Online beauty product sales continue to grow
The market research firm said more women are looking for cosmetics on the internet and they are spending more, even in the recession.
Only retail channel to grow
According to NPD, online beauty product sales were up one per cent over the past year, making it the only retail channel to enjoy an increase in beauty buys.
NPD said average annual online spending per woman is $86. According to the researchers, the internet is nonetheless a comparatively small channel for beauty.
While the number of users may be small, more and more women are turning to the internet and sales figures are growing when spending is drying up elsewhere.
Women told NPD that they are not only buying more products online but they are also buying more expensive brands than they did last year.
NPD said ease of shopping and high product availability are driving this growth in internet sales.
The research group said that last year high gas prices also had a positive impact on internet sales. Women preferred to shop online for their beauty products rather than drive down to a store.
As well as buying products, women are using the internet as a research tool, gathering information about different products and comparing prices on different websites.
Turning researchers into buyers
Many women are not actually buying products but just doing background research. Turning these women into consumers is the challenge that online sellers now face.
NPD senior analyst Karen Grant said: “There is still room for more Internet shoppers to buy through web sites instead of going somewhere else to make the actual purchases after they have used the sites to gather information and make price comparisons.
“This will be the key for future growth: optimizing shopper activity and increasing revenue.”
