When I walk into a Sephora or an Ulta store I am immediately struck with a feeling of overwhelm. Heck, even a CVS makeup section overwhelms me. I want to get in and out of the store and see a big headline for where the clean, natural, cruelty-free makeup and skincare items are.
That’s not the way the world works though. People who desire clean products or have a specific ingredient checklist need to either
1) know what brands they want or
2) read through each label at the store.
For people like me, people that are too busy to do that, I would much rather figure it out online and have the items mailed to me.
So, why are there so many makeup brands and products? Why are there so many skincare products?
Why are there so many makeup brands and products?
The reason there are so many makeup brands and skincare brands, from my perspective, are:
1. The marketing world thrives off of customer psychology, making it easier to increase sales
Beauty is a psychological industry where marketing and advertising holds power over consumers. There is a subconscious aspect of makeup and skincare purchases that advertising influences, making it easier for companies to sell multiple product lines instead of one stand alone product. This psychological play makes it easier for multiple brands with different messaging to attract similar and/or different customers.
Clearly it’s working. A recent report found, “total global beauty industry spending in 2020 was $483 billion, and the annual total is expected to top $716 billion by 2025.”
Not only is it easier for companies to influence bulk purchases, but the in store design is strategically setup to increase the likelihood of multiple purchases. If you walk into Sephora, there is a makeup artist that will likely sell you on several items. If you walk into CVS, there are pre-packaged offerings for mascara and eyeliner or blush and contour.
The industry has unlimited options for anyones preferences. This can be confusing for some people. Confusion for marketing and sales is good though, because it makes a customer vulnerable to persuasion and influenced into different purchases.
So yea, the beauty industry is heavily influenced by marketing psychology and leaves plenty of room for various products and brands to enter the market.
2. Customer preferences are not met, leading to new niche brands
The beauty industry has niche industries within it. For awhile, vegan only brands were rare however, the demand for vegan products skyrocketed which created a boom in vegan brands. There are special niches for people with certain skin diseases, sensitive skin, different skin tones, and even skin types.
The list of niche industries can be a whole other post. The point is, there are endless opportunities to target specific audiences and to customize a product or brand that speaks to those individuals. The direct to consumer businesses that do well speak to a specific audience instead of the masses. So these niche brands are able to meet a specific set of customer needs while capturing market share.
3. Less barriers for market entry and high profit margins
Celebrities left and right are coming out with new beauty brands. Lady Gaga recently announced her own make up line with Sephora this year. The industry has lower barriers to entry, especially for celebrities who already have a major following. Since they already have a following, they have lower costs for marketing the launch of their brand.
Not only is the barrier to entry low, the profit margins for beauty products are relatively high. Some companies only pay $2.50 to create a lipstick yet they charge $30 for the product. That is a huge profit margin which makes the industry desirable for entrepreneurs.
I don’t care why, I want to know how can it be easier to buy makeup
In my opinion, the beauty box industry makes it incredibly easier for busy people to get the products and brands they desire without having to deal with the overwhelming in-store experience. So if you’re like me, and you simply don’t want to deal with the in-store experience and would rather have quality, clean, natural, cruelty-free makeup and skincare delivered to you, enter your email for the launch of A Touch of Maple Boxes.
Leave a Reply