Environment and innovation the core concerns of beauty consumers

By

Adrien Communier

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Nov 1, 2019

French online advertising specialist Teads has recently published a survey on the current approach to beauty products consumption by women. In partnership with British marketing agency Global Web Index, Teads interviewed 4,487 female consumers aged 16 to 64 across eight countries, including France, Germany, Italy, the UK, Brazil, the USA and Japan. The influence of new technology and the efforts by brands to become eco-sustainable are the two main factors driving the consumption behaviour of beauty products that were observed by the survey.

According to the survey, whose results were published in mid-October, price remains, unsurprisingly, the main influence on purchases, but the interviewees also based their decisions on other criteria. In fact, 37% of the panel stated they have an eco-responsible approach in choosing the cosmetics products they use, and 52% of consumers are willing to pay more for products that are environmentally friendly, either in the formulation or packaging or both. These figures confirm the current popularity of eco-sustainable brands.

Another influence on purchases is the possibility for consumers to see, touch and feel the products they wish to buy. Because of this, in-store shopping remains dominant in the beauty sector. Nevertheless, online cosmetics purchases are also a factor, since the Teads survey indicated that 76% of consumers who visit a beauty site convert such visits into a purchase.

The survey also highlighted the growing influence of digital technology on the way beauty products are consumed nowadays, as 59% of interviewees said they are potentially interested in using augmented reality tools and in referring to virtual beauty consultants and chatbots. Among the less digitally savvy, 69% of them wish to be able to test these tools.

“The growth of the beauty and skincare markets has always been driven by innovation,” said Caroline Hugonenc, global vice-president research & insights at Teads, adding that “digital tools disrupt the consumers’ purchasing path and open up new opportunities for brands to reach their audiences.”

In 2018, the beauty market worldwide was worth approximately €200 billion, and was driven by Asia, which accounted for 39% of global sales. L'Oréal remains the leading global player, with a revenue of $29.4 billion (€26.4 billion) in 2018, followed by Unilever with $21.5 billion and by Estée Lauder with $12.8 billion. Online sales currently account for approximately 25% of global beauty sales.