Expanding but not as fast as expected
According to the market research company, the male grooming market continues to expand but at a slower pace than some commentators had once expected.
In the US, the male personal care sector makes up just over a quarter of the market value ($11bn out of a total market value of $38.7bn).
Similar proportions are seen in France and the UK where the figure approaches 30 percent of the market share.
Datamonitor analyst and author of the report, Mathew Taylor described the potential of the market as ‘enormous’, but he warns marketers against ignoring differences between men and women.
“The male grooming market needs a markedly different approach in order to succeed than the female market, however, due to some substantial differences in attitudes and behaviors that exist across genders,” he said.
The male grooming market is characterised by products deemed to be necessities such as oral care and personal care – in contrast to the female sector where skin care, and anti aging dominates.
Anti-aging holds huge potential
Concerns over the signs of aging are also common among men but anti-aging benefits are only present in a small number of male grooming products, meaning this category has huge potential, according to the report.
The male consumer is not an easy target for companies and products new to the scene, as new releases were not deemed to be particularly important among the majority of respondents to Datamonitor’ survey.
While 48.6 percent of female respondents said they kept an eye out for new products, only 35.9 percent of males did. Approximately 29 percent of females said did not seem to notice new products; however this figure was much higher (54.9 percent) among men.
Price was found to be a particularly important influence on the male consumer’s choice of product, as was habit and ease of use.
Unlike the female category there is not a high level of brand engagement within the sector, and the report states that marketers must strive to ensure that men feel a stronger attachment to their male grooming products and brands.