YOUNGMAY Secures Tens of Millions in Pre-A Funding Led by Plum Ventures to Advance Transdermal Skincare Technology

Specialized ResearchTech-Driven Skincare Brand「YOUNGMAYYOUNGMAY」CompletedThousands10,000Pre-Around of financing，This RoundLead InvestorForPlum Ventures，The co-investor is Changgang Biology.、Existing Shareholder Gaozhang Capital，Yuze Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor。The funds raised in this round will be primarily used for brand promotion.、Marketing、Product R&D。

YOUNGMAY was established in August 2020 as a biotechnology company specializing in transdermal delivery. Its scientifically formulated products were originally customized for private physicians, dermatology clinics, and Swiss anti-aging centers, demonstrating significant efficacy and earning high acclaim from dermatologists. The product serums are jointly developed by a consortium of laboratories comprising cell research experts, biologists, and master formulators from the International League of Dermatological Societies (ILDS), precisely targeting diverse age groups and skin types. In R&D and production, YOUNGMAY prioritizes efficacy over cost constraints, leveraging multiple internationally leading patented technologies—including bio-active molecular extraction, transdermal drug delivery, and micro-molecular bases—to deliver exceptional performance in skincare.

In terms of brand philosophy, YOUNGMAY emphasizes the forward-thinking concept of “Self-Centric, Material-Truth, Innately Free.” It breaks through traditional skincare concepts and practices with its powerful and unique product efficacy. Aiming to empower freedom in beauty and medical aesthetics, YOUNGMAY serves the highly educated new middle class, dedicated to providing sophisticated consumers with truly safe, effective, and trustworthy technology-driven products. The brand is committed to rigorous research and development, striving to become a world-renowned brand that shines as a beacon of Chinese innovation.

As skincare has become a basic necessity, the focus in the skincare sector has shifted from brands to ingredients and then to efficacy. However, with limited tangible results, an increasing number of consumers have begun to research effective skincare practices. Meanwhile, China’s medical aesthetics market has experienced rapid growth in recent years, particularly in non-surgical, minimally invasive procedures that are highly popular among users. Among these, skin booster injections have emerged as a preferred upgrade for many skincare enthusiasts due to their ease of administration and significant efficacy. According to forecasts by Soochow Securities, the market size for skin booster products is expected to grow at a faster rate than the overall injectables segment, with China’s terminal market scale for skin booster products projected to exceed RMB 20 billion by 2025.

The vast majority of skincare ingredients cannot penetrate the stratum corneum through topical application, making it difficult for them to exert their efficacy. The core logic behind injectable skin boosters in medical aesthetics is to deliver ingredients directly into the subcutaneous layer via invasive injection needles. However, Ma Jiayuesheng, founder of YOUNGMAY Technology, believes that injectable skin boosters have many drawbacks: high service costs, significant pain and trauma from the procedure, a long recovery period, and very limited monthly dosage capacity. Meanwhile, topical skin boosters are externally applied hyaluronic acid products with poor transdermal penetration and low absorption rates; their effects are almost negligible compared to injectable skin boosters.

Ma Jiayuesheng told VCBeat that YOUNGMAY combines its self-developed spatiotemporal hydro-lifting device, which took one year to research and develop, with functional serums from its spatiotemporal capsules. It employs an ultra-large array chip featuring 7*7mm dimensions and equipped with a 225-needle nanoscale microneedle array to adapt the principles of professional hydro-lifting treatments for home use. Mimicking the mosquito’s ability to penetrate the skin silently, each microneedle is only 1/1000th the thickness of a human hair, ensuring users feel no pain upon contact. The microneedles precisely penetrate the stratum corneum, working in conjunction with the device’s high-frequency infusion to create tens of thousands of temporary absorption channels in the skin.

