVadis Platinum medal, joining the top 1% glassmaking companies and all the companies assessed on the global level in terms of sustainability.
Premium Beauty News – What do you think are the current major trends in the beauty and perfume industries?
Sheherazade Chamlou – As far as packaging is concerned, consumers want sustainability, aesthetics, but also functionality. Beauty market trends also play an essential role: the boom of clean and natural products drives the use of glass packaging.
Brands also seek unique designs and innovations to stand out in a saturated market. Customized shapes, creative decorations, and even personalized touches are in high demand. This quest for differentiation led manufacturers to develop new glass decoration techniques combining a wow effect and environmental protection. Innovations like translucent metallization or PVD coatings, and iridescent decors create catchy effects on glass, while remaining recyclable.