Ever since the nationwide lockdown was announced earlier this year, we have been comfortably cocooned in our homes. With extensions on working from home and minimal entertainment outside now that restaurants and malls have reopened, there still isn’t much going on for you to apply makeup daily. Even if you do, the mask covers it all.
What does this current shift in your personal grooming regime leave the beauty industry? Doyoul Lee, Country Head of Innisfree India and General Manager of AmorePacific, noted a four percent decrease in their make-up sales since the lockdown began. “It shows that people are not buying makeup as they were doing before. Whereas our skincare sales before lockdown was 81 percent, and post-lockdown has increased to 85 per cent. A four per cent increase.
Additionally, we can also see our body care range growing by three per cent,” shares Lee. As the effect of the pandemic ebbs, skincare sales are picking up, albeit very slowly, notes Shahnaz Husain. “A recent report by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. confirms this, noting that the interest in self-care and pamper trends has benefited the skincare, haircare and bath-and-body products segment.
There is a slight shift in make-up trends too, with eye make-up (mascaras, eyeliners and eyeshadow) sales picking up,” says Husain. “Work from home, emeeting is a new working style that maintains demand for makeup essentials. We have observed a surge in the sales on the online platforms as compared to brick and mortar retail during this period,” says Abhishek Bhattacharya, Country Director at KIKO Milano.
Shift in consumer behaviour
Shankar Prasad, Founder of Plum, observes that people have become more involved in their decision-making about what they consume, including skincare and cosmetics. “There are a lot more queries about safety,” he says, adding, “We have seen over 50 per cent increase in care products; on the cleansing side, there was a massive spike in May and June, which has now settled down to around 20-30 per cent increase, perhaps because demand is shifting online.” The global health crisis has led customers to seek out healthier options, causing the sales of organic and vegan products to surge.
“Be it rational or emotional, leaving a lighter footprint on the planet seems to be on top of the mind of a lot more people than it used to be,” says Prasad. Echoing the same sentiment, about organic and natural products, Lee says, consumers are trying to seek more qualified products. “From mass to premium and from premium to luxury. This kind of shift is going on since customers want better options for themselves and want to keep their surroundings clean and eco-friendly.”
Fall in new launches
With a staggering economy and customers staying loyal to tried and tested products, those being launched are mostly hand sanitisers and hand washes. “There is a definite decrease in new launches. For Innisfree, we had to postpone many launches, since a lot of work is required from different departments to launch a new product,” says Lee, adding, “Since people have only been spending on the necessary, they aren’t willing to explore right now.” Prasad adds that supply chains are stressed. “New product launches require multiagency coordination which is difficult to achieve in the midst of logistical challenges.
Having said that, we have been finding ways around this, and a total of 10 new Stock Keeping Units have gone live.” Traditionally, brands launch new products around major trade shows to generate as much interest as possible from key players. However, the impact of COVID-19 will usher a new paradigm in how brands think about product launches. “The pandemic has led to a wave of event cancellations and forced brands to pivot marketing initiatives and build new campaigns to address the shift. Yet, many of the changes will become permanent as brands realise that trade shows and coordinated events are not the keystone platforms they once were, at least for six months,” concludes Husain.