Symrise targets Hispanic beauty and fragrance consumers

26-Jan-2015 - Last updated on 26-Jan-2015 at 15:29 GMT

Fragrance and ingredients player Symrise says it is aiming to tap into the fast growing Latin American consumer base with its newly launched Latina Connection program.

The Germany-based company says that as an integral part of the program, it has created dedicated expertise to develop ingredients and fragrances for the Hispanic beauty, oral care and household categories.

The program, also known as Conexión Latina, is being debuted at the annual Convention of the American Cleaning Institute, which is being held in Orlando, Florida, next week, and aims to give personal care formulators the right ingredients to appeal to Latino consumers.

It is the result of what the company terms ‘rich insights’ into Hispanic consumers that focus on the their identity as both US Americans and Latinos, which in turn has been gathered as detailed data that has formed the core of the program.

Tapping into growth in Latino spending power

Symrise is chasing the fast growing purchasing power as Latin American communities continue to grow in numbers and to prosper economically.

“This consumer segment is projected to be 30% of the US population by 2050 - US Census Bureau. This is a fast growing demographic in the US and these consumers are highly fragrance and flavor engaged,” stated Usha Vijay Vice President - Marketing and Courtne Jones Director of Marketing, at Symrise’s US division.

“It is imperative that we understand their fragrance and flavor needs / aspirations. Also, they are likely to influence mainstream fragrance & flavor preferences over a period of time. So, our goal is to invest in understanding this consumer group and develop / co-develop solutions for them, with them.”

The company says that, although the program is focused on Latin American communities in the US, the program also reflects the desire to grow the business footprint in the Latin American region as a whole.

Focusing on Fragrance

Latin American culture has long put a significant importance on fragrance, and Symrise says that its Conexión Latina program has a particular stress on this area.

“Hispanics demonstrate a preference for fragrances on a continuum of fresh, authentic to highly sensory olfactive categories,” both Vijay and Courtne stated.

“We have developed a fragrance and flavor collection targeting the Hispanic consumer group that will be shared with our clients, customized for their respective brands. Some of these fragrances are powered by Symrise captives that provide high impact, blooming and long-lasting benefits.”

Moisturizer and hair revitalizing ingredients

With respect to hair and skin care, the company says that it will also have a specific stress on certain key ingredients, as part of its ambitions to help cosmetic and personal care manufacturers win over more Latin American consumers.

This will see an emphasis on skin care ingredients that cater to sensitivity as well as moisturization. to help address these clear concerns within many Latino communities.

And when it comes to hair care, the company says that it will be pointing formulators in the direction of ingredients that help treat hair and scalp vitality.

“The Hispanic consumer - both male and female - are highly beauty and fragrance / flavor engaged,” stated Vijay and Courtne.

“They skew younger than the mainstream population and are proud of their heritage as much as they embrace the US culture. There are both differences and lots of similarities in their expectations of benefits as compared to the mainstream population.”