The French cosmetics and toiletries market is characterised by a host of long-established companies and brands, benefiting from large resources for research and development, as well as advertising and promotion. The L'Oréal Groupe remains the undisputed leader, with three of its subsidiaries among the top five companies.
Sun and skin care, depilatories, oral hygiene and men's grooming products recording the best performances in France for 2003, seeing over 7 per cent current value growth. The heatwave felt across Europe and the development of men's grooming products is claimed to have underpinned revenue.
Colour cosmetics, fragrances and baby care were the least dynamic sectors however, increasing by just 2 per cent due to their high levels of maturity.
"As family-oriented lines cannot sustain future growth alone, fine segmentation has become the key to survival in a very marketed and maturing market. The growing swathe of young seniors, the 50-65-year-old age group, remain a priority target therefore due to their high disposable incomes," said a Euromonitor spokesperson.
Two additional segments were also being targeted for growth in 2003, young men and lolitas - young female teenagers with high fashion and beauty budgets.
The emergence of sensory marketing was also evident across the board, through ergonomic new product designs, therapeutic scents and sensual textures.
While the industry recognises that the French cosmetics and toiletries market is maturing, value growth is still obtainable by offering value-added products sold at higher prices, claims Euromonitor.