Strobing and selfies are key drivers of make-up sales
The key influencers driving the global prestige make-up market are the strobing technique and ‘selfies’, according to the NPD Group.
The global information company’s report said that sales of prestige make-up reached £390 million from January to August 2015, an increase of 14.3% on the same period in 2014.
The face, eye and lip make-up categories all experienced double digit growth, while sales of highlighting products grew by 48.5% on the same period in 2014. Cream and powder highlighter products to illuminate the face are central to the strobing technique, which has taken over popularity in the mass market from the trend for contouring which dominated the market and hugely increased the development and sales of bronzing and sculpting products.
Total sales of highlighter products from January to August 2015 were £8 million, up from £5.5 million in 2014. June Jensen, director of UK beauty for The NPD Group explained, “Highlighters have witnessed an incredible amount of growth in the past year driven solely by the new trend for strobing. This has been a huge topic on social media, on beauty blogs and in the mainstream press. Brands have capitalised on this with new launches and focusing marketing on existing lines to drive sales in store and online.”
The other key influence on prestige make-up sales identified by the NPD Group is the ‘selfie’ trend. From January to August this year, eye, lip and face make-up segments have all seen significant growth as make-up users invest more money in looking perfect in pictures. The total value of face make-up was up 17%; eye make-up by 13% and lip make-up by 16%, compared to the same period in 2014.
Jensen commented: “Face, eye and lip make-up is vital to achieving a photo-ready finish and brands have responded with foundation and primers that reference the look people want to achieve using terms like photo-ready, camera-ready and HD. It’s spurned a new sub-sector and is driving sales.”
Make-up represents a substantial part of the beauty industry’s total worth, accounting for 32.8% (or £1.2 billion) of the total prestige beauty market.