A few weeks ago, my husband and I were perusing the aisles of Target as we are known to do, when we happened upon a new product that got us both terribly excited: natural face lotion with SPF. For men.
Quick side note: My husband cares about his skin just as much as I care about mine. While I am fair-skinned and prone to burning even in the dead of winter, he works outside quite a bit and is exposed to the elements on the regular. Thus, we are both particular about what we slather on our faces daily.
Back to the skin care aisle at Target. We were both excited to see this new, natural face lotion for different reasons—he because he likes a good face lotion with SPF, especially ones that are natural and organic; me because the scent smelled delightful, and not so manly that I couldn’t use it as well (which I do, because unlike most natural/organic SPF face lotions, this one isn’t thick and cakey, leaving clumpy white streaks across my forehead). And the kicker for both of us was that this product did not cost an arm and a leg.
As we stood there in the middle of the aisle, it got me thinking about men and skin care products. Women spend upwards of $426 billion on beauty per year, and while some men may not give “beauty” products a second thought, more and more they’re giving these products a second, third, and even fourth thought. In 2016, men’s grooming products are slated to rake in $21 billion in sales.1http://www.complex.com/style/2016/01/mens-grooming-industry-growth-2016
Yes, that’s only a small portion of what women spend. But if you look at it another way, there is that much more room to grow.
And you can’t deny that men are interested—the growth of companies like Dollar Shave Club and Birchbox Man are proof positive of that.
As we approach the New Year, new opportunities abound, and men’s skincare products are just such an opportunity. More and more guys are purchasing (and repurchasing) products that help them (and their skin) look and stay healthy, repair damage, and make them look a little younger…you know—a lot of the same things that women seek in their products. So how can you tailor those skincare products that can work for both men and women to attract the male user? Is your product touching on the grooming issues men are most concerned about? Does it speak to an issue that they should be concerned about?
With so much room to grow, men’s skincare is a deep well of possibility for new products and new customers. How are you tackling this new era in the New Year?
Couldn’t agree more. The social stigma of skincare for gents has basically dissolved, which could also help explain the massive growth.
Lazy Girl Luxe is currently working on a few products under a separate line for men. The first will be a similar product to our women’s Beauty Spray but with a formula specifically for men that is designed to have a handful of uses that don’t necessarily apply to women. It is called Neat Spray, and will have the nostalgia of real gentlemen from generations past and the sophistication of a man who orders his Scotch “neat”. Our initial focus groups and testers really dug the first iteration so we are excited to roll it out this year. We say “Beauty Spray is for everyone”, and we don’t intend to leave anyone out!