According to figures from the market researcher, the biggest growth witnessed in 2009 was among sales of colour cosmetics, which increased 6.3 per cent to $400mn in total, proving that demand for discretionary products remained high as consumers continued to be preoccupied with personal appearance and did not drastically cut spending.
Concern over personal appearance has led to a growing interest among Polish consumers in specialized beauty and personal care products that specifically target different age-groups, genders and skin types, according to Euromonitor.
Growth in market share among specialist beauty retailers
An increase in popularity among Polish consumers of specialist beauty retailers such as Sephora, Marionnaud and Douglas, and parapharmacies and drugstores such as Rossmann and Drogerie Natura has also been noted by Euromonitor, which it attributes to regular price promotions, the wide selection of products available and access to professional advice on purchases.
Major chains are expanding, resulting in greater product availability, but as they are generally focused on penetrating large and medium-sized cities, large-scale food grocery outlets continue to be the first port of call for many residents of smaller towns and cities when it comes to buying beauty and personal care products.
Multinationals continue to dominate Polish market
Despite the presence of several large domestic manufacturers, the top five companies in the beauty and personal care market in Poland are Avon, L’Oreal, Procter & Gamble, Coty and Nivea.
According to Euromonitor, the dominance of multinational companies is linked to the fact brand names are well established and product availability is widespread, together the capacity of these companies to heavily invest in advertising and their ability to channel large sums in R&D to ensure continuous product innovation.
However, the market researcher notes that domestic manufacturers are striving to further improve their market positions by investing in mass media advertising campaigns and launching more advanced products in order to target affluent consumers.