Last year began with a fairly slow January as the cosmetics industry, just like all other sectors in the global economy, endeavoured to recover from the worst recession in decades. But the situation had improved by the time 2010 drew to a close and there was renewed optimism, as Nadia Di Martino and Katie Middleweek report
By the time 2010 was nearing its end luxury brand heavyweights at the International Herald Tribune Luxury Heritage conference, held in London last November, agreed that there had been some core values that were key to reaching consumers’ hearts and ultimately their purse strings during the recent hard times.
It seemed that customers, though not prepared to give up on their luxuries, were seeking more reassurance that beauty products were worth investing in and this included seeking more value added benefits and greater scientific backing. And when it came to investment, the industry on the whole was putting its money where its mouth was and the end of the year in particular saw some key sales and acquisitions from some big names.
Buying up and selling on
The cosmetics market got off to a slow start last year but as the months went by it became evident that manufacturers weren’t going to let the stalled economy deter them.
January saw personal care giant P&G buy home fragrance brand Ambi Pur from Sara Lee in a deal worth a reported €320m while in the same month Alberto Culver purchased Simple Health & Beauty from private equity fund Duke Street in a £240m cash deal.
February saw more acquisition news as skin care company Shiseido bought up US company Bare Escentuals for a price tag of $1.7bn with the newcomer becoming a consolidated subsidiary of the Japanese group. Shiseido said the move formed part of its management strategy to increase growth potential worldwide with the aim of achieving some 50% of sales via the international market from then on. In the same month L’Oréal spent $130m buying up two US hairdressing chains, Maly’s Midwest and Marshall Salon Services, in a bid to increase its hold over the US hairdressing market.
March saw Estée Lauder announce that its results were exceeding industry expectations, seeing an 11% rise on its second quarter results compared to the previous year, achieving net sales of $2.26bn. Shiseido announced the completion of its 15th factory, with the opening of a new site in Vietnam. The new site was built to manufacture the products targeting the middle income group in Asia, including China.
April saw Clorox-owned naturals company Burt’s Bees reveal plans to roll out into mainland Europe, following a 40% growth in its UK business in 2009. However the big news in April was US direct seller Avon buying UK skin care brand Liz Earle in a 100% all-cash deal. Despite being absorbed into the Avon portfolio, Liz Earle Naturally Active Skincare continued to be managed independently as a standalone brand under the leadership of co-founders Liz Earle and Kim Buckland, with its headquarters remaining in the Isle of Wight.
May saw the Fairtrade logo awarded the honour of being the most recognised ethical label in Britain, according to a study by The Fairtrade Foundation. One in three of the 1,500 people surveyed said they would recognise the Fairtrade logo on a product. In the same month P&G announced a 7% increase in net sales in the first quarter of 2010, describing it as an “excellent quarter” for its personal care division which turned over €3.13bn.
June saw Estée Lauder purchase Smashbox Beauty Cosmetics Inc in what was considered a strategic complement to the company’s portfolio of prestige cosmetics brands. It was seen to be a way of attracting new and younger consumers to the company while also making good use of Smashbox’s expertise in digital and social media. Later that month the retailer, The Co-operative revealed it had signed a deal to buy up all 37 of The Body Shop’s stores in Switzerland for an undisclosed sum.
In July retailer Whole Foods announced a new requirement for all personal care and cosmetic brands which wanted to make organic claims about their products. From June 2011, brands in Whole Foods’ US stores will be required to obtain third party certification from the United States Department of Agriculture National Organic Program (USDA NOP), which also certifies food under US law.
Summer sales
August saw more acquisition activity with Reckitt Benckiser buying SSL International in a deal worth £2.5bn. The move was hoped to increase Reckitt’s personal care business sales by one third with brands such as Scholl helping to facilitate this. The same month KMI Brands joined forces with Oxfam’s Drop of Joy campaign to help people living in Tanzania, as part of a three year initiative. The aim was to earn £50,000 in the first year for the campaign via sales of KMI’s Naked Haircare brand with the money going to provide people with a clean water supply via Oxfam’s Shinyanga Water Project in the country.
