Shan Lin '26

Shan Lin, a senior business management major at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford is conducting novel research that seeks to better understand the impact of culture on sustainable development in the cosmetics industry. Her findings could better explain why sustainable business practices have been easier to implement in certain markets, while also identifying best practices that can increase sustainable development across the industry.

Lin presented her initial results at the Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences’ Student Research Symposium on April 10.

“As I began this study, I found that Asian cosmetics companies, particularly those in South Korea, had made much more progress in reducing the use of animal testing, implementing green product lines and incorporating sustainable practices across the enterprise,” Lin says. “I wanted to find out why.”

Her preliminary results indicate that the significant cultural differences that exist between how cosmetics is perceived in Asia versus Europe and the U.S. has played a role in how sustainability has been adopted in these markets.

“In South Korea, cosmetics are seen as a way to help individuals look better and feel better about themselves. This is often viewed as a more important driver than profit and led to companies embracing sustainable practices and marketing them as being better for their customers,” Lin adds. 

“Transparency is also very important in Korean culture, so consumers tended to gravitate to products with clearer ingredient and sourcing information. This has driven cosmetics makers to be more open about what ingredients they are using and how they are developed.”

She also notes that as Korean companies adopted green manufacturing methods and made sustainability a main pillar of their marketing and sales strategy, they also greatly increased market share compared to European and American competitors. This could provide incentives for additional cosmetic manufacturers to adopt sustainable models, just because it is a good business strategy. For example, several European brands adopted refillable methods for their perfume lines after many Asian skincare brands and other companies had earned significant attention for implementing sustainability and ethical initiatives in their business practices

Lin conducted the research as part of an Independent Directed Research study in the Business Management program, completing the project under the direction of Dr. A.R. Gresock, assistant professor of business management at Pitt-Bradford. Following graduation in May she will attend Penn State University’s Fox Graduate School where she plans to obtain a master’s degree in human resources management.

“This project really showed me how impactful and rewarding research can be and I am really excited to expand on this study and further develop my initial findings,” Lin says. “It is my hope that the example set by South Korean companies can ultimately serve as a model for how businesses in all kinds of sectors can be both green and profitable.”
    
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