10 Consumer Trends in 2013 that will affect cosmetic formulators

Euromonitor International is One of the market research firms that reports on the cosmetic industry. They often provide interesting insights into what consumers are thinking. This year they have published their 10 consumer trends for 2013 which you can read here.

As a cosmetic formulator it is helpful to keep tabs on these trends because some of them will affect your formulating. Most are wrong or will have no impact but your marketing department won’t care about that. So, here is one take on how these consumer trends of 2013 might affect your formulating.

1. The quest for value. Consumers seem more willing to spend money for trial size versions of more expensive products. Smaller containers typically means you’ll have to create lower viscosity formulas to ensure consumers can get them out of the package.

2. Crowded houses. More people are living in the same house so they’ll be using the same products. This means you’ll have to formulate products that work for multiple generations and genders.

3. Downtime decoded. People are spending more time trying to detach from their smart phones. Not sure how this will affect cosmetic formulators.

4. Celebrating food. Look for your marketers to ask you to create more food-themed cosmetics.

5. End of Gender-focused consumption. They think unisex is the wave of the future. Maybe in some areas but I don’t think that will spill over into cosmetics. But for formulators, it likely means you’ll need to work with fragrances that appeal to both men and women.

6. Local love. People are more keen to use locally produced products. This could be a great time to start your own cosmetic line and sell in your own city.

7. Older and working. People will be working older which means they’ll be looking for cosmetic products that keep them looking young. Formulators will have to modify their creations to appeal to an older consumer, addressing problems like age spots, graying hair, etc.

8. Parenting lifestyles. I have no idea what this even means but there was a reason I didn’t go into Market Research.

9. Shopping of the future. Consumers will be buying products in less traditional ways. This will affect marketing but I can’t see much affect on how products are formulated.

10. Consumer concerns. It looks like they think niche markets will be expanding so cosmetic manufacturers will need to make more niche products. This will be a problem for bigger companies as niche products means smaller markets, but for formulators who want to create their own brand, that’s great news! As a cosmetic chemist you may have to modify your formulas to address specific niche needs.

So there you have it. 10 trends and how they might subtly affect your formulation efforts.