September saw P&G hit with an additional t230m bill for the Wella acquisition it had made seven years previously in 2003. A German court decided that the US personal care giant had to pay 23% more to minority shareholders, despite paying €6.5bn for the hair styling brand the first time round. L’Occitane-owned Melvita France announced it was to make its UK debut after opening successful stores in Hong Kong, Germany and Russia while UK heritage brands Yardley and Woods of Windsor received a major international relaunch in order to appeal to a broader customer base going forwards.
October was the month when acquisition activity really stepped up a gear with some notable purchases. Unilever announced it was to buy Alberto Culver in a $3.7bn cash deal, with the move making Unilever the world leader in the hair conditioning market and the second largest in shampooing. The move was widely seen as one which aimed to confront L’Oréal’s perceived dominance of the world’s hair care market. The next big purchase was that of self-tanning brand St Tropez by PZ Cussons. The manufacturer of the Imperial Leather and Carex brands paid £62.5m to St Tropez’ private equity owner LDC. And New Zealand company Ecoya snapped up skin care brand, and fellow New Zealand company, Trilogy Natural Products for $10m.
November saw activity in the online sector with Cheshire-based online retailer The Hut Group making a successful bid for the UK’s biggest online health and beauty retailer, the Lookfantastic Group, which includes the lookfantastic.com and lookmantastic.com websites in its portfolio. And Avon sold off its majority stake in Avon Japan Inc to the TPG Capital investment fund for €65bn, saying it wanted to focus on “higher growth potential markets”.
Coty cleans up and Beiersdorf streamlines
December proved to be the month that Coty revealed its plans for major growth by buying up three big brands in a bid to strengthen its portfolio across all sectors.
The month saw Coty announce that it had purchased professional nail colour brand OPI, German skin care and cosmetics company Dr Scheller and premium skin care company philosophy. It also revealed a partnership with Calvin Klein to develop a full make-up line, set to launch in 2012, as well as entering into a purchase agreement with Chinese skin care company TJoy.
The philosophy deal alone was worth over $1bn as Coty did a deal with The Caryle Group for the brand and the addition of OPI will enable Coty to have important access to the burgeoning salon distribution channel, as well as fitting nicely alongside its existing brands such as Rimmel and Sally Hansen.
And while everyone else seemed to be buying up new brands, German C&T giant Beiersdorf was streamlining its business as December saw it sell its premium hair care brand Marlies Möller and selective skin care brand Juvena to Austrian company, Troll Cosmetics.
Beiersdorf said it will now focus on its Nivea, Eucerin and La Prairie skin care brands in order to make the company more “profitable and competitive” in the future.
The green machine
At the start of 2010 it became evident how the economic downturn had perhaps had a somewhat damaging effect on the organic and natural beauty market. According to research carried out by mymarketmonitor.com, recommendations within the editorial sector dropped dramatically. Smaller brands were advised to capture editors’ attention by focusing on engaging stories while bigger brands were encouraged to explore possibilities such as celebrity endorsement. In the US, by the end of summer consumers made it clear that they favoured performance factors over natural products. According to a report by the market research firm Kairos Consumers, Naturals and Organics in the US, consumers require more education about the benefits of organic and natural cosmetics to justify paying a premium price. In addition, the report highlighted how even shoppers who buy organic and natural cosmetics have little knowledge about what constitutes a natural or organic product although many cited safety and the absence of ‘negative’ ingredients. Further to this, as revealed by a new Datamonitor study, consumers apparently remain in conflict when buying natural C&T items. Of the shoppers surveyed, 44% neither agreed nor disagreed when asked whether products formulated with natural ingredients were as effective as synthetic ones, suggesting marketers still have some way to go to convince them.
