Italian Beauty Starts with a Smile
May 2013
By Claudia Franco, Milan
Italian beauty comes from inside. It’s about an inner wellbeing and, above all, beauty is something that can be increased with smiling, especially if you take care of your teeth. In accordance with Tai Chi training, an open, smiling face is always more attractive than one that’s perfectly made up.
New Italian toothpaste Dietrificio not only promotes a sparkling smile, but a blend of herbs curbs the taste for sugar and therefore doubles as a diet tactic. It’s popular with the VIP crowd too. Natural tooth products are also popular. Vicco is a stellar ayurvedic toothpaste that’s sold in the Indian stores around Milan’s Stazione Central.
But beauty is still a topical practice, of course. B.B. Creams (Blemish Balm Cream), a tinted face product originally developed in Germany but highly popular in Asia, hydrates all skin types and levels out color. They are the new cult product for a perfect Italian visage. The product is so popular that other beauty brands, such as Vichy, Pupa or Garnier, have created their own B.B. Creams with a promise of a simple, healthy and clean beauty instead of the previous system of heavy foundation and maquillage. It also seems that men will use these more evolved products as well. And of course now, there is a second-generation incarnation of the B.B. Creams that are storming the Italian market, this time developed in Korea. The magical properties of C.C. Creams (Color Control Creams) seem endless.
As for the men, there has definitely been an increase of beauty products targeted towards a growing male cosmetics market. Biotherm’s new promotional videos marry male beauty with niche sports, starring the kitesurfing world champion Youri Zoon. The slogan claims that, “the exceptional men requires exceptional skincare,” and will speak well to beauty-conscious (if not vain) Italian men, both old and young alike.


