Fifty-five percent of the 4,000-plus U.S. female beauty buyers surveyed in a nationwide study say they are more mentally stressed now than they were five years ago, with 18% saying their stress level is similar to what it was then. At the same time, 89% say the importance they place on achieving a positive state of both physical and emotional well-being has increased during the past five years, with 99% agreeing that their mental well-being and physical health are connected. Results from this original Benchmarking Company study reveal the issues buyers are facing, and the beauty-meets-wellness solutions those Gen Z and older are looking to the beauty and personal care industry to offer. Let's get to the data.
About the Data in this Study
The Benchmarking Company conducted its "Wellness & Supplements" online study, comprising 4,139 respondents, in October 2023.
Wellness is Everything to Women
F-1. How women rank their well-being priorities
Seventy-eight percent of women say their physical and emotional/mental wellness is equally important to them.
Women's Wellness Activities
F-2. Women's wellness routines by activity
Women's Stressors
F-3. Women's top stressors by generation
When examining the stressors of Gen Z versus older females, the younger generation is more stressed about personal finances (72%), their own health (61%), their jobs (58%) and their own self-perceived constant use of technology (39%).
Women's Coping Mechanisms for Stress
F-4. How consumers deal with stress
Seventy-two percent of Gen Z females take a hot bath or shower to alleviate stress, while 66% spend more time on their beauty and personal care routines (F-4).
Fifty-eight percent of her older counterparts take a hot bath/shower to unwind, while 48% spend more time on their beauty and personal care routines.
Twenty-two percent of all respondents have used stress-relief patches or fragrance roll-ons as stress-relief aids.
Mood Lifters She’d Like to Explore
Neurocosmetic products that provide aesthetic benefits (helping her to look good) and feel-good effects are of high interest to 88% of women surveyed; only 6% have tried a product of this type.Coetzee/peopleimages.com at Adobe Stock
Feeling calmed and less stressed is the primary outcome she’d expect from a product of this type. Ninety-two percent of women would be interested in a product that left them feeling calmer and de-stressed.
Benefits She’s Seeking
- 92% calming/de-stress/relax
- 81% mental clarity/focus
- 78% happiness
- 73% sleep support
- 71% more energy
- 59% digestive support/gut health
- 55% hormonal support
- 53% enhance sexual pleasure
Product Types They Want to Try Beyond Supplements
• 80% wellness patches
• 79% light therapy devices
• 76% at-home recovery apparatus/ice bath
• 65% sexual wellness products
• 65% wellness roll-ons/oil roll-ons
• 53% wellness teas/drinks
• 43% wellness aromatics
Supplements for Beauty and Wellness
Seventy-three percent of Gen Z and 84% of those older than Gen Z say they take some type of vitamin or supplement on a regular basis, with 30% of women using supplements for a specific beauty purpose. Of those who do not, 92% would be open to it.
Current beauty supplement users take them for:
- hair growth (79%);
- stronger nails (65%);
- restoring collagen/skin firming (60%);
- clearer skin/healthier skin in general (55%);
- and for anti-aging purposes (40%).
The main reasons she doesn’t already use supplements are that she feels they are too expensive (45%), they are too confusing (22%), she’s not sure how to use them (18%) or doesn’t fully understand what supplements do (16%).
Only 25% of women say they’re currently taking an ingestible supplement that supports both beauty and wellness.
Unmet Needs in Wellness & Beauty Supplements
F-5. The supplements shoppers would like to try
Ninety-three percent of Gen Z and 87% of older buyers would be interested in buying a customized supplement created for her personal needs that could be shipped directly to her on a regular basis.
Half might prefer an all-in-one pill to meet her specific needs if it was offered and was proven to be effective.
Is your brand ready to deliver on her beauty-meets-wellness needs?
Based in sun-seared San Diego, Denise Herich is co-founder and managing partner at The Benchmarking Company. The Benchmarking Company provides marketing and strategy professionals in the beauty and personal care industries with need-to-know information about its customers and prospects through custom consumer research studies through its 250,000+ female PinkPanel database, focus group, and consumer in-home use testing (IHUTs) for claims substantiation and risk mitigation.
