LOOKING GOOD, BRO
Driven by greater spending power and the desire to improve the quality of life, Chinese men are increasingly expanding their skin care regime
It would appear that having a beauty regime is no longer exclusive to those of the fairer sex — even men are getting into the game. Based on a report by Chinese firm Zhiyan Consulting, the size of the Chinese mainland male skin care and makeup market was worth 5.01 billion yuan ($758 million) in 2016, up from 2.06 billion yuan in 2010. The market is set to reach 6.48 billion yuan in 2019.
Another indication that men have been playing catch-up with women in this market is evidenced by how the per capita consumption disparity for beauty products between the two sexes has narrowed to 13.7 yuan, down from 26.6 yuan in 2014, according to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com.
Liu Cong, a professional makeup artist with Trevor Sorbie, said that male customers have in recent years been paying more attention to skin care practices, including using moisturizing and anti-aging products. He noted that many men today also use makeup to improve their appearance.
“In the past, men only cared about whether their face looked clean, so shaving was the only form of skin care,” he notes.
Growth factors
There are several factors driving the growth of the male skin care and cosmetics market. Lucus Wang, art director of hair salon and spa chain Amani in Shanghai, says the
Word on the street
improvement of life quality and the popularization of skin care are among the key reasons.
“Around 99 percent of male customers lack knowledge of their skin type and how to protect their skin. As such, the market is producing products designed to address these factors,” says Wang.
Queenie Lin, the general manager of Biotherm, a brand under L’Oreal, says the fast-growing Chinese economy has resulted in an increasing number of men looking to upgrade their quality of life, which in turn includes paying more attention to their appearance.
Market experts forecast at the beginning of this year that consumer spending will continue to achieve healthy growth in 2017 as China moves toward becoming a consumption-driven economy. In addition, the Economist Intelligence Unit, a British business within the Economist Group providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, expects the proportion of those earning upper-middle and high incomes in China to grow from 10 percent to 35 percent by 2030.
“Skin care is not limited to just looking good. It is also related to men’s pursuit of confidence,” said Lin.
L’Oreal has stores in more than 130 countries and is one of the earliest companies that introduced male skin care products. The company’s products were officially launched in China in 2006.
“When we entered the Chinese market 20 years ago, the male skin care category did not exist in the market,” said a company representative. “Chinese men then didn’t realize that they needed to take care of their skin. Some even believed that skin care was exclusive to women.”
Zong Guoning, L’Oreal China consumer products division brands general manager, says the company focused on online promotions to draw Chinese male customers because research has shown that many of them spend significant amounts of time playing online games.
Consumption behavior
According to L’Oreal, the purchasing habits of Chinese men in terms of skin care and cosmetics have been changing over the past few years. The company pointed out that men are becoming increasingly interested in using products that are specifically designed for them and are no longer satisfied with sharing products with family members.
“When I was 16, I was affected by acne and that’s when I started paying attention to skin care,” says Liu.
He added that he focused on picking the right solutions for his skin type, emphasizing that the right products don’t necessarily have to be expensive. Liu spends between 1,000 to 2,000 yuan every year on skin care and makeup.
“But, I do think it is normal for a man to spend 5,000 to 10,000 yuan every year on such products,” he adds.
While the male skin care and cosmetics market is thriving in most first-tier cities in China, L’Oreal pointed out that there are still over 500 million potential customers in more than 200 emerging cities.
Presently, foreign brands have the upper hand in boosting their market share as Chinese consumers still prefer them over local products, says Liu.
“Because the skin care and makeup industry in Europe has been around for much longer, it naturally has a broader range of brands that have better quality than the Chinese market. However, the domestic market is expanding at an amazing speed and there is a high possibility that it will one day surpass the European market,” he adds.
Skin differences
Liu pointed out that Caucasians typically have strong hair follicle growth that results in dry skin and their skin are prone to developing sunspots and redness. People with dark skin, on the other hand, have the smoothest skin type while Asians fall between these two.
In addition, men generally have thicker skin with higher collagen levels than women, which makes the former more likely to suffer from problems such as acne and blackhead.
Liu notes the application of sunscreen on a daily basis is a necessity as the sun’s UV rays can damage the skin and cause water and oil imbalances. Meanwhile, a gentle facial wash should be used to hydrate and cleanse the skin daily.
He also recommends that men over 30 years old begin using basic anti-aging skin care products. In addition, regular exercise is important in maintaining good skin — perspiration boosts metab- olism, which in turns helps to improve skin texture.
To help men find the best skin care solution, many brands have introduced products and services exclusive to them.
L’Oreal introduced four product lines while its subsidiary Biotherm has an extensive product line that includes solutions for moisturizing, anti-aging, oil control, whitening, anti-fatigue and anti-oxidation. The brand also has a comprehensive selection of skin serum, sunscreen and hand creams.
Spas have also jumped on the bandwagon, rolling out exclusive treatments for male customers. Amani Salon, for example, expanded its offerings this year to include treatments and products based on different skin types.
“Men need products and services designed solely for them. Skin care is important for everyone — it is not exclusive to women,” said Wang.
Holistic grooming
But apart from products that are used on the face, men have also been heading to places such as beauty salons and hip barbers to look their best. One such business is Leo Magic, a barber located in downtown Shanghai that only serves male customers. Besides haircuts and shaving services, the barber also offers skin care treatments.
“I realized that men need their own haircut and skin care platforms and these need to be simple and convenient,” says Qu Ling, the shop owner, who has been in the industry for nearly a decade.
Qu says there were about 10 such barbershops in the city in the past two years, although there were no such businesses three years ago. Meanwhile, such businesses are also emerging in other cities such as Chengdu in Sichuan province, Shenzhen and Guangzhou in Guangdong province.