Competition among domestic beauty brands in China has moved beyond product function and price advantage. Brand communication now increasingly depends on cultural meaning, platform coordination, visual experience, consumer participation, and long-term trust. Taking Huaxizi as a case, this paper re-examines the integrated communication strategy of a domestic beauty brand under the framework of Oriental aesthetic symbols. Different from a strategy-listing approach that simply describes brand positioning, influencer cooperation, content marketing, cultural collaboration, private-domain operation, and overseas communication, this paper reconstructs the case through four analytical dimensions: cultural symbol translation, platform-context adaptation, trust-evidence construction, and relationship maintenance. Based on literature analysis, case analysis, and online observation, the study argues that Huaxizi’s strength lies in transforming Oriental aesthetics into visible brand language and shareable consumer experience. However, the brand still faces challenges such as insufficient cultural explanation, fragmented platform content, weak product evidence, dependence on traffic, and the need for more concrete cross-cultural translation. The paper proposes optimization paths including symbol archives, platform-specific content matrices, product evidence chains, user co-creation mechanisms, and localized cultural interpretation.
De Veirman, M., Cauberghe, V., & Hudders, L. (2017). Marketing through Instagram influencers: The impact of number of followers and product divergence on brand attitude. International Journal of Advertising, 36(5), 798–828. https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2017.1348035
Duncan, T., & Moriarty, S. E. (1998). A communication-based marketing model for managing relationships. Journal of Marketing, 62(2), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299806200201
East Garden Group. (n.d.). ??? [Huaxizi]. Retrieved July 4, 2026, from https://www.eastgarden.com/brand/hxz/
Hall, S. (Ed.). (1997). Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices. SAGE Publications in association with the Open University.
Hennig-Thurau, T., Gwinner, K. P., Walsh, G., & Gremler, D. D. (2004). Electronic word-of-mouth via consumer-opinion platforms: What motivates consumers to articulate themselves on the Internet? Journal of Interactive Marketing, 18(1), 38–52. https://doi.org/10.1002/dir.10073
Holt, D. B. (2004). How brands become icons: The principles of cultural branding. Harvard Business School Press.
Kang, P. (2020, December 4). ??????????????——????? [How local brands attract and win over young consumers: The breakthrough of domestic brands]. People's Daily Overseas Edition, p. 10. https://paper.people.com.cn/rmrbhwb/images/2020-12/04/10/rmrbhwb2020120410.pdf
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003
Keller, K. L. (1993). Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity. Journal of Marketing, 57(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299305700101
Keller, K. L. (2009). Building strong brands in a modern marketing communications environment. Journal of Marketing Communications, 15(2–3), 139–155. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527260902757530
Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P., & Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business Horizons, 54(3), 241–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005
Kliatchko, J. (2008). Revisiting the IMC construct: A revised definition and four pillars. International Journal of Advertising, 27(1), 133–160. https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2008.11073043
Liang, Y., & Han, Z. (2023, September 19). ???????????????“79?????”???????????????? [One week after the Li Jiaqi incident, Huaxizi apologizes for the “79-yuan eyebrow pencil incident”]. Cailian Press. https://www.cls.cn/detail/1467504
Lou, C., & Yuan, S. (2019). Influencer marketing: How message value and credibility affect consumer trust of branded content on social media. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 19(1), 58–73. https://doi.org/10.1080/15252019.2018.1533501
Mangold, W. G., & Faulds, D. J. (2009). Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix. Business Horizons, 52(4), 357–365. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.03.002
Muñiz, A. M., Jr., & O'Guinn, T. C. (2001). Brand community. Journal of Consumer Research, 27(4), 412–432. https://doi.org/10.1086/319618
Schivinski, B., & Dabrowski, D. (2016). The effect of social media communication on consumer perceptions of brands. Journal of Marketing Communications, 22(2), 189–214. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2013.871323
Schultz, D. E., Tannenbaum, S. I., & Lauterborn, R. F. (1993). Integrated marketing communications: Putting it together & making it work. NTC Business Books.
Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Lin, A., & Chan, T. J. (2026). A Study on the Integrated Communication Strategy of Domestic Beauty Brands Driven by Oriental Aesthetic Symbols: A Restructured Case Study of Huaxizi. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 16(7), 391–405.
Copyright: © 2026 The Author(s)
Published by Knowledge Words Publications (www.kwpublications.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
