Vietnamese cosmetics and the escape from sameness issue

Over 90% of cosmetics sold in Vietnam are imported. This figure is not a lament about policy but a map of a battle. Most domestic brands are participating in that battle with the wrong weapons: they improve formulas, lower prices, and run more ads, while the real issue lies elsewhere. Customers look at the shelf and cannot distinguish you from the ten bottles next to you.

The crisis of sameness

Sameness, loosely translated as "the syndrome of looking alike", is not just a problem for Vietnamese cosmetics. However, in Vietnam, it is more severe due to the near-zero barriers to entry in the industry: the same OEM factories, the same imported raw materials, the same e-commerce distribution channels. When production conditions are the same, the output products inevitably resemble each other. And when products are similar, the only remaining battle is price.

This is a trap. Not a trap set by competitors, but a trap you step into when you have no answer to the question: "Why should customers choose you, if not because you are cheaper?"

Why do customers trust a Korean bottle more than a Vietnamese one?

This question is uncomfortable but needs to be asked directly. When two serum bottles stand next to each other, both with 10% niacinamide and priced at 250,000 VND, customers often choose the one with Korean writing on the label. Not because they have checked the lab. But because the human brain processes visual signals first, then rationalizes afterward.

Korean brands have accumulated many years of investment in a consistent identity system: packaging designed for phone screens, tightly controlled brand language, and the K-beauty story told at every touchpoint. This is a brand gap, not a lab gap. And that gap can be narrowed, but not by copying.

A brand is not a logo. A brand is the feeling customers have about you.

Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap

Three layers of identity that imported goods lack

Imported cosmetics have an advantage in recognition, but there is one thing they cannot have: a true Vietnamese story. This is an asymmetric competitive advantage if leveraged correctly.

The first layer is the specific origin of ingredients. Not "Vietnamese nature" in general, but macadamia butter from Lam Dong, grapefruit extract from Bien Hoa, coconut oil from Ben Tre. Specificity creates a story that cannot be copied because it is tied to real geography, real growers, and real harvest seasons.

The second layer is third-party certifications. In a context where customers increasingly scrutinize ingredients and worry about counterfeit products, certifications from independent organizations are not a cost but a brand asset. Not every brand needs every certification, but at least one layer of external evidence is needed to replace self-praise.

The third layer is a consistent identity system. Byron Sharp and the Ehrenberg-Bass group have shown that distinctive identity assets, such as colors, shapes, and unique fonts, only create "memory presence" when repeated long enough and consistently. A pretty bottle is not a system. A system is what makes customers recognize you even without reading the name.

Cocoon achieves what Thorakao cannot

Thorakao is a long-established Vietnamese cosmetics brand with a stable formula and a wide distribution channel. However, looking at the packaging, it feels like stepping into a grocery store from the 1990s. Not because the brand lacks value, but because the identity system has not been updated to communicate with today's customers on today's channels.

Cocoon does things differently. They choose a specific and consistent positioning: vegan cosmetics made from Vietnamese ingredients, with real place names on the label, combined with Leaping Bunny and PETA certifications from third parties. As a result, they lead the domestic sheet mask segment with a superior market share according to the company's self-reported data.

The lesson is not "just do like Cocoon." The lesson is: choose a true angle, narrow enough to own, real enough that no one can copy, and then build an identity system around that angle.

Packaging is the starting point, not the endpoint.

Many Vietnamese cosmetics brands tackle the sameness issue by hiring designers to revamp their packaging. This is a necessary step but not sufficient. Good packaging captures the first glance. But if the social media page uses different language, the e-commerce site displays different images, and the consultants introduce the product in a different way, then the "identity system" is essentially just a pretty bottle standing in a chaotic environment.

Kapferer describes a brand through six facets: physical appearance, personality, culture, relationship, reflected user image, and the self-image customers want to build. Most Vietnamese cosmetics brands only invest in the first facet and then wonder why customers do not stay loyal.

Brand identity does not reside in a jar. It exists in the space between what the brand says and what customers feel, at every touchpoint, every encounter.

The practical path for a brand under construction

Not every cosmetics brand needs a large budget to escape sameness. But all must start from strategy, not from color.

• Identify a positioning angle that is narrow enough to own and relevant enough to attract customer interest.
• Craft a specific origin story, avoiding the terms "natural" or "clean" unless supported by evidence.
• Choose at least one third-party certification that aligns with your positioning, and use it consistently rather than just printing it small at the bottom of the box.
• Build an identity system sufficient for operation: colors, typography, brand language, and consistent product photography across all channels.
• Check the identity on a mobile screen before testing on physical shelves, as that is where customers encounter you for the first time.

The Vietnamese cosmetics market is growing. The window to capture a place in customers' memories is open, but it won't be open forever. Brands that establish a true identity first will be harder to replace later. Brands that wait will continue the price war with no end in sight.