COSMETIC INDUSTRY REPORT(sample)

prepared by:
susan m. rafaj
marketing services inc.
january 2007

TRENDS

Often a trend isn’t recognized until it’s on its way to becoming an established market pattern.  And so it goes with this list.  Those trends mentioned earlier in this report include:

• Multichannel marketing, promotion and advertising
• Natural/organic products
• Cross-channel marketing and distribution
• Private label beauty brands
• Exclusive brands, often imports
• Minority targeted product development, marketing and advertising
• Climbing retail price points
• Gift cards

Some additional areas to watch are:

• A push for consumer loyalty on the part of businesses and manufacturers.  One tool is “mileage”, as found on spa-addicts.com, where spa points are awarded by member spas.  These points can be redeemed for full size products from brands including Jane Iredale, GoSmile and Yonka.
• Eco-friendly packaging, with increased use of biodegradable plastics (bioplastics) made from corn and other plants.  It’s reported that this market is growing 20% annually in Europe.
• Word-of-mouth marketing – a study by Keller Fay Group estimates that Americans make about 4.5 million brand mentions a day just through conversation.  This could become an arm of multichannel marketing or an extension of product placement.
• Venue-exclusive outer packaging, already practiced on Television Home Shopping Channels, also is being utilized by Sephora in exclusive sets and kits.
• More sophisticated product placement, as with Nivea for Men (teamed with Philips Norelco razors), appearing at different stages in a video game.
• More corporate involvement with the consumer through blogs, RSS feeds and other digital technology.
• State and local regulations, as exercised by Berkeley, California’s decision to regulate nanotechnology.