Unilever, Procter & Gamble and L'Oréal have all seen their hair care products perform well in Brazil having introduced their salon brands to the supermarket.
According to Euromonitor figures, between 2008 and 2011, Brazilian expenditure on hair care products rose by $2.3 billion (€1.8 bn), which is the equivalent to more than a quarter of the industry's global incremental growth.
Emergence of a powerhouse
“That Brazil has become such a powerhouse for the hair care category is indicative of a strong away-from-home beauty culture,” comments Rob Walker, senior FMCG analyst.
“There are around 1.5 million beauty salons dotted around the country, for example. And Brazilian women typically get their hair done once a week.”
It is thanks to the popularity of beauty salons that Brazil's hair care category has a natural platform to build growth, and this has given cosmetic players the chance to successfully introduce their salon brands to retail outlets.
These brands present a premium image at an affordable price point, tapping into the aspiration-fuelled consumption of Brazil's new ‘C class’, which has become more economically empowered over the past decade; a trend similar in Mexico, China, India and Russia.
Beauty salon ubiquity
“What is most striking about Brazil is the democratisation of beauty culture. Women from all socioeconomic backgrounds tend to spend a big chunk of their discretionary income on looking good,” continues Walker.
“And you are as likely to come across a beauty salon in a low-income neighbourhood as in a middle-class neighbourhood,” he adds.
It is the middle ground being developed by cosmetic manufacturers that is affording hair care in the emerging markets such growth.
The growth in emerging markets actually offset poor growth rates in the US, Europe and Japan allowing global retail sales of hair care products to increase by 5 per cent in 2011 to reach $73.7 billion, according to Euromonitor.