Scruffy students smarten up their act
THE days of the unkempt student, popularised by the BBC’s anarchic Eighties sitcom The Young Ones, may well be over.
Instead of dirty hair and spots, students – influenced by the rise of the selfie generation, and well-groomed public figures such as footballer David Beckham – are spending more on beauty products than ever before.
And it is not only the women. Male students are spending as much as their female colleagues on making sure they look good.
According to Amazon Student, last September, students spent 25 per cent more on grooming than at the start of the previous academic year. Five out of the online retailer’s top ten best-selling cosmetics were bought by men.
Among the items popular with young male customers are moisturiser and face wash – together with blackhead remover.
It is thought students have brushed up their act as their social habits have changed. Rather than nights out in grungy pubs and student unions, they now prefer fashionable club nights – requiring appropriate makeup, skin and haircare.
Students in London, Birmingham and Manchester top the list for buying the largest number of beauty products, according to Amazon Student. However, those in Liverpool and Newcastle, it seems, remain attached to their reputation for scruffiness more than most.
They purchase less than half the amount of products bought by their peers in Birmingham.
Paul Bagstaff, a spokesman for Amazon Student, said: “Our findings show that students are starting to become as smart on the outside as they are on the inside. With students’ social lives continuing to get busier, it’s not just books they are buying.”
According to Amazon, the men’s skincare market is growing and is now worth more than £600 million in Britain – a rise of one per cent year-on-year for the last five years.