Burts Bees was voted the top green brand and rolled out into mainland Europe. It also significantly reduced its energy and water usage levels and eliminated the waste it sent to landfill
Despite the uncertainties surrounding natural products, natural manufacturers still did good business within the C&T market in 2010. British male grooming brand Bulldog launched two fairtrade products that received accreditation from The Fairtrade Foundation. Eco-system Shave Gel and Eco-System Moisturiser feature ingredients from Sri Lanka and Ghana such as green tea and shea butter. Meanwhile US brand Burt’s Bees was voted top US green brand according to a survey by ImagePower. The 2010 Green Brands Survey polled over 9,000 consumers in eight countries to identify emerging trends and purchasing behaviour when it came to green products and Burt’s Bees was found to possess the greatest commitment to green issues. This was no surprise as among other achievements in 2010 the company managed to reduce its energy use by 15.3% and its water usage by 5.5%. In addition the company managed to decrease the waste sent to landfill from its North Carolina facilities to zero which was a great achievement.
Last year many other companies also made significant steps to becoming environmentally friendly. C&T giant Unilever set itself the challenge of doubling the size of its business while simultaneously cutting its carbon footprint.
According to Organic Monitor, last year the beauty industry made crucial investments in new CSR and sustainability initiatives and engaged in ethical practices far more. Global C&T players also tried to reduce the environmental impact of cosmetics by using greener formulations and sustainable packaging.
On the up
Results reported in 2010 saw some improvement in fortunes when it came to the individual C&T sectors especially when compared to the previous year – and it is true to say that more categories saw a positive performance.
Starting with the downturn however and, as with last year, hair care and hair styling both had fairly lacklustre years with hair styling in particular falling flat.
Although the UK managed to pull in a 4.6% growth when it came to hair styling, and it was the only one to do so, its volume figures were not so lucky, falling by 1.3%. The French market fell by a massive 9.7% while the German sector was not far behind at 4.4%. Spain also fell by a huge 7% and Italy saw a lesser but still worrying decline of 2.5%.
The hair care market did not fare as badly as that of hair styling but nonetheless the results were nothing to write home about. Spanish sales dropped by a dire 8.2% however, meaning its hair care market was worth €1.09bn in 2009. Spanish industry body Stanpa has put this down to a vast change in consumer spending habits in 2009 with many consumers switching from branded products to far more expensive own label ones which had a big impact across the board.
Other European countries did not fare quite so badly, even making slender gains in some areas. France stayed virtually static with a 0.1% rise while Germany put on a marginally better 0.7%. Italy grew by 1.3% while the UK market put on 3%.
Body not so beautiful
The other area which performed well in 2008 but less well in 2009 was body care. Germany and the UK both saw losses while the others only managed slender gains. According to Symphony IRI Germany, the market here lost 1.3% in 2009 slipping to a total of €505.31m. The UK also saw a loss of 0.5%. In Italy growth was pretty stagnant putting on just 0.2%. Things were looking up in Germany and Spain however with 1.3% and 5% gains respectively. On a more positive note there was much to celebrate in the Big 5 countries last year with the tide really turning in some sectors.
A colourful year for cosmetics
The traditionally popular category of colour cosmetics didn’t disappoint in 2010. This market really had a rosy hue with all five countries making a gain in value terms. France is extremely well associated with colour cosmetics and Symphony IRI France’s figures showed that a healthy gain of 4.5% was recorded in 2009, boosting the category to €550m. Here, supermarkets and hypermarkets were a particularly popular retail channel, perhaps due to large amounts of French consumers switching to buying their cosmetics here, due to good promotional deals and special offers.
Elsewhere the German market grew by 2.3%, the Italian market by 1.1% and the UK by 3.5%. But the best growth here was recorded by Spain, putting on a promising 6% to ensure a healthy market value of €501.6m. And volume-wise figures here were going through the roof recording a whopping 16% rise to 61m units.
