New Product Development (NPD) in the cosmetic industry is the process of creating and launching new beauty products. It involves generating ideas based on market trends and consumer needs, developing formulations, conducting safety and regulatory testing, designing packaging, and coordinating marketing and production for launch. The process requires close collaboration between R&D, marketing, and regulatory teams, typically takes 12–24 months, and is strongly influenced by evolving consumer preferences such as sustainability and health-conscious ingredients. Effective NPD helps cosmetic brands stay competitive and meet changing market demands in a fast-paced industry.
It isn’t always obvious why a particular ingredient becomes suddenly popular. In the case of tallow it’s particularly difficult to work it out. It’s certainly a material that has got a lot going for it in terms of skin benefits. But it also has a lot of negatives in that it’s not very green and it’s not very good for vegetarians and vegans.