Sephora: 6 Trends of Prestige Beauty in China

The White Paper is Sephora's analysis of the consumption behavior of more than 25 million members and reveals the 6 major consumption trends in the prestige beauty industry in China at present.

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In recent years, the development of China's prestige beauty market has shown a gradual rise. According to the data of Huajing Industry Research Institute, from 2016 to 2021, the proportion of the middle-to-high-end beauty market in China will gradually rise from 18.8% to 26.3%, with a growth rate higher than that of mass beauty. Prestige beauty will gradually become the main driving force to drive the growth of China's beauty market. Therefore, this also strengthens Sephora's determination to cultivate the high-end beauty retail market in China.

Recently, Sephora released the "2022 Sephora China Prestige Beauty White Paper" (hereinafter referred to as the White Paper) jointly with YICAI to further set the stage for the development of high-end beauty retailing.

When discussing why the White Paper was released for the third consecutive year, Cheng Peiheng, Vice President of Marketing at LVMH-Sephora China, said, "We release the White Paper to provide an in-depth analysis of current consumer trends and precise analysis of consumer preferences and needs, in the hope of better providing beauty lovers with high-quality products, services and experiences. "

(Cheng Peiheng, Vice President of Marketing at LVMH-Sephora China)

Offline sensational experience still can not be ignored

Today's consumption channels are spread across online and offline. The two channels have their own strengths and two-way integration. More than 80% of respondents said that online shopping search is accurate, payment is convenient, the choice is wide and not limited by the scene. It also provides a lot of convenience for shopping and gradually becomes their preferred consumption channel "without leaving home, within reach".

At the same time, the White Paper also points out that consumers can only enjoy the sensational experience in offline stores, which can still not be replaced by online shopping. They also hope to satisfy their needs for "profession", "security", "dignity", "comfort" and " premium" through inspiring beauty classes, beauty studio, energetic music and attractive merchandising and so on.

According to Cheng Peiheng, "Today's consumers are generally 'perceptually sensitive'. When offline shopping becomes a sensational experience, their demand for offline channels will become higher."

Efficacy skincare is on the rise

Among the six trends, one of the most eye-catching trends is “from 'ingredient' focus to 'efficacy' focus, rational skincare evolution". According to the White Paper, Chinese consumers are becoming more rational shoppers. They not only focus on ingredients, but also look for evidence to make more rational skincare choices.

In fact, since May 2021, when the Standards for Cosmetic Efficacy Claim Evaluation was officially implemented, the Chinese cosmetics industry has entered the "Efficacy Evaluation Era", which has become an industry consensus. In addition, consumers are becoming more rational in their shopping and other factors. The previous consumer trend of considering the addition of a high concentration of a certain ingredient as the "skincare standard" has gradually changed to focus on the overall efficacy of the product.

In this regard, Cheng Peiheng believes, "China has always been a big consumer of skincare. From our member insights, we see that they increasingly prefer to watch reviews and choose the products they think are most worth spending on. At the same time, consumers need professional, highly functional products to bring real transformation to their skin."

East-West fusion becomes hot

In recent years, with Chinese consumers' cultural confidence and strong recognition of brand quality, Chinese-style brands have become increasingly recognized by high-end beauty consumers. The White Paper shows that 60% of respondents believe that Chinese brand products can represent China to the world. At the same time, they also said that nowadays, Chinese brands have more Chinese cultural heritage and they are more suitable for Chinese skin. Their ingredients and packaging are more high-end and the product line is becoming more and more abundant.

It is understood that in order to further promote the development of high-end Chinese beauty, Sephora officially launched the Chinese brand promotion plan in June this year, hoping to support five Chinese local brands to become prestige beauty representatives with sales of more than 100 million within three years. Cheng Peiheng introduced, some brands involved in the plan such as CHA LING , WEI, MAOGEPING-LIGHT, Herborist TaiChi, INOHERB TANG, YUMEE and COLOR STUDIO BY MARIE DALGAR, Face Symbol and other exclusive brands participated.

Hair, fragrance, sustainability - the new growth engine of beauty

The White Paper also mentions two hot segments of the moment: hair care and fragrance.

Sephora found that, along with the upgrading of consumption and the increasing segmentation of beauty categories, traditional wash and care products can no longer meet consumers' needs. They hope to take care of their hair like they take care of their skin through a set of refined products. According to the White Paper, 91% of respondents believe that head skin is an extension of face skin and that head care is as important as facial skin care.

The current hairdressing market is showing two trends of high frequency and upgrading of consumption. According to Sephora membership data, Sephora's per capita consumption of hairdressing brand members this year and per capita annual spending power have both increased by 31% year-on-year.

On the other hand, fragrance products have also seen an explosion. The White Paper shows that 38% of respondents use fragrance to enhance the aroma and atmosphere of their space. 39% of respondents are used to putting fragrance by their bedside to soothe their emotions and help them sleep. 24% of respondents use perfume to boost their confidence while making a good impression on each other in social situations.

This shows that hair care and fragrance have become the new growth engine of the cosmetics industry.

It is also worth noting that the concept of "sustainability" also appears in the White Paper for the first time. Sephora found that consumers are increasingly looking to achieve sustainability in all aspects of their lives, due to the current environment.

Overall, the "2022 Sephora China Prestige Beauty White Paper" provides a comprehensive and accurate analysis of the latest trends in the prestige beauty market from multiple dimensions, including the changing prestige beauty retail market, consumer preferences and needs, beauty segmentation categories and high-end beauty market outlook. It provides a reference guide for the industry.

Source: Sephora

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