The growth opportunity in personal care will come from bioactive ingredients

The global shift in demand from synthetic to natural active ingredients due to the belief that they are more benign to human health and the environment is drawing considerable investments to the personal care active ingredients market, says research firm Frost & Sullivan.

Source: Frost & Sullivan. Generic personal care dispensers.

Natural active ingredients take up 25% to 30% of the total market today but is expected to double in proportion by 2023, triggering a series of innovations aimed at countering the inherent instability of biological ingredients.

"The preference for natural ingredients is particularly strong among consumers from India and China, who have been exposed to traditional Ayurvedic and Chinese medicines," said Frost & Sullivan Visionary Science Principal Analyst Raghu Tantry. "Although personal care companies such as Natura Cosméticos and the L'Oréal Group offering natural products have reported a significant increase in sales, companies need to be prudent when making claims on the labels as they are closely watched by regulators."

Manufacturers are to tap growth opportunities in personal care through diversification and offer of multifunctional ingredients, says Frost & Sullivan’s Visionary Science team. Natural ingredients' susceptibility to microbial contamination and incompatibility with other ingredients compel manufacturers to employ technologies such as encapsulation. Controlled release technologies are also popular since they enhance the effectiveness of natural ingredients and widen margins by using highly effective, specialised active ingredients rather than commodities, Frost explains.

Active ingredients application in personal care is expanding beyond moisturising and sun protection in body care to antipollutant and antioxidant protection in haircare. Furthermore, ethnically diverse regions are presenting new opportunities to active ingredients and cosmetic manufacturers; for example, there is a huge market for halal beauty products in the Middle East and skin whitening ingredients in Asia-Pacific, Frost notes.

"The market is witnessing the rise of several regional players; however, most of them are looking to compete against the majors on price rather than innovation," observed Tantry. "To stay afloat in such a competitive market, active ingredient manufacturers have to focus on research and development (R&D), establish effective distribution channels, and collaborate with personal care product manufacturers to better understand their pipeline of new products."

As price pressures are high, participants need to arrive at the optimum mix of cost leadership, innovation and diversification in their business strategies. Lastly, they have to support their customers with credible research and track consumer markets to make the most of the abundant opportunities in the global market.

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Global Personal Care Active Ingredients Market, Forecast to 2023 (K187-39) is part of Frost & Sullivan's Future of Health, Beauty and Packaging Growth Partnership Subscription. The study covers ingredients for moisturising, ultraviolet (UV) filters, anti-ageing, exfoliating, conditioning, antimicrobial, and others. Get complimentary access to more information on this analysis and to register for a Growth Strategy Dialogue, a free interactive briefing with Frost & Sullivan's thought leaders.

Home treatments for teeth whitening grow in popularity

Technavio, a tech-focused research firm, has observed that self-applied teeth whitening products have revolutionised global oral care, with consumers preferring home instead of professional treatments. Oral care products like dental strips, whitening pens, and trays have replaced professional whitening treatments because of their cost and ease of use, the research firm said.

In a new report on the global teeth whitening products, the company said the market is expected to grow at a CAGR of almost 4% from 2015 to 2019. "Thanks to advances in teeth whitening, vendors are introducing new sustainable products with better offerings into the market. These products are considered highly cost effective and have witnessed impressive growth in countries like the US and India,” says Faisal Ghaus, Vice President of Technavio. 

“Though over the counter teeth whitening products are less effective than professional treatments, these products are popular as they are not time consuming. Vendors are expected to introduce more whitening products as value-added offerings and contribute to the growth of this market during the forecast period.”

Beautycare to follow changing weather conditions

Mintel Beauty & Personal Care (BPC) has identified seasonality as a new global beauty trend. The concept refers to how specific weather conditions defines beauty regimens.

Source: Mintel website.

According to Mintel BPC, seasonal products accounted for as many as 11.1% of all beauty and personal care launches in 2014, up from 9.8% in 2011. Additionally, seasonal facial skincare launches rose from 0.5% of global launches in 2009 to 1.2% in 2014.

Jane Henderson, Global President of Mintel’s Beauty and Personal Care Division at Mintel, said, “Our research shows that consumers are becoming increasingly aware of – and concerned about – how changes in the environment are affecting the condition of their skin and hair. Already, beauty manufacturers have started to go beyond taking simple seasonal approaches geared to public holidays or gifting occasions and instead are taking on the elements within their product innovation.”

Highlighting a gap in the market, Mintel’s exclusive consumer research reveals the strong global consumer demand for skincare launches that tap into changing seasons. Almost half (48%) of Chinese female facial skincare users choose products from different brands in different seasons.

