No Need for Roman Baths With So Many Spa SKUs

Time-pressed Europeans would rather buy spa-type products to use at home than spend hours having treatments in a beauty salon or spa. As a result, beauty brands have been quick to exploit the opportunity to create at-home spa products that replicate the salon experience at a fraction of the price. Meanwhile, electronic beauty tools and devices are catching on among digitally savvy consumers seeking salon-worthy results at home.

According to Kantar Worldpanel, Italian women are most likely to have visited a beauty salon in the past six months, indulging in the widest range of treatments. By contrast, British women are the most time-pressured with little time for salon-based pampering.

The most common salon treatments are facials, manicures, pedicures and hair removal across the top five European countries, but there are regional preferences: the Italians partake of multiple treatments, including hair removal (18%), pedicure (16%), manicure (15%), bikini wax (10%) and facial (9%). The most popular professional treatment for French women is facial (10%), while Spanish women use the salon for hair removal via plucking (12%), or waxing (11%) followed by facials (10%) and manicures (10%).

Money & Time Savers
Lower cost is the primary reason why more European women like to buy spa-type products. According to Canadean 2014 research, 70% of Europeans opt for at-home spa products because they are cheaper. Furthermore, 45% of Europeans say spa products for home use save time and 45% consider them to be convenient. Polish consumers are the most cost-conscious Europeans and also use them to save time.

“Convenience for at-home spa products is often highlighted by manufacturers of skin care products who strive to deliver simplified versions of advanced treatments,” maintains Nina Novak, innovation researcher at Canadean. “This feature may resonate especially well with Russian consumers where this factor ranks the highest out of the European countries surveyed.”

One Way to Do It
Elemis straddles the professional spa and at-home spa product categories, and has recorded double-digit growth in Europe. The UK is its strongest market, both in Europe and globally, but sales are booming in the Nordic nations, too. More than 50 spa accounts are set to open by the end of 2016, followed by Croatia, Greece and Cyprus. Across the retail and professional markets, Elemis’ top ranges in Europe include Pro-Collagen, Dynamic Resurfacing and Biotec, alongside Aching Muscle Super Soak, Japanese Camellia Body Oil Blend and Frangipani Monoi Body Oil.

Elemis encourages its customers to adopt a spa-at-home approach through education (helping clients understand their needs), prescription (based on how the client is feeling, their skin care concerns and other factors affecting their skin), Skin Labs (available at many spas and salons offering detailed skin analysis) and retail (over 100 spa-related products to choose from).

Dutch-owned Rituals has retail locations across Europe, with Benelux, Germany, Spain and Sweden contributing to the majority of sales. After traveling throughout Asia, founder/CEO Raymond Cloosterman developed the brand, which has a dual focus on body care and home products. Customers are welcomed into a Rituals store with a cup of tea. Once inside, they have the chance to try and feel the products and can receive a free hand massage and other treatments, such as a one-minute meditation. In the UK, Rituals is expanding its standalone portfolio with two new London boutiques.

“Customers love experiences and convenience; they love to be pampered and to slow down,” maintains Penny Grivea, UK managing director, Rituals.

She referenced a recent market study the brand conducted that showed it ranked No. 1 in sensorial experiences among its competitors. This year in Spain, Rituals introduced a summer limited edition range called Mandi Lulur; the line includes a shimmer body cream formulated with sensual frangipani and rice milk.

Texture is another feature used by brands to create salon-like treatment experiences. The Body Shop’s Spa of the World Hawaiian Kukui Cream is said to “indulge body and mind” and uses kukui oil, which is native to Hawaii and Polynesia. Kukui oil is just one of the emerging beautifying oils that are spearheaded by argan oil. Kukui oil softens the skin without leaving an oily residue and can also be used as a bath oil or hair conditioner.

High-Tech At-Home
According to Canadean, 24% of Europeans use an electrical or battery-operated device to do facials at home, while 32% use them for body treatments. Novak maintains that consumers are gaining confidence in DIY beauty treatments, which is reflected in a growing number of increasingly advanced electrical beauty tools.

“Looking at skin care, launches of devices of different functions, from rejuvenation, wrinkle and acne removal, to face massagers…(are demonstrating) the potential of such devices within this category,” said Novak.

From Sweden comes the Foreo Iris Illuminating Eye Massager, inspired by Asian fingertip tapping eye massage. It is designed to reduce undereye bags, dark circles and the appearance of fine lines. A “spa mode” recreates a pro beauty treatment by combining tapping with delicate pulsations and is recommended for skin that has more pronounced signs of aging.

But it’s a different story when it comes to digital tools. According to Canadean, only 6% of Europeans use smartphones apps to manage skin conditions, although just under a third would consider using them in the future.

“The growing acceptance and usage of digital apps tracking various lifestyle facets paves the way for beauty gadget manufacturers to capitalize on the preferences of digitally-oriented consumers,” according to Novak.

An example of an app-controlled beauty tool is the ZIIP Nano Current Skincare Device, a collaboration between electrical engineers, scientists, doctors, researchers and skin care expert Melanie Simon. A range of treatments can be sent through the app delivering nano current waveform combinations dependent on skin issues and desired results.

Technology is helping to shape the future of the beauty category, providing consumers with the tools to achieve effective salon-inspired results within their own homes.

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Imogen Matthews
Headington, Oxford UK
Tel: +44 1865 764918

Imogen Matthews is a respected consultant, journalist and researcher focusing on trends in the beauty industry. She regularly contributes to many of the world’s foremost beauty trade titles. Every year in April, she publishes The Premium Market Report, focusing on trends in the UK premium beauty markets.
www.thepremiummarketreport.com