Catherine Zeta-Jones for Unilever Japan's Lux campaign

In a recession, consumers treat themselves with daily luxuries and are often prepared to replace a holiday to Hawaii with a small-scale splurge. Beauty and Wellness categories are ripe for premiumization at this time.

That’s why cosmetics and consumer goods’ companies are currently hiring Oscar-winning actresses and handing out free samples to grab customer interest.

Shiseido completely updated and relaunched its Tsubaki line for the first time in March. Kao has expanded its Asience line, Unilever has done the same with Lux Super Damage Repair, and P&G is aggressively marketing a leave-in treatment with the Panteen brand.

Shiseido and Kao have taken the battle to the streets, with prominent ads in subways stations and free samples for pedestrians. Unilever and P&G, on the other hand, have focused on television and high-profile web advertising. For Lux, Unilever employed a Hollywood crew to shoot a short film staring Catherine Zeta-Jones.

For more on current “Up-Trading” trends, click here.

Pampers Premium Care diapers.

The birth rates has been steadily falling in Japan, and marketers are hoping that as parents have fewer children, the will spend more on each child.

P&G Japan has released Pampers Premium Care, available exclusively through Babies ‘R Us, the Japanese retailer Akachan Honpo, and mail order. The price is around 2,000 yen for a package of 60, considerably more expensive than around 1,500 yen for the same number of normal Pampers. The premium diapers are said to be better at preventing diaper rash through improved air circulation.

Learn more:
Other P&G Products
P&G Japan Official Site (Japanese)

In time for Valentine’s Day, Häagen-Dazs Japan has released limited editions of premium chocolates, made with couverture chocolate supplied by Belgian maker Barry Callebaut.

Learn more:
Other Suntory Products
Häagen-Dazs Japan Official Site (Japanese)

Designer Norico Kamata shows off some of her designer canes.

Designer Norico Kamata was working in the fashion industry four years ago, when a sudden illness left her in the need of a cane. She found that while of functional design of canes made in Japan are excellent, it was difficult to coordinate them with fashionable apparel. She launched her original brand, Norico, to fill that need. Her canes can be accented with Swarovski crystals and crocodile skin, and cost between 56,000 yen ($560) and 120,000 yen ($1,200), and custom order models are available. The canes are available at high end department stores such as Takashimaya and Mitsukoshi.

Recently eyeglass shops and drug stores in areas with a large amount of pedestrian traffic have begun selling canes from display stands in front of the shops.

Kirin Lager packaging harkening back to the Meiji and Taisho eras.

Today Kirin releases to limited edition packages for its Kirin Lager brand, which is celebrating its 120th anniversary. The two new retro can designs recreates the look of the brand during the Meiji Era (1868 – 1911) and the Taisho Era (1911-1925). Kirin has timed the release of the nostalgic packaging to coincide with the holiday season, when more families are likely to drink beer at home.

Learn more:
Other Kirin products
Kirin official homepage (Japanese)

The latest in a series of mineral water products popular in Korea.

In September, Jinro released Aqua Blue, positioned as a premium grade in its Seoksu mineral water line. The new products come during a time when mineral water sales are booming in Korea as the sale of bottled tea drinks slip.
Aqua Blue is made from desalinated deep sea mineral water extracted from 1,032 meters below the surface or Kangwon Province’s Yang Yang Bay. The water boasts 50 varieties of minerals found in deep sea water, and a pH level of 7.3-8, which is claimed to add in it being easily absorbed into the body. The blue gradation on the bottle is designed to represent the ocean getting darker at lower deepths.

This new premium line comes at a time when mineral water is booming in Korea. Bottled tea drinks, which peaked in 2004 during a wellness trend, with some hit products enjoying 40% sales growth per year, have stalled, and this market is predicted to begin shrinking by 10% per year.