Facing facts
Facial skin care is another eternally popular area with European consumers and they seemed reluctant to slow their spending here despite any economic constraints. France recorded a solid growth of 4.7%, while the UK market was bolstered to £751.3m in 2009, according to figures from Kantar Worldpanel. Spain continued its run of form, growing by a healthy 4.5% in value terms and 1.9% in volume terms. The only country which did see a decline here was Italy, with industry body Unipro reporting that 2009’s market had slipped by 0.4%, although this dip is hopefully too slight to give any real concern. Interestingly, although having a mediocre year overall there were a couple of very positive gains in facial skin care. Firstly anti-blemish products put on 6% in just one year, while cleansing wipes also grew by 4.9% – surely a sign that Italians are still interested in the category even if the overall result doesn’t really reflect this.
Male order
Another area which is always a strong contender was male grooming as men further embraced the concept of taking care of themselves. There were gains across the board with France and the UK seeing the most healthy rises. The male grooming market in the UK is now worth £707.5m, a growth of 3.7% in 2009. The French market was worth t840.59m in 2009 with facial skin care masks and patches seeing the biggest individual gain of 4.6% which shows that not only are French men embracing the overall concept of having a good grooming regimen, they are also being quite specific in their requirements, which manufacturers can only take as a good sign for the future.
Whiter than white
Oral care products had lots to smile about in 2009 as the results here proved that keeping teeth both looking and feeling good has never been more popular with European consumers.
The biggest rise here was seen by Germany with a massive 22.3% growth as German men started to take notice of the tooth whitening sector in particular – a growing category across all Big 5 countries. Close behind was France with a 7.08% gain, followed by the UK, with 6.1%. This marked a happy return to form for the UK which had seen a stumble the previous year when consumers began trading down to save money. Happily, Kantar Worldpanel reported that the market was worth a gleaming £827.07m last year, with toothpastes accounting for the majority of sales here.
So spa, so good
The increasingly important and dynamic category of spa products has been bolstered by the continued emergence of day spas and medical spas in all European countries. This in turn has increased the number of at-home spa products purchased by consumers as they try to recreate the often costly spa experience in their own homes.
In Germany spa, or wellness as it is known there, is increasingly viewed as a vital way to keep both body and mind healthy. And according to the German Wellness Association’s latest study more Germans than ever are looking to incorporate spa going into their travel experiences.
Spa travel grew by 4.7% in 2010 alone with this figure set to continue growing in the future. And the spa industry continues to make its mark in Spain, particularly in the regions of Galicia and Catalonia, where spas make use of the natural geographical landscape to promote this trend among potential consumers. One spa opening which received particular attention in Spain was the unveiling of Spa Bliss Barcelona, based in the Hotel W in the city, designed by the renowned Catalan architect Ricardo Bofill.
Empowered consumers
Last year several issues arose when consumers voiced their discontent towards the advertisements used to promote C&T products with consumers voicing their anger at how they felt they had been somewhat deceived. In January the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) branded a magazine advert for Olay’s Definitely Eye Illuminator featuring an airbrushed image of model Twiggy as “misleading”. The advert generated 700 complaints via the internet and the ASA eventually ruled that the advert was not socially responsible as the image of the 60 year old Twiggy had undergone “minor retouching”, which P&G later admitted to.
In another case the ASA upheld a consumer complaint against Coty’s Rimmel brand and the advertising of its 1-2-3 Looks Mascara. The complaint raised concerns about Rimmel’s use of different length lash inserts on model Georgia May Jagger in two magazine advertisements and one TV advertisement, the prominence of the company’s on-screen disclaimers and the need to substantiate results claims. Coty said it used lash inserts in the adverts to “ensure a consistent and aesthetic lash look and not to create an exaggerated or unachievable look”. However the ASA ruled that the adverts did not make it clear that the lash inserts used were of different lengths. It also acknowledged that the tests suggested that increasing the dial setting could deliver increased volume but said it understood the study had involved product tests on only five subjects which in its opinion was too small a sample.
