Shiseido's discount-led China e-commerce push produced its first China loss in 7 years

Shiseido entered the post-pandemic period betting that Chinese e-commerce was the key to recovery in a market it counted on. The Japanese beauty giant pushed aggressively into online channels — and the strategy proved double-edged, Nikkei Asia reported in June 2023: an online-focused approach that failed to boost profits.

The damage showed up on both fronts. Operating in a market of platform price wars battered the company's brand image in China, and by mid-2023 the push had resulted in Shiseido's first loss in China in seven years.

Its first loss in China in seven years, with the brand's image in its key market battered by the e-commerce price war.

The recovery bet leaned on discount-heavy online selling, dragging a premium brand into Chinese platforms' e-commerce price wars.

Price-led selling battered Shiseido's brand image in China, the key market the strategy was built around.

An online-focused strategy that failed to boost profits left volume without margin, ending in the first China loss in seven years.

In discount-driven e-commerce, chasing recovery sales on price can erode the premium image that justified the price — and still not deliver profit.

As of the June 2023 Nikkei report, Shiseido was planning a comeback centered on rebuilding the brand its e-commerce push had hit.