In May 2023, KOSÉ Corporation (KOSÉ) was facing three ominous factors in the Chinese market: declining sales due to weak consumer spending in China following a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases after Beijing ended its zero-COVID-19 policy, new regulations requiring beauty manufactures after January 2024 to label all ingredients that constituted more than 0.1 per cent of a product in descending order (thereby risking disclosing trade secrets), and Chinese consumers’ preferences shifting to local Chinese beauty manufacturers. About 30 per cent of KOSÉ’s net sales came from the Chinese market, where it focused on its major brands, Sekkisei and Decorté. Yet the market was becoming more saturated with giant European beauty manufactures and local enterprises. Should KOSÉ keep focusing on the Chinese market as its pillar strategy?