Learning about cosmetics translation in the Stockholm Beauty Week
This week we are heading to Stockholm Beauty Week, which takes place in the Swedish capital on May 15 – 17, 2018! We are extremely excited to get to rub elbows with some beautiful Swedish supermodels and expand our contact base in the Scandinavian region.
You may be wondering what a language service provider is doing visiting beauty week. We play an important role in the marketing and distribution of a range of cosmetics both within the EU and throughout the world. Not only do we work to tell the story of our various clients’ products and ensure that they are communicated effectively, but we also play a role in labelling various products and ensuring that labels are sufficiently legible and understandable in the countries where products are destined for distribution.
Cosmetics translation
Many cosmetics have complex lists of ingredients and in many countries, ingredients must be clearly legible before they can be sold. In the European Union, Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009 on cosmetic products is the main regulatory framework for finished cosmetic products when placed on the EU market.
This regulation lays out the guidelines for any cosmetic product that will be sold within the EU. And that covers a LOT of materials. The Regulation is not JUST pertinent in the EU but applies to 31 different countries – the 28 EU member states together with Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein.
The regulation requires that:
- All cosmetic labels provide the name and address of the responsible person (RP).
- The packaging must state the country of origin, nominal content, the date of minimum durability (DOMD) and period after opening (PAO) as defined by the stability test.
- Labels must note any precautions of use and warnings, the batch number, product’s official function and finally, a list of ingredients.
The Regulation applies to 31 countries representing more than 24 different official languages. Any product’s function, as well as precautions of use, warnings, and nominal content are required to be translated into the country’s official language.
In Austria, Bulgaria, France, Poland, Portugal and Slovakia however, full translation of the entire label is required, including marketing language or any other claims. If for some reason the necessary information does not fit on the cosmetic label, a leaflet must be included inside the product’s packaging providing all the necessary information.
So, when we travel to trade fairs like Stockholm Beauty Week, we are investing in learning about the products that are going to be hitting the European markets and preparing for the trends that we will be handling for our clients.
Do you have a product that you know would sell well in another language market? We’d love to help get your product to the correct market area, so you can reach different targets quickly and effectively. Get in touch.
