Scientific Skin Care Emerges As New Category—Altering Consumer Behavior

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Diagnol Reports releases "The Scientific Skincare Consumer and Market 2014–2020" report, which found:

  • Science confers credibility on skin care formulations;
  • Large unserved markets present opportunity to roll out scientific skin care brands; and
  • Demand for scientific skin care took the mainstream beauty industry by surprise.

The emergence of scientific skin care as a new category illustrates a fundamental change in consumer beauty behavior. Scientific skin care products will transform the entire market for the simple reason that skin care category dominates beauty sales.

Scientific skin care is highly medicalized. It uses new product formulations, such as dermal fillers, and new technologies, such as intense pulsed light (IPL) to deliver immediate and sustainable outcomes to the buyer.

Back in 2006 we first identified widespread demand for more effective solutions for the most common facial and skin care problems. Beauty marketing experts worldwide explained to us that women in areas as far apart as the United States, Europe and China had radically new and heightened expectations of skin care treatments and products. Consumers, dissatisfied with traditional cosmetic creams and their efficacy, were migrating to scientific skin care.

Legacy cosmetic concept brands did not spot this development because it occurred under their radar. Scientific skin care originated in the world of science and medicine far from beauty. In addition, it was pioneered by what were then innovative and niche players in the professional beauty channel—beauty spas and medical spas. Many retail and mass market brands were simply looking the other way.

However, we appreciated the significance and potential impact of what we described as the “Botox Effect" on long-term sales of skin care. This is because Diagonal Reports has been interviewing beauty marketing experts to identify changes in consumer behavior and product demand ever since the company was founded in 1998. For more than a decade now we have been tracking just how innovation in medicalized beauty and scientific skin care is transforming the entire facial and body care market.

Sales of scientific skin care are increasing exponentially because they unlock a large unserved market. The numbers of women and men concerned by blemishes and signs of aging can be counted in their millions and are growing (our anti-aging skin care project). This development is democratizing skin care—bringing treatments and products, previously the monopoly of professionals, within the reach of everyone. Affordability is boosting sales as competitively priced and simpler brands are being rolled out. These skin care brands are marketed as science—not beauty—allowing them to benefit from the credibility of science.

Is this a sustainable beauty trend? Yes. It is now unstoppable. Scientific skin care is scaleable and provides a unique opportunity for product formulators to roll out brands in new geographical areas and market segments. High growth rates in this category underscore the challenge facing traditional skin care products.

You can purchase the report here.

 

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