SCS Wales & West – Trends June 2015
We spent a fascinating afternoon at the SCS Wales and West event at the glorious Leigh Court in Bristol on Tuesday 16th June.
The afternoon was billed as an exploration into current trends, across different categories and I had heard that a speed dating style format was going to be in place where we would get to sit with various experts for just 10 minutes at a time.
I have to say it was a great success, with lots of energy and enthusiasm and a real chance to get up close and personal with the experts. As always with the SCS events it was both entertaining and educational and the afternoon tea laid on by the Leigh Court was delicious.
Theresa Callaghan talked to us about Cosmetic trends and claims around 4 key areas.
1.Cosmetic devices
2.Inside out beauty
3.Male Grooming
4.Fragrance
She explained that a claim is “A statement that is used in advertising a product and that addresses a claim”.EU legislation is asking for companies not to tell a lie and advising that Claims should be useful, understandable and reliable
Consumers are influenced on product choice by a number of things.
Value for money rates highly with 60% of people saying their purchasing decisions are swayed by value for money. Trust and familiarity is also high, at 45%.
Easy to use is important, I know myself I have stopped using products because the packaging is awkward and caps difficult to open and close, 44% seem to agree with me. Belief in evidence and Endorsements also appear on the list with people often believing the advice of others over the wording in an advert.
Some companies fall foul of the claims legislation by making over ambitious or outright untruthful claims. Theresa explained that The Cost of non-compliance is very high with Industry credibility and Consumer credibility being destroyed. Loss of revenue can be high and Loss of integrity often immeasurable.
Certain companies are forever getting into trouble with the authorities.
With a cosmetic device you always have a main claim, you need to get that sorted, before going on to make additional claims.
It is suggested that you work in a 4 step process, Design, pilot, review, main study to keep costs down. If a product doesn’t perform in the initial design or pilot stage then you do not have to progress to the main study.
It is best to know the exact functionality right at the beginning translate your claim into a scientific objective and validate with legal department before designing the product.
Inside out, or oral cosmetic supplements are gaining popularity, we all know the expression “You are what you eat” and many people believe if it’s good enough to eat it’s good enough to put in your skin. There is some overlap here, is it a beauty claim or a health claim, or a food product?
The Male market holds huge potential from growth, mainly due to the fact that it is still so small, however consumers are shifting the dialogue from male hygiene to man maintenance and younger men are showing signs of using multiple products on a daily basis. I know my 2 teenage sons are big product users, with everything from face wash, exfoliators and moisturisers as well as hair putty and fragrance.
Shower gels are still the main product sold for men but they appear to be looking for tailored solutions with simple and masculine claims.
Male skin is different to female skin so it is best for a man not to simply borrow his girlfriend’s products and men do appear to like products that are results driven.
Fine Fragrance has for many years been sold with provocative, sexy images but the advertising authorities are now questioning if this is true and honest to the product. Can it justify it does what the ad implies or is this a false claim?
When looking at and Understanding studies, there are 3 key principles, Definition, Transparency and Results
A claim is an interpretation of the result, you should compare similar studies, ensure your consumers are relevant and stick to the facts. Brands must also remember that Claims are the brand risk not the testing house, you should never over exaggerate your results.
Also be especially aware of any claim ending in er younger, smoother, etc. will always be challenged. It is suggested you keep the language simple and support claims with facts and supported caveats on usage dos and don’ts
When making any claim Theresa suggested you always remember your ABC
Assume nothing
Believe sceptically
Check your facts
If you can’t explain it simply you don’t understand it well enough.
We then listened to an interesting talk on Male Grooming, delivered by Trevor Barker at Cornelius
He told us that there is continued growth in product sales and also male plastic surgery. It is becoming less and less unacceptable for men to use products and also to admit to it!
The Difference in physiology on men’s skin and hormones, means their needs are specific and it is right that they don’t just borrow products from their partner, sister or mum. A man’s forehead wrinkles first, with more severe wrinkles than a woman so this is a major concern for many men.
They are also Value seekers, looking for multi-purpose convenience products that are quick and easy to use. They like the packaging to be clear and distinguishable from women’s, the fragrance, should also be specific and male focused.
It appears that men are very brand loyal with statistics showing men that buy 7 plus products tend to buy just 1 brand and 31% of male consumers do buy 7 plus products. Brand loyalty is something men’s companies should be thinking about with brands with only a small number of skus increasing their product range to take advantage of this loyalty.
Marketers have come up with 3 Different types of modern man.
1.Lumbersexual
2.Spornosexual
3.Metrosexual
Product companies are starting to target different men with specific products and campaigns.
The number 1 concern is Lines and wrinkles.
There is also an interesting new category developing around the increasing fashion for tattoos, tattoo care and ink preservation, especially in the sun are gaining a niche following. One report states a 173% increase in tattoos in last 10 years, so Tattoo fade shield products may continue to grow, the INK brand is leading the way.
We then met with Miri Scott and Natalie Ellwood from Seven scent who delivered a fascinating and very fragrant trend forecasting presentation, which is a bi- annual publication for Seven.
They described 3 interesting trends for Spring- Summer 2016.
1.Praline
2.Sorbet
3.Freesia
They explained that fashion, colour and fine fragrance are all intrinsically linked, at Seven they look at key trends in these categories and provide their own interpretation as a source of inspiration. They also provide observations on key fragrance accords and directions for the season ahead.
