China’s Secret Weapon Against Cheating Men

For anyone keen on loyalty in a relationship, this magic powder is their secret weapon.

In a recent TikTok post garnering over 2 million likes, fitness influencer Dalia Grande spritzed glitter all over her body as she prepared for a first date: “Because I’m at the age where they could be married (Married men HATE glitter),” she wrote in the caption.

The idea here is that cosmetic glitter transfers easily, leaving a trail of evidence from one woman to the next. As one commenter put it: “Married men don’t want to come home to their wives with fun glitter on them.” And here’s another twist-this is all a gift from China.

According to a report by China’s largest glitter supplier, Global New Material International Holdings Limited (GNMI or CHESIR), China became the largest exporter of glitter in 2022, controlling about one-third of the global market share, with the company itself accounting for 11% of the global market.

In 2025, the top 10 glitter brands included only two from Western companies, L’Oréal and Estée Lauder, with the remaining eight brands all being Chinese companies. These Chinese brands have become formidable competitors to traditional luxury brands. For example, Perfect Diary ranked third on the list, gained acclaim with its “Galaxy 9 Color Eyeshadow Palette,” which won the Bazaar Beauty Awards for Best Eyeshadow in 2018, but it costs only $35 —about half of the price of European brands like Dior.

This gift from China might be welcomed by consumers, but it’s definitely not by its competitors.

Glitter, known scientifically as pearlescent powder, is widely used in eyeshadows, lipsticks, and even as a key ingredient in high-end automotive paints. The dazzling glow on the hoods of Ferraris also comes from pearlescent powder—an industry worth around $30 billion. Some have envied China’s ability to earn from this lucrative business, such as the European Union.

In September 2023, the European Union issued a ban on microplastics, covering all insoluble or non-degradable plastic particles under 5mm in diameter. This was a red flag for the Chinese suppliers, as China had previously dominated this field, primarily thanks to its advanced plastic synthesis industry.

This meant a complete reshuffling of the industry in the EU, but it presented an opportunity for GNMI, as the company had been developing synthetic mica materials to replace plastic for over a decade.

Why did this Chinese company invest in this technology early on? The answer is simple: mica is much safer and eco-friendly.

Mica doesn’t trouble the environment, in contrast, it is one of the most common materials found in nature. You can easily spot it on a beach shimmering in the sunlight—those are natural mica particles.

In China, this material has long been proven to be safe. The Shen-nong’s Herbal Classics(神农百草经), a Chinese pharmacological text, recorded that mica had been used in traditional medicine over 2,000 years ago. In traditional Chinese porcelain craftsmanship, mica has also been used as an auxiliary material to enhance the transparency and hardness of glazes.

This thousands-year-old research into mica explains why China has long held key patents in artificial mica technology. As a result, the EU’s plastic ban inadvertently helped Chinese suppliers further consolidate their dominance in the global market.

In 2024, China’s mica mastery proved unstoppable. German chemical giant, Merck handed over its pearlescent pigment division to GNMI, effectively surrendering the glitter crown.

Now, when EU policymakers buff their mica-coated Ferraris or scrub glitter off cheating partners, they confront an ironic truth: You can never defeat China’s magic powder by cheating.

Editor: Charriot Zhai