Meanwhile, the mineral water market has skyrocketed from 3.5 billion won ($2.5 million) in 2006, to a projected 4.5 billion won ($3.2 million) in 2008. Many of the popular brands such as Blue Marine, Momejouenmul, and Ulleung Minewater are, like Aqua Blue, produced from desalinated deep sea water. Blue Marine, a premium water line by Lotte Chilsung, is enjoying sales success despite a price of 1,400 won($1) per .5 liter bottle, about 40% more than the market average. Ulleung Minewater sells for 2,000 won for a smaller, 330 milliliter bottle, which was recently redesigned to give it a more premium look.

The move from bottle tea to mineral water might be linked to a recent consumer backlash against genetically modified ingredients, which appear in some tea drinks. Mijin An

Ulleung Minewater is one the more expensive products on the market, as has new package design with a premium look.

One of only two Quarter Pounder locations in Japan.

Interiors are done in minimal black.

McDonald’s Japan briefly sold the Quarter Pounder sandwich nation-wide in the late 1990s, before dropping the item from menus. Beginning last November, they began test marketing Quarter Pounder sets at 40 McDonald’s branches in Kumamoto, a city of 1.5 million people in Kyushu.

On November 5th, a launch campaign began in Tokyo, with two McDonald’s locations in Shibuya and nearby Omotesando being totally converted to “Quarter Pounder” shops. The restaurants offer only two choices on the menu: a Quarter Pounder set for 500 yen, and a Double Quarter Pounder set for 600 yen. The interiors are minimal black, and feature Le Corbusier sofas. Interestingly enough, there is no discernable connection to McDonald’s. No golden arches, no yellow, no Ronald. Japanese consumers are not likely to know exactly what a pound is, or a quarter for that matter, but no clues are offered on the ultra-minimal Quarter Pounder website.

A contest is being run till the end of November, with a grand prize of a sightseeing trip to America being offered to ten couples. To enter the contest, applicants must answer a single question: Which fast food chain launched the Quarter Pounder in Japan?

The minimal Quarter Pounder website.

Following the recent craze for all things without sugar, Mt. Rainier has released a non-sugar version for its premium RTD coffee brand.

Learn more:
Other Mt. Rainier products
Mt. Rainier official site (Japanese)

Fillico bottled water costs $100 per bottle.

Osaka-based company Vieluce has begun marketing “Fillico Beverly Hills,” a line of premium luxury spring water that goes for ¥10,500 ($100) per 750 ml bottle.

The water comes from a natural spring at the foot of Mount Rokko in Kobe, an area known for producing excellent water for sake production. The bottles are handcrafted and encrusted with genuineSwarovski rhinestones.
Special “King and Queen” sets of two bottles with caps modeled after the crown of Fredrick II of the Roman Empire and decorated withSwarovski rhinestones are also available for ¥23,000 ($230). Bottles with engraved names can be order for wedding receptions and other special occasion.

Due to limited supplies of the water and the labor-intensive handmade bottles, production is limited to 5,000 units per month.

Since the water and bottles are fully produced in Japan, the “Beverly Hills” of the name is simply to invoke the opulence of Hollywood celebrity culture.

Premium mobile phone designs from the au design project.

Back in 2000, the Japanese mobile phone operator KDDI launched the au design project, where the company commissioned outside designers to come up with truly unique and attractive phones. The first handset launched was 2003′s infobar, designed by Naoto Fukasawa, followed by other iconic designs such as the Talby by Marc Newson.

With the tremendous success of this project, au not only established itself as the top brand for design-conscious consumers, but also introduced the model of working with outside designers.

Next month, NTT DoCoMo is looking to raise the marks considerably with the release of the N705i developed by handset manufacturer NEC and Realfleet, the company behind the amadana brand of luxury electronic goods that combine high quality with a distinct Japanese design aesthetic.

Realfleet has in turn again brought in outside designers to work on specific aspects of the handset. The result is a stunningly beautiful product that incorporates product design by architects and product designers Intentionallies, wallpapers and screensavers by graphic designers Tycoon Graphics, and sounds created by Towa Tei.