Seeing the controversy that C&T advertisements were starting to cause, in some countries legislators have taken action to create more clarity. In France the Autorité de Regulation Professionelle de la Publicité (ARPP) which regulates adverts in France validated a new set of rules for cosmetics which came into effect in March 2010.
The code of Cosmetics ARPP included several key points specifically with regards to the term ‘free from’ or ‘without’.
For example phrases like ‘without parabens’ or ‘phthalate-free’ should be avoided as they might encourage customers to be wary about certain substances. The advertising of natural and organic products will also have to undergo changes going forwards. Another stipulation was that a cosmetics product can only be described as natural if the complete product contains a minimum of 95% ingredients that are either natural or of natural origin.
The online onslaught
Last year was also the year when consumers really started to embrace social media in a big way. In evidence of this, India’s Hindustan Unilever announced that it was going to undo the product reformulation of its Pears Traditional Soap product, in favour of the original offering. The decision came after a large protest group formed on social networking site Facebook to highlight concern that the new formula had changed considerably from the original one and that it now has a much stronger scent – this showcased the influence of this form of social media and the power it can wield. Meanwhile some new research by mymarketmonitor.com revealed the most influential beauty blogs in the UK, which now have a large following when it comes to the C&T consumer, particularly those that want what they consider to be an unbiased review of a product.
The Lookfantastic Group, whose website sells a variety of prestige products was sold to The Hut Group last year for £19.4m
Alongside social media, last year the cosmetics industry finally started to fully harness the power of the internet when it came to beauty. Prestige product sales via the internet have expanded so much that a number of consultancy reports suggested that this form of distribution can no longer be ignored and many new sites are springing up all the time to fulfil this need. Online sales remain relatively low compared to retail sales on the whole but their share of the world market is growing and was expected to reach 4% by the end of last year and almost 5% this year, according to the Precepta consultancy company.
Meanwhile, P&G announced it was going to launch a new dedicated e-commerce website where consumers could purchase many of the company’s health and beauty products online, some for the first time. The move aimed to improve online sales while increasing brand awareness. P&G worked with e-commerce service provider PFSweb on the move. Kirk Perry, P&G vice president North America said: “Ultimately, our goal working with an experienced e-commerce business like PFSweb is to test concept programmes that can be reapplied with all of our online retail partners in ways that grow consumer affinity both for our brands and to increase sales for us and our retail partners.”
As 2010 drew to a close, it marked the end of a real turnaround period for the C&T market, as it started seeing the light at the end of the tunnel when it came to emerging from under the cloud of recession.
Renewed confidence in the market prompted a flurry of acquisition activity, especially towards the end of the year, and there were some prominent deals struck, surely a sign that confidence is returning – and hopefully 2011 will carry on in the same optimistic fashion.
Sun care: In the spotlight
“Our understanding about the risks of skin cancer is in fact improving, however our behaviour is not sadly. Many people think they are protecting their skin by applying sunscreen, but then choose a product with a low protection factor or don’t reapply it often enough. People with darker skin types in particular are often confused about whether or not they need sun protection.”
Rebecca Freeman, British Association of Dermatologists, UK
“In Germany we know that people take the dangers of sun exposure very seriously and I would add that the media here is very proactive in how it deals with promoting the dangers of this issue. This matter is constantly being discussed on the radio and on television and the VKE supports the media by supplying information about why it’s important to apply sunscreens.”
Martin Ruppmann, ceo of VKE, trade body for the German Association of Cosmetic Producers
Colour cosmetics: Confidence in colour
“Organic cosmetics is a growing trend in France, even though it is still a recent development in make-up in the mass market. You can find dedicated organic make-up brands but organic products within existing brands is totally new. We believe that organic is one answer to various needs of consumers. Organic make-up can be seen as an answer to a whole organic attitude, but also as a simple reassurance of the product quality.”
