Changing consumer choices during a year of disruption

The personal care trends driving success

Many of the brands in our top ten embody three key trends we have seen come to the fore over a year of both challenges and opportunity for health and beauty.

Ingredient-led

Consumers have increasing awareness of the ingredients used in personal care products. In response, brands are utilising hero ingredients which speak to the concepts of wellness, naturals, sustainability and which enable multifaceted products. This not only drives premiumisation in the market but allows them to tap into different consumer trends and expand into new categories. Two brands demonstrating the power of the hero ingredient are Boots No.7 Advanced Retinol and Pantene Pro-V Miracles – number one and number five in this year’s ranking.

At-home treatments

With salons remaining closed for much of the year, there’s been an increase in consumers taking haircare into their own hands. Several brands have started to take advantage of this trend, creating products to fit shoppers’ changing needs. Two brands leading the way are Tresemme with Smooth and Silky and L'Oréal with Colorista - number three and number ten in the ranking. Other growth areas to look out for include at-home pampering and relaxation.

Hygiene

Probably the biggest outcome of the pandemic is the higher demand for products which offer viral protection and improved hygiene. The number of hand sanitiser brands in the market grew from 31 in 2020 to 107 in 2021, so it’s no surprise that these products are taking up space in this year’s ranking. Lifebuoy is the highest ranking hand sanitiser at number six but is closely followed by new brands and manufacturers, with Garnier Pure Active Hand Sanitiser at number seven, GO2 Hand Gel at number eight and Fresh Gel Hand Sanitiser at number 10.