Colour cosmetics – The colour of money

The colour cosmetics market is flourishing as consumers continue to explore new looks and manufacturers produce ever more pleasing formulas and textures. Emma Reinhold and Julia Wray report

While other C&T sectors have suffered their fair share of good and bad years, the colour market has been a perennial success story. According to Euromonitor International’s preliminary data for 2012, the global colour cosmetics market was worth $55bn, a 5.7% jump on the previous year, so it’s easy to see why so many manufacturers are keen to tap into this lucrative market.

The last 12 months saw a wave of new beauty brand launches and advances in NPD, which has given the consumer greater choice than ever before. According to Nicole Tyrimou, beauty and personal care analyst at Euromonitor: “Brands still look at colour cosmetics as an area in which to expand, especially fashion brands. Most already have a fragrance and the next step to reach a wider audience is through colour cosmetics.”

Coty’s much anticipated launch of ck one Color – the brand’s third attempt at a colour line (the previous two were not with Coty) – features over 100 multitasking skus ranging from 3-in-1 Face Makeup SPF8 to eyeshadow quads. Clothing brand Superdry will launch a new beauty range next month featuring eyeshadows, blushers, bronzers, lip glosses and nail colours. “We are dramatically accelerating our women’s wear offering in Spring 2013, so the introduction of a colour cosmetics range ties in nicely with this,” Superdry founder James Holder told SPC.

Elsewhere, actress Drew Barrymore has launched Flower in collaboration with design group Maesa. The range will initially be available in Wal-Mart doors in the US.

The colour craze has not been confined to the fashion world. Skin care brand Liz Earle created Liz Earle Colour, an extensive range of skin, eye, cheek and lip colours developed to help women achieve a natural look with make-up. Lush Cosmetics also entered the colour market with Emotional Brilliance. The line focuses on a personalised concept where the consumer chooses make-up shades based on their emotions. Keeping with the natural theme, Wild About Beauty is a new brand created by make-up artist Kim Jacob and Louise Redknapp. The range, which focuses on the skin care benefits of the products, includes face, eye and lip products in muted, naural-looking shades.

However it was not plain sailing for all. Make-up artist Jemma Kidd’s cosmetics empire went into administration in 2012 after the company’s decision to pull out of pharmacy chain Boots and launch a premium diffusion brand (Jemma Kid Make Up School) failed to pay off.

“In a crowded market, with so many brands competing in the same price range, you have to have a really strong point of difference,” explains Mintel’s director of insight, beauty and personal care, Vivienne Rudd. “Also if you don’t have an outlet yourself you need a great relationship with your retailers. Consumers are fickle. People will have hero products across a number of brands and if you’re not easily accessible they will forget you.”