Problems show the ugly face of the beauty industry

Disputes, complaints

Experts said China's beauty industry is never tranquil because it is plagued with disputes, complaints and serious medical negligence. In addition, it suffers from a lack of official oversight.

Data from the China Consumers Association show that the sector was the subject of about 6,140 complaints in 2019, with 26 percent related to poor after-sales services and 23 percent about the quality of the treatment. Meanwhile, 22 percent were related to unclear, potentially misleading, contracts.

In March, Chaoyang District People's Court in Beijing released a report in which it said it had settled 195 cases related to cosmetic surgery in the previous five years. Such work accounted for 27 percent of its caseload last year, up from 10.8 percent in 2016.

Despite the problems, the industry is still experiencing rapid growth, and unlicensed operations are rampant, according to reports.

For example, a report published in May last year by iResearch, a consultancy headquartered in Beijing, showed that the value of the cosmetic surgery market was close to 177 billion yuan ($27 billion) in 2019, even though the growth rate had declined slightly from previous years to 22.2 percent.

More than 13.7 million patients received treatment in 2019, and the number is projected to rise to about 25.5 million in 2023, the report said.

Though the customer base is large, the number of cosmetic surgery clinics that meet government requirements is low.

The iResearch report said China has about 13,000 licensed beauty centers, with roughly 2,000, or 15 percent, offering illegal treatments they aren't licensed for.