Gourmand scents continue to be in vogue, Praline notes, with influence from USA bringing nutty and caramel flavours which work well with other fresh, fruity notes. LA Nuit by Tresor is a good example of the praline influence, featuring a heady blend of dark florals and exotic accords.
Sorbet brings a fresh, cooling energy, often with a hint of fruit, Daisy by Marc Jacobs is a lush and playful scent with juicy pear and passion fruit mixed with crisp jasmine.
Freesia is one of my all-time favourite flowers so it was a delight to small La Petit Robe Noire Ma Robe Petals Eau launched by Guerlain in January 2015. It’s a floral green composition with top notes orange blossom and a floral heart of rose, freesia and jasmine, resting in a sweet trail of pistachio, almond, tonga, white musk and patchouli.
With all the fruity and gourmand influences it is nice to see floral fragrances making a comeback this summer, with freesia being a key note. This is the one I am going to buy!!
We then looked at a specific area they described as Sugar Rush –
Sugar rush is inspired by pop culture, it is a playful and energetic summer trend combining a sweet, Gourmand and fruity fragrance direction. The trend and marketing teams at Severn create mood boards to inspire the perfumers. The perfumers then created a selection of delicious scents for us to test.
Sugar Rush female is a smooth feminine creation blending candied fruit notes of peach, strawberry and lemon with a playful heart of sugared almonds, Madagascan vanilla, smooth caramel and buttercream. The base ends with creamy nuances of soft woods, Tonka bean, benzoin and Amber.
Sugar rush male is a delicious fruity gourmand scent that opens with juicy black current, radiant Amber and star anise. The heart blends Nashi pear and black rose enhanced by nuances of sweet liquorice, sugary caramel and Virginian cedar wood.
Dene Godfrey from Independent Preservation Advice then spoke to us about Preservatives trends.
Although People are still moving towards paraben alternatives, the shift is actually not as dramatic as people might think with many brands still sticking to this tried and tested preservative.
Cosmetics and Toiletries magazine has published a list of preservative usage, the new figures for 2014 have not been released but parabens are still one of the main preservatives used in personal care. Cosmetic companies notify the FDA and the CT magazine publishes the use of preservatives Latest data, years after the initial paraben scare still showed 4 short chain esters are still the most widely used preservatives in USA
Dene explained that the real trend is towards illegal products with a large grey area of people listing chemicals which have a secondary preservative function but not listing them for that purpose and confusing the general public with claims of preservative free.
To comply with the Cosmetic directive you have to list the function of a product, if it’s an emollient you can justify it in a Face cream but not in a shampoo.
All preservatives must be listed on Annex 5, if it is not listed it cannot be used as a preservative.
Barbara Brockway, from IMCD, then entertained us with Hair care trends.
Barbara explained she keeps a close eye on Google trends, looking at what people are searching for on line to understand consumer demand. Currently it appears that temporary hair dyes is the biggest growth market, with Customisation, Asianification and Digital trends following on from that.
Asia is leading the way with safety initiatives, Korea and Indonesia launching Anti-pollution products to satisfy consumer demands asking “will it protect”?
Shampoo NPD is growing but also innovation in styling, with longer lasting and brightening, being regularly searched, botanical, herbal and green terms are going down.
Multi-functional problem solving, volumising, moisturising, damaging, vitamin fortified are all key areas for hair. Fashion led with so many celebs having long hair styles helping to keep the importance of hair grooming in the public eye. We are also seeing more Men’s gender specific products coming into the market and we are also seeing Price points going up.
41% pollution is the 3rd highest concern in China. East meets west Korea, actives from Korea and moral brands are also gaining momentum with many brands supporting education and fair trade events.
The Next generation want Functional, ethical, solutions.
Claire summers was next to pass on her passion for Cosmetic colour trends, explaining that the way we look at trends has changed.
There was a time when new product launches were easy and controlled, with the brand selecting the advertising images and copy that was delivered. Now we’ve educated our consumers so much and social media has had such an impact that the brands have lost some of the control.
Celebrity endorsements and comments from Beauty bloggers and vloggers, including pixie woo are all having an impact.
They have an opinion and people want to hear it, some people are professional Make-up artists, others just have a keen interest and they all have a voice.
Claire looked at growth categories and explained, nail is the biggest growth area at the moment with lip, eye, eye liner, foundation, all growing and interestingly multi use is now a category, eyelash, face, blusher and lip liner followed.
Contouring is also a key area.
Once again Eastern influences especially – Korean are strong.
We have seen innovation with a number of Medical devices being launched, including a heated mascara wand, launched 2013 to curl and lift.
There is more innovation to come in the nail category, Nails are next, nail foundation, nude even alphabet products for nails Bb nail varnish.
Finally we looked at Skincare innovation with Sarah Gladstone from Rahn talking through the growth in the over 55 consumers.
There is a huge shift in population with 55+
24% of population in 1960
35% in 2015
45% 2020
This is a huge area for product companies as the 55+ have earned, saved and inherited assets their disposable income is large and they all feel younger and live a different life when retired, wanting to look after their health and appearance.
65% of over 55s use skin care generally, the number of daily products has grown for 60 and 70 year olds.
There has been a shift in age distribution and this together with social change means they don’t want to be targeted as older. They have empty nests are active, fit and healthy with little time but they do have money.
They want to stay healthy are beauty, mind and body focussed.
As brand managers we need to remember how they feel about themselves.
They are more experienced and have realistic expectations, they are more relaxed and want to look good, they are aware of the changes in their skin and want products for ageing.
The advice from Rahn is to Segment, but be subtle and above all don’t over promise.