In the way that the fashions on the runway may be "tweaked" to suit the tastes of a specific market - with, for example, buyers requesting longer skirt lengths to please older customers, and evening dresses that cover the shoulders and arms for the Middle East - so, too, are beauty products adapted to local requirements. But cultural idiosyncrasies aren't the only factors that affect lipsticks et al; legislation plays a part as well.

I discovered this quite by accident a couple of years ago, when I found myself in the US during a hot spell and headed to the local drug store to buy my favourite sunscreen. Although it appeared identical to my regular brand, the US formulation did not include the Mexoryl SX screening ingredient that I was used to in my European product, but something rather . . . foreign.