22 MEN’S GROOMING
sector the valuable practice of word of mouth recommendation. In order for the market to truly experience its growth potential it was proposed that “men have to accept that the use of skin care products is a heteronormative practice.” Further research indicates that men dislike the term anti-ageing as this is linked to aesthetics and is perceived to be feminine. However it was reported that; “Although males generally rejected anti-ageing products and services that they judged to affect aesthetics, they reported that they use those that they define as promoting health and performance instead”.9
In other words,
at this point in time, the best way to market product to a male audience is to focus on the functionality of the product and not the aesthetic benefits. This is, however, countered by the recent use of males in marketing campaigns by some of the biggest beauty players. L’Oréal launched their True Match campaign with a wide range of celebrities and bloggers along with the tag line ‘Because We Are All Worth It’. Most noticeable in the advertising was the inclusion of Gary Thompson, aka ‘The Plastic Boy’, a beauty and lifestyle blogger who often posts makeup reviews on his blog and ‘how to use’ makeup tutorials on his YouTube channel. According to the press release, his inclusion reflected the trend for more and more men to wear makeup.10
This was then
followed by the announcement that male Instagram star and makeup artist James Charles was to be the new face of Cover Girl. Earlier in the year Louis Vuitton had used male actor Jaden Smith as a model in their Spring/Summer womenswear collection adverts where he was pictured wearing an embroidered skirt. We have also witnessed, for example, the repositioning of the Unilever brand ‘Axe’ (or Lynx in the UK & Ireland) away from its rather laddish ‘babes in bikinis’ image to the more grown up and reflective ‘Find your magic’ re- incarnation. For the younger generation a genderless or androgynous look is culturally acceptable and may be viewed as a revolutionary response to the traditional masculine mind set. In terms of buying habits we also find distinct gender differences. Similar to the behaviour mentioned above in terms of skin care, men seldom like to admit to the fact that they actually quite like shopping.11
This
is where virtual shopping has really found its niche. Increasingly male consumers are turning to online shopping for personal care products as they seek a hassle free retail experience.12
Key insights into male retail
habits show that they enjoy the convenience aspect, are more likely to use a smart phone to make a purchase, are less influenced by sales or special offers and stop shopping after finding the first ‘workable’ product.13
PERSONAL CARE ASIA PACIFIC
Designed for men When developing products aimed at males one of the first things to consider is the gender differences in skin physiology, primarily mediated by sex hormones. These have been covered in previous articles but to summarise – male skin tends to be thicker, have increased vascularity and sebum levels, a slightly lower pH and initial wrinkles appear in the forehead region. Men’s trans epidermal water loss (TEWL) levels have a tendency to be lower than that of females and skin hydration levels higher, especially below the age of fifty years.14
Possibly the most important factor
here is the increased levels of sebum which have been shown to make men perceive heavier skin care products to be greasy, tacky and slow to absorb into the skin.15
As
previously discussed one of the key aspects of a men’s product is its functionality, which has led to active ingredients developed specifically for men being launched into the market place. Examples would be the SMS Range from Silab composed of anti-wrinkle and anti-fatigue actives and Speci’Men from BASF for anti-ageing. Moisturisation is pretty much a given for most male skin care products (often covered off by the use of the word ‘Hydro’) but we are seeing claims on the products becoming increasingly sophisticated.
Tattoo creams
One of the most talked about recent men’s launches was, without a doubt, L’Oréal Men Expert Hydra Energetic Tattoo Reviver Cream. This body cream was developed specifically for tattooed skin and contains creatine, often used to energise skin, promising to increase brightness, revive colour contrast and sharpen contours of body art.16
The product has received very
good reviews on the L’Oréal website and had many beauty bloggers wishing for a female variant. Surfachem showcased an ‘Ink Defender’ tattoo cream on their stand at the 2016 SCS Formulate Exhibition which contained emollients to hydrate the skin and maintain tattoo definition and SPF
protection to prevent loss of definition and colour fade.17
Beards and shaving Despite the predictions of many, myself included, it would appear we have not yet achieved ‘peak beard’ and the trend for facial hair continues. Beard care has therefore become increasingly important for today’s hirsute male with Bulldog offering a 2-in-1 beard shampoo and conditioner which contains aloe vera, camelina oil and green tea and claims to leave the beard soft, fresh, nourished and conditioned.18
Clinique have also launched
a 2-in-1 skin hydrator and beard conditioner which instantly improves skin and softens beards, the product is also oil-free (due to the increased skin sebum levels, oil-free is a common claim for men’s products).19 There are various features of male facial skin which can result in issues during and after shaving – its morphology and roughness is heterogeneous, men report a high incidence of sensitive skin, wounds heal more slowly in men, male skin is more prone to post-inflammatory
hyperpigmentation and the perifollicular skin is designed to respond to environmental stresses, exactly the type of stresses caused by shaving.20
Ren do an excellent shaving duo in their range comprised of Tamanu High Glide Shaving oil which contains bisabolol from chamomile to calm and sooth, giving a smooth shave with reduced post-shave dryness and irritation and a multi-tasking after shave balm containing peppermint extract to cool and tone skin and pumpkin fruit enzymes to overcome ingrown hair.
Anti-pollution
One of the key note papers at the 2016 Anti-Ageing Skin Care conference highlighted the fact that chronic exposure to environmental pollution can lead to the development of lentigines, or age spots, on the cheeks.21
As mentioned above,
hyperpigmentation is increased in male skin and we are starting to see age spot correcting products launched in men’s ranges (for example Clinique’s For Men Dark Spot Corrector22
).
A further paper by L’Oréal coined the phrase the “Skin Aging Exposome” for the lifetime accumulation of exposure the skin is subjected to, concluding with the following anti-pollution strategy: “Against skin aging, we suggest the use of rinse-off products to reduce particle load on skin, and of topical products that improve skin barrier function in order to reduce cutaneous pollutant penetration.”23
One of
the most popular men’s anti-pollution creams is Clarins Men Super Moisture Balm which contains Rhodiola rosea, succory dock-cress and white tea, all of which help
November 2017
©zinkevych/Fotolia
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