Vivienne Rudd, Director of Insight, Beauty and Personal Care at Mintel, said, “A new generation of winter care products offer additional care and hydration for the skin. These tend to target dry or very dry skin and mention cold, dry weather. However, the future will see the arrival of boosters that address cold, damp weather as well as the extremes of dryness. Meanwhile, extreme summer conditions are calling for products which protect the skin from heat and humidity as well as UV damage, and which build up resilience against the forthcoming autumnal changes. By creating these seasonal options, brands have a chance of building year-round loyalty.”

Seasonal haircare is coming to the fore, Mintel notes. “Today, we have a number of generic seasonal skincare and haircare launches, but in the future we expect a new generation of products targeting specific skin and hair issues. These product introductions have the opportunity to address concerns that have arisen due to climatic conditions and seasonal stresses, varying their textures, building up seasonal ingredient profiles and selecting appropriate fragrance blends,” Rudd said.

“Seasonal approaches in beauty also extend to ingredients harvested at the most opportune time, while seasonal boosters and complementary teas and tonics will join mainstream collections. The seasonal issue will have an impact on global launch programmes. With the seasons arriving in different geographic zones at different times, colour cosmetics brands will have to take a more time-sensitive approach to their seasonal colour stories, while skincare and haircare brands may have to stagger their launch programmes more accurately. Beauty brands will also take cues from localised seasons such as the Monsoon in Southeast Asia to launch relevant and eye catching products.”

Protection from UV, pollution key consumer demands for beauty care

Many are turning towards beauty products to protect themselves from the impact of pollution, according to analyst firm Mintel, particularly in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.

Mintel revealed that between 2011 and 2013 there was a 40% rise in the number of beauty and personal care products launched carrying a claim that it could treat or protect against the effects of pollution. This has raised APAC’s share of global beauty and personal care launches holding anti-pollution claims from 22% in 2011 to 27% in 2013.

Furthermore, Mintel’s research shows that many consumers are looking to wash away the effects of their surroundings in particular, as the number of soap and bath products launched in the APAC region carrying an anti-pollution claim grew 63% between 2011 and 2013. In addition, hair product launches carrying anti-pollution claims have grown 61% while skincare launched with anti-pollution claims grew 46% over the same time period.

Speaking at in-cosmetics Asia 2014, Emmanuelle Moeglin, Global Fragrance and Colour Cosmetics Analyst at Mintel, said: "We are seeing the expansion of beauty products that shield from its effect across regions, categories, occasions, ages and gender. As awareness of the effects of pollution grows, we are seeing the expansion of beauty products that shield from its effect across regions, categories, occasions, ages and gender. With an increasing number of consumers living more urbanised lifestyles, we expect to see a rising number of beauty and personal care products launched carrying more specific anti-pollution terminology that specify the sources and composition of the pollutants.”

Whilst the APAC region has seen particularly strong growth of anti-pollution beauty products, this claim has also posted strong growth globally. Between 2011 and 2013 there was a 10% rise in the number of beauty products launched carrying this claim around the world, with a 60% rise in the number of soap and bath products launched with this claim, a 31% rise in hair products with this claim and a 22% rise in skincare launches carrying this claim.

Although demonstrating smaller growth in comparison to other categories, skincare products are still the most likely category to carry an anti-pollution claim, with 3.7% of skincare products launched globally in 2013 including such a claim, up from 3.2% in 2011. Moreover, there are a growing number of eye care products being launched carrying an anti-pollution claim with 7.2% of eye-care products launched so far in 2014 carrying this, up from 3.9% in 2012.




In addition, Mintel’s research has also revealed an increase in the number of skincare products launched with a UV protection claim. Whilst 13.6% of skincare products launched globally carried a UV protection claim, this rose to 15.4% in 2013. Looking forward, the popularity of this positioning looks set to continue to grow as 16.4% of skincare products launched globally so far in 2014 offer UV protection.

Finally, Mintel has identified growing consumer awareness of pollution and emissions to be a key trend for 2015. Richard Cope, Senior Trends Consultant at Mintel, said: “In 2015, pollution will become a key media focus. The cosmetics industry in particular has been awakening consumers to the immediate, visible, personal effects of pollution. 

"As a result, we can expect protective claims against PM 2.5 and others to grow in product marketing in skincare and cosmetics in general. In addition, consumers are already embracing apps that scrutinise a product’s environmental credentials and we anticipate more brands to become increasingly transparent in the coming year.”