Chantal Landry, marketing director, Bourjois, France
“In Germany women want to wear cosmetics without feeling that they have a face full of make-up on. They also really take heed of their skin care needs these days and this has spilled over into colour cosmetics – women are now looking for products which combine beautiful colour and coverage with skin care benefits. When creating our latest range of cosmetics we did several workshops with our consumers to get to know exactly what they wanted out of a cosmetics range and really took on board what they said.”
Peter Schmidinger, international make-up director, Babor, Germany
“Colour cosmetics are seen as an affordable pick-me up product during tough times – it is easy to buy into a touch of colour I suppose. This year we have also launched a series of make-up masterclasses that can be enjoyed in the comfort of a consumers’ own home. They are creative but strategic and Jemma Kidd is all about step-by-step teaching and education and we are able to offer this through these courses.”
Grace Fodor, ceo and president, Jemma Kidd Make Up, UK
Hair care: Natural and organic hair care in full bloom
“Consumers believe the look and feel of their hair is reflective of their vitality and beauty and they want perfect hair. Although consumers pay attention to certification standards, it is not the main criterion with the hair care category. Of greater importance is the efficacy of a product, combined with the integrity of the brand. Ultimately, consumers are looking for great results combined with naturalness. In Germany although more and more conventional hair care manufacturers are following the natural trend by bringing out items containing natural or organic ingredients, this does not mean they have eradicated the hazardous ones altogether so that is something that consumers should bear in mind.”
Sabine Kaestner, PR manager, Lavera, Germany
“The Italian organic certification body ICEA has found a good compromise between performance and respect for the environment through its organic cosmetics standard which has allowed us as an industry to develop hair care products that work and which are organically certified at the same time. Italian manufacturer Kemon has recently launched Villa Lodola, comprising nine products which are all ICEA certified.”
Dr Barbara Olioso, founder Secret Forest, Italy
“Highly nutritious, repairing ranges for dry and damaged hair are very popular right now with French consumers as are protective products for blowdrying. Restructuring lines also do well here.”
Sylvie Mouchon, marketing director, Groupe Provalliance, France
Facial skin care: The power of recommendation
“I do not feel that the rise of cosmetic procedures and fillers could spell the end of traditional skin care creams. Injectables and the like will never be able to replace a daily skin care routine and this is something that German women prize very highly. Skin that is looked after daily with efficient products should not need such procedures in my opinion and many women do not like the frozen look that botox, for example, gives them. My facial skin care products on the other hand offer them a natural look with the best science and technology behind them. My Still & Fill range contains snake venom essence which stills surface lines making them less visible.”
Dianne Brill, Dianne Brill Cosmetics, Germany
“For Italian consumers product performance is very important and so is the idea of luxury and of having a pleasant experience. Consumers in Italy have a strong belief in the widespread concept that skin care products should spoil them both during and after application. In the past few years buying skin care lines in pharmacies has become something of a habit, with Italians relying heavily upon products that are recommended to them by pharmacists. This trend has increased even further during the recession as a response to consumer desire to cut down on superfluous items.”
Michelle Gueritte, commercial director, Laboratoires Nuxe Italia, Italy
Women’s fragrances: Spotting scent potential
“In the past couple of years women have cherished old favourites and single floral scents in particular. Now they seek a fragrance that resonates with their own lives, a fragrance with integrity when it comes to its ingredients and formulas. The fragrance industry is exploring new technologies and developing existing ones in new directions which is very exciting.”
Ruth Mastenbroek, perfumer, UK
“The French fragrance market has been relatively stable taking into account the recent crisis. Here the market has remained sound because fragrance usage is so high – as much as 70% of the revenue from beauty and perfumery stores in France is through fragrance, and 56% of this is via women’s fragrances. Perfume in France is a must have, must wear, must consume item. That is not to say it has become a commodity item but the trade has been transformed and perfumes are now more available to the public, both to men and women, and advertising spend has also doubled in the past ten years in France.”
Olivier Aron, founder and ceo, Rosae research and analysis company, France
“Last year we noticed the closing of the gap between the male and female fragrance markets and that was interesting. We also saw ingredients move much more into having Middle Eastern notes with a prevalence of rose, amber and oud.”
