2016-04-13 11:15:23
Male Beauty: The Role of Packaging
2016-04-13 11:15:23
Male consumers are very particular about what they want from beauty products packaging, with men in the U.S. especially particular about masculine design over unisex offerings.
According to Mintel’s Men’s Personal Care US 2015 report, men see scent and packaging as two of the attributes that differentiate men’s products from gender-neutral products. Male consumers express high interest in more masculine packaging with 30% of U.S. male consumers aged 25-34 who use personal care products saying this is a benefit of male-specific products.
The author, Viktorija Gnatoka, Global Packaging Analyst
at Mintel
More masculine packaging does not only mean package design where there are a lot of grey, blue and black colors, but also packaging components designed specifically for men’s skin. For example, Clarisonic launched in summer 2015 a personal care device for men, which is specifically designed for men’s skin.
Male Consumer Preferences in Brazil vs. the U.S.
Men—not only in the U.S., but also in Brazil—are interested in functional packaging attributes with over 50% of men worrying about their appearance and naming practical packaging among important attributes for personal care products.
Male grooming products in Brazil are also mostly differentiated from unisex products by scent, with 56% of Brazilian men naming it as the number one attribute of male-specific beauty and personal care products. Brazilian men name practical packaging as one of the important attributes, with 18% of consumers aged 25-34, 45-54 and 55+ saying so, according to Mintel’s Men’s Attitudes to BPC Brazil 2015 report.
Despite more men than ever expressing interest in male grooming routines, personal care products are still somewhat intimate purchases. In Brazil, 43% of men would like to have all personal care products for men in the same aisle, and 42% of men in the U.S. say the same. While this makes men more comfortable shopping for their own grooming products, it creates a challenge for brands to stand out with packaging designs that are masculine and practical because there is a great deal of sameness in the men’s personal care aisle.
Looking for eye shadow and compact container?
Capturing the Attention of the Male Consumer
One of the ways for brands to capture male consumers’ attention is to use novel packaging shapes and components. For example, Lissage Men from Kanebo Cosmetics in Japan offers novel shapes and closures for their prestige line of male grooming products. The foaming soap retails in a triangle shaped pack that also includes a refill pack. The skin care lotion features an unusual silver shade pump on top of a slim white bottle. (Both are shown in the slideshow above.)
Another brand from Japan Hoyu Men’s hair care offers packaging for the men’s hair colorant that looks more like an electronic at-home beauty device with an applicator for precise product use and an opening on the side to measure the amount of product used.
What We'll See - And What Brands Can Do
Packaging will continue to contribute to the success of male-specific products, with solutions that are functional. Novel packaging components that make beauty and personal care products look more masculine would help to draw the line between gender differences in beauty and personal care products. With almost 50% of men wanting to shop in a male-specific beauty aisle, brand packaging is challenged to stand out on shelf, with the current products having a very similar look.
Packaging that targets men should create differentiation on shelf to stand out among similar pack designs and offer functionality, a packaging attribute male shoppers in the U.S. and in Brazil are looking for.
Take a look at the slideshow above. It features some examples of packaging for men by Kanebo, Nivea Men, Skin Food's Beer One Shot - and more.
please visit www.topbeautysh.com for more cosmetic packaging information.
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