Marutake Cosmetics made face powder for 101 years — last owner too old to continue

Marutake Cosmetics (丸竹化粧品) was founded in 1925 on Zhulian Street in Hsinchu, a city whose dry climate made it ideal for producing traditional face powder. For over a century, the brand handmade fine-textured, lead-free face powder (香粉) and mugwort soap (艾草皂) using techniques passed down through three generations. Its products were affordable, natural, and once sold overseas, becoming a staple for generations of Taiwanese women.

The brand experienced a brief revival when discussions on PTT and Dcard attracted younger customers curious about traditional cosmetics. But the online attention could not overcome structural problems: the third-generation operator was ageing, the traditional production techniques were difficult to pass on, raw material costs were rising, and the market for traditional face powder had shrunk to a niche. New brands and changing consumer habits had permanently shifted demand away from the products Marutake made.

In May 2026, the brand announced it would close by the end of June. Google reviews filled with farewell messages from customers urging others to stock up before the closure. The closure of a 101-year-old brand with no successor illustrated a pattern common across traditional Asian manufacturing: cultural heritage and customer loyalty cannot substitute for a viable succession plan and a market large enough to sustain the business.

Closed in June 2026 after online nostalgia failed to offset rising costs and a shrinking market for traditional face powder.

No succession plan existed for the traditional production techniques, making the business dependent on a single ageing operator.

The market for traditional face powder shrank irreversibly as consumer preferences shifted to modern skincare and cosmetics brands.

Rising raw material costs squeezed margins on products that could not be repriced without losing their affordable positioning.

A brief online revival through PTT and Dcard generated nostalgia-driven attention but not the sustained demand needed to justify continuing production.

A heritage brand without a succession plan is a single point of failure. Online nostalgia can generate a farewell spike in sales, but it cannot rebuild a market that has structurally moved on.

Marutake Cosmetics (丸竹化粧品) closed its Zhulian Street shop by the end of June 2026. The brand's traditional face powder and mugwort soap recipes may be lost with the closure, as no successor was identified to continue the handmade production process.