Fancy incorporating snail mucus, starfish extract or bee venom into your beauty regime? Americans certainly do. These are key ingredients in many popular Korean beauty products, and they’re gaining popularity among American consumers. But what's the appeal behind them?

Beauty brands are adapting to a new consumer psyche of technology, ethics and wellness while crafting a deeper narrative about what beauty might mean for 21st century consumption where doing good, looking good and feeling good all play a role.

Why do people want to see real bodies in the media – warts and all? How is unhappiness being embraced by society? Why do people want to know exactly what’s in the pill they’re popping? And when it comes to your health, why does nothing beat the power of a good conversation?

From the ‘50s-style branding of Benefit to the 140-year success of Vaseline, the beauty industry is steeped in nostalgia – both authentic and artificial. Techniques, products and entire brands are built on days gone by, but why are beauty brand fans looking at the past with rose-tinted specs?