According to Joanna Chan, research analyst with Euromonitor based in Singapore, customisation is set to be a defining trend for skin care in the region. The trend gathering dominance through the growing consumer demand for personalised skin care products, with this being particularly evident in the rise of multicultural beauty.
Technology is also playing a big role in this trend, with brands developing devices capable of testing the environment and consumers’ specific skin type, and then producing or recommending a highly specific skin care product or routine. One key example is Romy Paris’s Figure device, which creates a tailor-made product for consumers.
Responding to demand
The demand from consumers for products that meet their specific needs is highlighted in recent Euromonitor data, which notes that it was the top concern among global respondents, and nowhere was the trend stronger than in the Asia region.
In the company’s 2015 global survey, 50.5% of respondents selected ‘suited to my skin type’ as feature that most influenced the decision behind their last skin care purchase, with this demand being seen particularly strongly in China, India and Indonesia.
For the Asia region, halal is a segment tipped to lead the way in catering for consumer demand for customised products: one brand, Wardah, has seen sales in Indonesia triple over the past five years.
Five key areas
According to Chan, there are five key factors for which consumers are eager to see personalised products. These are: age, moisture balance, ethnicity, gender and lifestyle.
With specific regard to multicultural beauty notes Chan, brands should look to offer three key aspects: catering to consumers’ specific needs related to their ethnicity, offering products that are appropriate to consumers’ local environments and climates, and being relevant to their cultural beliefs and identities.
Those brands which offer products which can meet all three of those demands in combination will be the ones to come out on the top of the customisation trend.