Yoshiharu Fukuhara, Honorary Chairman, Shiseido Co., Ltd. has been named Women Wear Daily Beauty’s 2012 Visionary of the Year, in recognition of his strategic development of the global business and contributions to the cultural value of Shiseido.

During a breakfast award ceremony held in his honor on December 13 in New York, Fukuhara said:
“In this milestone year, I am very honored to receive the most prestigious award in the cosmetic industry,“ he shared. Shiseido is celebrating its 140th anniversary this year.

Fukuhara continued: “If I can share my vision, I believe that everyone involved in the cosmetics industry must use their work to propose new values to move society forward in a positive fashion. I would like to encourage everyone to work together to further develop this industry with an eye toward what we can do to give back–and transform our world into a more beautiful place to live.”

Pete Born, executive editor of beauty, WWD, comments, “We are proud to honor Yoshiharu Fukuhara with the WWD Beauty Inc Visionary of the Year Award. Mr. Fukuhara truly defines the tenets of the word visionary. During his time at Shiseido, he brought East to West, and in so doing helped define the modern look of beauty. Among his many accomplishments: he was one of the first pioneers to go into China, back in the Early Seventies. He established his company’s business in the U.S. and Europe, and championed the marriage of cultural creativity and corporate responsibility before such words were even in our lexicon. Although his grandfather started the business, he governed with a deep feeling of humanism, a trait that continues to characterize Shiseido as a company today.”

Here’s a complete list of WWD’s 2012 Beauty Inc. winners.