Beauty industry has grown 1.1% during the coronavirus pandemic

Published 17th Jan 2022 by PB Admin
Beauty industry has grown 1.1% during the coronavirus pandemic

Despite being heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, the beauty sector grew 1.1% during January 2020 and December 2021, with the number of salons, nail bars and barbershops rising as consumers prioritise their health and wellbeing. 

The industry’s resilience was underpinned by growing numbers of micro-businesses launching in specific categories during the pandemic, according to new figures from analyst Local Data Company (LDC), with the number of nails salons increasing 9.1% in this period, beauty salons by 7.7% and barbershops up 8.9%. 

The research commissioned by the British Beauty Council (BBCo) is said to demonstrate the sector’s “strength, flexibility and resilience despite the significant challenges businesses have faced,” it stated. 

The council added that an increasing need for consumers to find health and wellbeing services to address emotional and psychological issues, stemming from stress and burnout, had helped the sector buck the overall trend. 

This positive news is extremely timely when the sector has just gone through another rough patch due to the pandemic, with beauty salons among businesses with the highest cancellations in December due to the fast spread of Omicron. In fact, 73% experienced unprecedented cancellations due to the variant

Millie Kendall OBE, chief executive of the British Beauty Council, said: “It has been an extremely challenging time for our sector – salons were closed for more than 200 days of lockdown. Many have sadly not been able to reopen, and we still have some tough months ahead of us. 

“However, data to date reveals that we have been nothing but resilient. We have a ‘long tail’ of our industry that is made up of thousands of small independents. Most have survived and thrived because they speak to so many things that the modern consumer is looking for such as ways to support businesses rooted in local communities, and easy, relatively low-cost self-care. 

“But beauty business owners are particularly flexible and forward-looking. Individually, these micro-businesses may be small, but collectively, they are mighty.”

In December, Chancellor Rishi Sunak issued new financial support to help businesses who have faced disruption during the Omicron variant, including beauty salons. Find out what you will be eligible for, including the Additional Restrictions Grant and Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme

What do you make of this news? Tell us your thoughts below.

Read Hellen Ward’s 10 tips for salon success in 2022.  

PB Admin

PB Admin

Published 17th Jan 2022

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