Wednesday 22 April 2009

RMK Eyeshadow & Blush Revamp

RMK is revamping its lineup of eyeshadows and blushes on 8 May in Japan, with an advance launch at their flagship store in Aoyama, Tokyo starting 24 April.


The new line-up includes:
1. Ingenious Powder Eyes: 35 shades in 5 textures of 'dark', 'brown', 'pearl', 'shiny' and 'metallic (3675yen)



2. Ingenious Jelly Eyes: 8 shades (3675yen)



3. Ingenious Powder Cheeks: 23 shades in mix of matte and pearl textures (4200yen)



4. Ingenious Jelly Cheeks: 6 shades (4200yen)



From Biteki.com, Ingenious Powder Cheeks P-04, Ingenious Jelly Eyes JE-01 and Ingenious Powder Eyes ME-03.


RMK will also release a limited edition Separate Curl Mascara in EX02 Purple and E03 Deep Red (3675yen) on the same day.


The new eyeshadows and blushes all come in silver metal packaging, unlike the previous white plastic packaging. Unfortunately, it looks like quite a price bump with the new eyeshadows costing 3675yen compared to the current Ingenious Eyes N and Ingenious Cheeks which are 2625yen. Previously you also had the option of buying the Metallic Powder Eyes, Holographic Eyes and Jelly Eye Colors in refill form for 2100yen and a metal compact case that fits two refills for 1575yen.

I'm not sure if the option of purchasing only the refills will be available for the new eyeshadows and blushes. RMK's new prices puts it on par with Suqqu, which is targeted at a more mature and affluent demographic. Suqqu's Powdery Cheeks are also 4200yen while its Powder Eyeshadows are 3150yen.

I really doubt the wisdom of introducing these products in these economic times at such a high price point, similar to those of say, Chanel blushes which are US$40. Quite a few ladies would balk at paying the equivalent of US$37.60/S$56.60 for a RMK eyeshadow and US$43/S$64.70 for a RMK blush. Heck, even NARS blushes are a lot more affordable at *only* US$25. Even in Japan, NARS blushes cost only 3150yen.

What are the suits at RMK smoking?

9 comments:

Jamilla Camel said...

Thanks for the post. There is an RMK counter at Selfridges. I will need to take a peek.

Wombat said...

Hi Haru, I've seen all the new product pics (from a friend who works for RMK)- have to admit I'm really liking a lot of the blushes and even new eyeshadow color formulations, quite a few nice variations of purples and metallic pinks around- but even she was unable to confirm whether the new colors will be similar to old colors (e.g. new blush has a 'strawberry pink' color while the old blush code #22 or something is also 'strawberry pink' etc; or whether the infamous metallic gold and silvers #9 and #11 (if i remember correctly) would be the same- i was told based on her swatch testing it was not worth getting the new Metallic range in gold and silver- very similar).

It was confirmed the price hike is all because of the inclusion of compact and brush-but historically RMK compacts were always prohibitively expensive and I guess it it the same now. Friend is not aware of ability to buy refills- so I'm guessing they've really gone insane! I hope she's wrong though.

I'm going to hold out and see what the reviews are instead of preordering this time =( bummers.

Blush shade codes are:
Matte series:
MT-01 Pale Pink
MT-02 Light Pink
MT-03 Strawberry Pink
MT-04 Rose Pink
MT-05 Peach
MT-06 Coral Beige
MT-07 Light Brown
MT-08 Natural Brown

Pearl series:
P-01 Shiny Silver White
P-02 Silver Shiny Pink
P-03 Shiny Rose Pink
P-04 Shiny Natural Beige
P-05 Holographic Silver Light Pink
P-06 Holographic Light Pink
P-07 Holographic Pink
P-08 Holographic Pure Coral
P-09 Holographic Soft Coral
P-10 Holographic Coral Pink
P-11 Holographic Shiny Pink
P-12 Holographic Orange

Jelly cheeks (creme/gel)
JE-01 Sugar Pink
JE-02 Apricot
JE-03 Cherry
JE-04 Soft Coral
JE-05 Soft Brown
JE-06 Soft Rose

i guess the coding system is a lot more uniform and more like Shu /MAC system in dividing up the textures. Pics were very promising!

Haru said...

Dear Wombat,

Thanks for the wealth of information! I did guess that the price increase is because of the new metal casing and brush/applicator included but I've always thought it was such a scam that these makeup companies sell you the eyeshadow refill and then make you pay another chunk of change for the case.

And just comparing the prices of RMK with other high-end brands, it's just aiming a bit too high to be able to appeal to many people. RMK has always been somewhat pricey but to price itself in the league of Chanel and Dior is just silly. I'd be interested to see what the new range looks and feels like but I seriously doubt it can survive the tough Singapore retail scene with this kind of pricing.

Anonymous said...

i hope the new packaging is better as I don't like the old types. thanks for the update.

Wendy said...

Hi Haru,

I recieved the TSS pigment samples this week! I made pics of them and put them on my blog and also in the She Space Hauls thread.

x Wendy

Anonymous said...

Was at Kino Ngee Ann City yesterday. Voce, Maquia, Spring, JJ & Ray magazines are all out. No sign of Biteki though. Spring comes with a Jill by Jill Stuart makeup bag. The inside is fuschia pink. Also read in Spring magazine that LeSportsac is launching 3 different styles of mooks. Not sure when the release date will be.

Haru said...

Thanks for the update! The LeSportSac mooks were published in Japan a week or so ago. You can see pics of one of them on Yumeko's blog here

http://bittenbefore.com/tokyolife/2009/04/20/the-face-shop-skinfoodlesportsac-mook/

Adeline said...

RMK is getting so expensive. I'll definitely balk at paying that price. And RMK blushers are TINY.

thanks for the info! =)

cewek said...

I *love* RMK blushes! I remember when we were in Tokyo this time last year, we got lost around Aoyama trying to find the RMK boutique. DH was such a good sport though because normally he's such a hardass when it comes to me buying makeup. I think it's because he knew that I'd only limit myself two makeup shops whilst in Tokyo, shu uemura in Omotesando (mothership!) and RMK in Aoyama.

Jamilla Camel - do you know how much the RMK blushes are in Selfridges? Thanks!