However, the molecular structure of most skincare products cannot penetrate such microscopic channels. YOUNGMAY’s specialized serum for Time-Space Capsules exclusively employs 6D hyaluronic acid small-molecule base technology, enabling the serum to effectively permeate every layer of the skin. The smallest EHA molecules, with a molecular weight of only 600 Daltons, can reach the dermis directly through microcrystalline channels, facilitating step-by-step penetration and increasing ingredient absorption by dozens of times. This technology is painless, non-invasive, and highly safe; it is explicitly excluded from medical device regulations, offering great flexibility in usage scenarios. Furthermore, YOUNGMAY’s self-developed Time-Space Hydro-Lifting Device fully automates the process, standardizing operational procedures and allowing users to perform a professional-grade hydro-lifting treatment on themselves in just five minutes, anytime and anywhere.

“The recovery period for medical aesthetic injections is 28 days, whereas the micro-channels created by YOUNGMAY’s Spacetime Water Light treatment self-rebound in just 20 minutes. Makeup can be applied immediately afterward, and there are no dietary restrictions. Most importantly, the absence of a recovery period allows for high-frequency use, thereby multiplying the monthly nutrient intake for the skin and inevitably improving skin texture. The recommended usage frequency for the Spacetime Capsule is one vial every three days, and users may freely combine it with YOUNGMAY’s serums of varying efficacies according to the instructions,” said Ma Jiayuesheng.

It is understood that the Yangmei Time Capsule series of essences currently comprises six distinct products, numbered 0 to 5, each offering unique benefits to meet the skincare needs of individuals across different age groups and skin types. The No. 0 essence is a foundational formula suitable for all ages and skin types, providing hydrating, moisturizing, and whitening effects. Essences No. 1 to No. 3 are specifically formulated for early anti-aging, sensitive skin repair, and inflammatory acne-prone (damaged) skin, respectively. Essences No. 4 and No. 5 are kinetic energy-based formulations with extremely high technical barriers in their preparation. The No. 4 Rejuvenating Anti-Aging-715 essence targets users with severely aged skin; its ingredients include 21 amino acids, 12 minerals, 14 vitamins, a complex antioxidant blend, carnosine, GABA, and other components. The No. 5 DNA Sodium Essence, commonly referred to by users as "Salmon Skin Booster," features PDRN (Polydeoxyribonucleotide), an anti-aging ingredient extracted from salmon, as its primary active component. According to Ma Jiayuesheng, the cost of the single raw material PDRN used by Yangmei is RMB 600,000 per kilogram. He noted, “Yangmei is truly a rare tech-driven skincare brand where the cost of the essence exceeds that of the packaging materials.”

In recent years, the home-use beauty device sector has experienced explosive growth, with the optoelectronic segment largely dominated by imported brands such as Japan’s Ya-Man, Israel’s Tripollar, and Japan’s Zeus. In contrast, China’s supply chain already holds a definitive global advantage in the medical aesthetics raw materials sector. Over the past two years, a number of domestic brands have begun to emerge, including Feimo and BIOLAB Tingyan in the mesotherapy device category.

Ma Jiayue stated that to ensure high-quality products, the costs invested in R&D and production are extremely high. The YOUNGMAY brand follows a luxury positioning and will continue to build competitive barriers by leveraging advantages such as patented technologies and proprietary formulations. Instead of offering a wide range of SKUs like traditional skincare brands, YOUNGMAY will remain long-term focused on its core categories, deeply cultivating the fields of transdermal technology and high-efficacy formulations.

In terms of pricing, the Mesotherapy Device bundled with four vials of No. 0 Essence is priced at RMB 4,999. Refill essences No. 0–3 are sold separately at RMB 680 per box (containing four vials), while essences No. 4–5 are sold separately at RMB 680 per box (containing two vials). The cost per mesotherapy treatment is equivalent to that of a single Japanese emergency facial mask. YOUNGMAY Space-Time Mesotherapy has obtained two design patents and two utility model patents, and was awarded the “2021 Excellent Technological Invention Achievement Award” by the Chinese Scientists Forum. On the R&D front for essences, multiple invention patents have been secured in areas such as bioactive peptides, adipose-derived stem cells, exosome applications in anti-aging pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, and stem cell cryopreservation solutions, alongside R&D achievements for over 20 high-efficacy formulations. The company also possesses globally leading reserves in transdermal delivery technology.