Valentino Di Liello, ceo, Campomarzio70, Italy
Spa products: Future opportunities
“The French spa market is full of opportunities. I would expect to see more partnerships between spas and thermal and thalassotherapy establishments because it’s a natural fit. In addition there is a huge opportunity for spa development in the Alps – skiing and spa going go together beautifully. France has a great opportunity to better educate spa goers around the world about vinotherapy. People naturally associate France with fine wines and spa brands like Caudalie have done a superb job of really promoting the unique aspect of this indigenous product. I believe this could be maximised more.”
Cassandra Cavanah, executive director, SpaFinder Europe
“The German spa industry has grown a lot in the past year and I think this growth was mainly created by new spa openings and the enlargement of existing facilities. Owning three different spas in three different German cites allows me to say with confidence that the market is definitely on the up again as the recession has eased. The need for spa going is definitely there and it is part of the lifestyle for people in this country. In fact they are even more likely to use spas now due to their rising stress levels. There have also been some new day spa openings in Germany this year and I feel this can only enrich the industry as a whole as these spas aim at attracting a different type of consumer than traditional spas.”
Marion Schneider, ceo of Toskanaworld Spas, Germany
Body care: Buffing up nicely
“The global body care market is now catching up with that of facial skin care in terms of advanced formulations and ingredient breakthroughs. With our Skin Yoga body care range we apply the science we use in our facial care products to the body, including the hands and feet. And, as ever, German consumers are interested in body care products that have a natural and organic angle which ours do. We combine the latest discoveries in scientific research with the elementary and powerful force of nature and this proves very popular with our consumers.”
Anna Blasco Salvat, vice president marketing, Art Deco, Germany
“The UK market has moved much more towards relying upon everyday and basic body care products as the recession has seen people trading down from higher priced lines to regular moisturisers. We have also seen that body care products with a gradual tanning effect have declined as people seem to use these particular products less – although self-tanning brands on the other hand have continued to see a steady increase.”
Shefali Mattani, brand manager, Nivea Body, UK
“The Italian body care sector is one which has noticeably widened in the past year, taking its inspiration from consumers’ continued need for well-being, harmony and an increased interest in fitness. At La Rinascente we deal with three specific body care sectors which are hydrating creams, perfumed creams and specific treatments. Formulations and packaging are evolving rapidly especially specific products such as firming products for the cleavage and anti-cellulite treatments. The past year has seen products which offer a sculpting effect see a boost in sales while other innovations were products that lifted and toned the skin and also body serums with natural ingredients.”
Rossana Gatti, brand manager, La Rinascente, Italy
Key highlights of 2010
- Liz Earle Botanical Essence (Avon) – the skin care guru’s first fragrance, followed by a hair care range debut later in the year
- Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector (Estée Lauder) – claims to match skin tone evening effects of 4% hydroquinone without the side effects, while Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus Wrinkle & UV Damage Corrector claims up to 63% of the visible wrinkle reducing power of a laser
- Elemis Eau de Parfum (The Steiner Group) – long awaited debut fragrance from the British spa brand arrived in the spring, swiftly followed by its second scent, Exotic in the autumn
- Une (Chanel) – the new brand, which comes from the same stable as Bourjois, promises to combine natural formulas with organic ingredients
- Marc Jacobs Bang (Coty) – the fashion designer’s first male fragrance in ten years, created by Givaudan
- occo – new spa brand arrived with a 65-sku product line-up taking inspiration from Croatia’s Dalmation coast
- Dr Perricone Private Reserve Serum – bucking the credit crunch with a price tag of £595 for just 30ml of the handmade blend, previously only available to high profile clients on request
- Burberry Beauty (Inter Parfums) – much anticipated colour line from the fashion house packaged in classic Burberry check
- Yes to Tomatoes & Yes to Blueberries – fruity follow-ups to Yes to Carrots’ harnessing antioxidant benefits