As we celebrate International Women’s Day, Watsons released results from a regional ‘Women’s
Confidence Survey in Asia’.
According to Malina Ngai, CEO of A.S. Watson (Asia & Europe), “Watsons has had a deep
connection with women for over 180 years.
We believe that the best version of you and your
real beauty should radiate from within.
Confidence is an important part of inner beauty and
is what makes you feel good and positively impacts your mental well-being.
“That’s why Watsons has recently appointed WISE – Watson Insight on Shopper’s Experience –
to conduct a survey about women’s confidence in Asia to find out what kind of support women
need to feel more confident and help them become a better version of themselves.”
‘Women’s Confidence Survey in Asia’ has been conducted with over 3,100 women aged 20-29
across six markets including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and
Thailand.
The respondents were asked to rate their confidence levels and what are the things
that can help to boost their confidence.
The findings show that almost half of all women in Asia are not confident about themselves
at work and in life.
Women’s confidence levels are lowest in Hong Kong, closely followed by
Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia and Mainland China.
The survey further reveals that
staying healthy inside out, as well as gaining recognition from coworkers are key to helping
women gain confidence.
Equitable, Supportive, and Family-friendly Workplace is Key
Notably for the Philippines, 70% are satisfied with their career progression and almost all believe
that it’s possible for women to excel in their career.
Here, women believe that they will be more
confident if they are staying health (70%), doing a purposeful job (65%), and doing something
good for the environment (56%).
Ngai continues, “The findings show that an equitable, supportive and family friendly workplace is
exactly what women need nowadays and we are keen to lead by example.
With operations in 11
markets in Asia, women make up 77% of our 63,000 workforce.
Therefore, it is Watsons’ ongoing
commitment to create a culture that makes everyone feel welcomed, valued, appreciated and
encouraged to bring their whole selves to work, and each of them is given equal career
development opportunity.
“As a family-friendly company, we encourage more companies to join us in formulating
policies to support and empower women, especially helping those working mothers to
strike a balance between work and family.”
What is Beautiful? Inner Beauty Becomes Increasingly Important
In another recent survey Watsons commissioned titled ‘What is Beautiful’, more than
11,000 women aged under 45 in 12 markets across Asia and Europe were interviewed
about how they value things around them and how they define beautiful after going
through a pandemic.
On average, 75% of women agree that inner beauty has become
more important than ever, especially in the Philippines (96%), followed by Malaysia (91%),
Thailand (86%), Hong Kong (83%) and Taiwan (82%).
When being asked about the definition of ‘beautiful’, taking care of your health inside out
tops the list, with feeling confident and feeling happy in the second and third.
What’s the most beautiful thing in life?’ The survey continues. Almost half the
respondents feel that the most beautiful thing in life is doing good to the people around
them, communities and even the planet we live in.
“These findings are consistent with those in our ‘Women’s Confidence Survey in Asia’ that
reveals staying healthy inside out is important to boost confidence which is important for
both physical and mental wellness,” Ngai adds.
With this insight, Watsons Philippines offers up to 30% off on Women’s essentials like
vitamins, supplements and personal care products for the whole month of March to help
ensure Filipinas feel beautiful and health inside and out, thus boosting their confidence
“As such, Watsons is launching ‘The New Beautiful’ campaign to encourage women to
empower themselves to Look Good.
Do Good. Feel Great. Featuring a series of activities
across Asia, it will have three overarching themes – Go Green, Go Smile, and Go
Empower, which aims to actively involve our community of over 100 million loyalty
members in Asia.”
In the Philippines, Watsons also has partnered with SM Supermalls for a special event
titled “Women Now & the Future”, a summit on Women Empowerment for a Sustainable
Tomorrow at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall.
The conversation revolves around
mentoring Womenprenuers and empowering the next generation of Women.
Another
program that is being planned later this year in partnership with Operations Smile is the
launch of ‘Women in Medicine’ programme which aims to empower women in the field of
medical science.
“At Watsons, we believe in The New Beautiful, a new kind of beauty that’s good for
everyone. To us, beautiful glows from the inside.
It’s how we treat ourselves and each
other.
It’s how we live, who we are, and who we can be. The beautiful is in us all, and for
us all,” Ngai concludes.