Currently, YOUNGMAY’s liquid skincare products have been selected for their exclusive launch on JD.com’s “Little Magic Cube” platform during the “Goddess Festival,” with subsequent simultaneous listings on Tmall, Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), Douyin (TikTok), and other platforms. YOUNGMAY targets the intermediate market segment between medical aesthetics and home-based beauty care. This innovative category offers bidirectional substitutability: on one hand, it can replace injectable treatments offered by medical aesthetic institutions, such as skin boosters and kinetic serums; on the other hand, its Time-Space Skin Booster can fully substitute traditional home skincare products like toners, lotions, creams, and essences, thereby enabling users to enjoy a new, highly efficient, and flexible skincare regimen.

Regarding the team, founder Ma Jiayue (Sheng 09) previously served as a Brand Product Expert at the Estée Lauder Companies, supporting major brands such as M.A.C, BOBBI BROWN, and La Mer. She later founded more than ten leading high-end medical aesthetic institutions. Other core team members come from companies such as Bloomage Biotechnology, Winona, JD.com, Alibaba, and Xiao Xiandun, all possessing many years of experience in the beauty and personal care consumer sector.

Wu Shichun, Founding Partner of Plum Ventures: Plum Ventures is bullish on the rapidly growing market for home-use beauty devices. YOUNGMAY is a technology company with comprehensive capabilities in R&D, design, and marketing, specializing in the field of home-use hydro-lifting beauty devices. The first-generation YOUNGMAY home hydro-lifting device will significantly enhance the user experience for at-home hydration and skincare, promote healthy industry development, and usher in the era of premium hydro-lifting beauty devices for home use. The YOUNGMAY team’s efficient execution has helped establish YOUNGMAY as a prominent emerging premium brand in the minds of consumers, positioning it to become China’s fastest-growing premium home beauty device brand. We are eager to see YOUNGMAY emerge as a leader in the premium home beauty device sector.

Fan Weifeng, Founding Partner of Gaozhang Capital: As an angel investor in YOUNGMAY Technology skin care, Gaozhang Capital believes that traditional skincare products are in urgent need of upgrading and no longer meet the basic needs of young consumers. Meanwhile, traditional medical aesthetics involve long decision-making cycles and high entry barriers, with the industry characterized by intense competition and chaotic practices. YOUNGMAY redefines a new approach to medical aesthetics for young people through technology-driven skincare products, precisely occupying the white space between the skincare and medical aesthetics markets. The trend of bringing medical aesthetic treatments into home use represents a high-frequency, essential-demand sector that can both penetrate part of the medical aesthetics market and capture share in the skincare market. This is a classic attractive market with enormous potential and room for growth. The home-based medical aesthetics trend will become a new industry benchmark and the new normal; we can see that its inflection point has already arrived.

Fan Weifeng stated that Ma Jiayuesheng, the founder of YOUNGMAY and known as the “King of Beauty,” possesses brand operation experience from Estée Lauder, a leading international cosmetics group, as well as a successful track record in establishing top-tier high-end medical aesthetic institutions. With deep integration into the supply chain, he is a rare young innovator who has effectively capitalized on industry shifts. Furthermore, YOUNGMAY Biology holds multiple key technical patents and reserves, which can support its new product iteration plans for the next three to five years. Fan expressed anticipation for YOUNGMAY to launch more technology-driven skincare products.

Dr. Liang Shuang, Head of the International Investment Department at Bloomage Biotechnology: Efficacy is a core concept driving consumers’ pursuit of next-generation skincare products. The primary prerequisite for skincare products to deliver the benefits of their active ingredients is overcoming the challenge of transdermal absorption. With the growing popularity of various organic, natural, macromolecular active cosmetic ingredients, how these large molecules are absorbed by the human body has become an increasingly significant challenge. YOUNGMAY introduces its continuously iterated transdermal technology into home skincare scenarios, effectively addressing the unmet market need for home skincare products that move beyond conceptual claims to practically resolve consumers’ skin care concerns. As next-generation transdermal technologies increasingly shape user perceptions and usage habits, YOUNGMAY’s products are poised to establish a unique consumption scenario bridging professional aesthetic treatments and the home skincare market.