1. Development Trends in the Body Care Market
According to data from Mintel, the body care market (including categories such as body, hands, feet, neck, etc.) is estimated to reach 27.8 billion yuan in 2023, and is predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.3% from 2024 to 2028.
Based on the scale of body categories on various online platforms, body care and body cleaning will account for over 74% of the body market share in 2024; Next are the hands and local areas (such as sweat removers and hair removal creams), with the feet accounting for the smallest 3%; By 2024, the proportion of body cleaning and neck care will increase by 1% and 2% respectively.
2. Current situation of subdivision pattern in body care
From the perspective of the market pattern of the subdivided categories of body care, the overall category data of online platforms (including Tmall/Tiktok/JD/Vipshop) from January to September 2024 shows that among the core categories, the sales of body cleaning shower gel is 8.332 billion yuan, up 9% year on year, and that of soap is 2.2 billion yuan, up 7%; The sales of body lotion in the body care category amounted to approximately 6.636 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2%; The sales of antiperspirant in certain categories reached 1.7 billion yuan, an increase of 0%, while the sales of hand cream in hand care reached 1.928 billion yuan, a decrease of 8%; The core body cleaning category belongs to the dual high category with high scale and high growth rate.
In the trend category, sales of neck cream/neck mask in neck care reached 400 million yuan, an increase of 20%, while sales of shoulder and neck care reached 290 million yuan, an increase of over 100%; Foot bath costs 280 million yuan, an increase of 28%, while nail repair lotion maintains growth; Most of the trend categories are low scale, high growth categories. In non core categories, body cleansing bath products decreased by 43% and bath salts decreased by 53%; Foot membrane, foot cream, and hand membrane show negative growth in hand and foot care; User demand exists, but there is a lack of innovation in product categories and solutions in the market.
Consumer demand scenarios for dryness, dehydration, and varying degrees of dryness
According to consumer data collected during the period of 2023 to 2024 on a half acre flower field, the study found that consumers have different levels of dryness in their skin, resulting in significant differences in demand scenarios, solutions, and product categories. For example, mild dryness is mainly manifested in the dry autumn and winter seasons, before sleeping, and after bathing. The body's skin may appear tight, dry, peeling, rough, and white marks, and these dry symptoms are mainly manifested in the limbs of the body; Moderate dryness: In addition to being dry in autumn and winter, it may also be slightly dry in summer and may cause dryness and itching, mainly manifested in the whole body, arms, joints, hands and feet, etc; Heavy dry consumers are in a dry state almost all year round, and may even experience problems such as cracking, snakeskin, and stinging.
For consumers with mild dryness, their skin condition is usually good. In summer, they may reduce the frequency or use different textures, or use less or no body lotion. However, during the autumn and winter seasons, they may experience dehydration and dryness in their limbs. When they swipe their fingers, there may be white marks, or after bathing, their body skin may feel tight. After applying body lotion, it will disappear.
This type of consumer mainly has basic functional needs for moisturizing and smoothing dryness, while emotional needs expect to pursue feelings of high beauty, fragrance, and other physical and mental pleasure. For consumers with moderate dryness, their daily skin condition may appear dry. Choose to use body lotion of different textures in different seasons, with a focus on reapplying in autumn and winter, and only applying to dry areas in summer; Especially in winter, it will obviously dry, peel, have dry lines in some areas, and even itch; After taking a shower and applying body lotion, the next day when you get up and change clothes and go out, you will find dry white lines on your calves.
These consumers believe that applying body lotion can instantly hydrate and moisturize, but the moisturizing effect after 2-3 days of winter off is weak, and they are concerned about stickiness, spreadability, and absorption; Emotional needs pursue a taste that is layered, refined, and has multiple effects, with moisturizing and fragrance lasting longer. For consumers with severe dryness, they will feel very troubled by dryness all year round, such as changing clothes before taking a shower and discovering a lot of dandruff on their body, which will fall off like fish scales; Waking up in the bedroom in winter morning can cause static electricity, itching, and discomfort when wearing clothes.
Therefore, they basically use body lotion all year round, and when it's very dry, they add body oil. They also use a variety of body lotions. They learn how to use plastic wrap care through interest apps at home, and they also go to beauty salons and spas to do essential oil back opening. They use much more essential oils than ordinary people, and the people in beauty salons call it "essential oil suction".
In addition, during the shower process, bath oil will be chosen instead of shower gel products, and regular exfoliating cream will be used to remove dead skin cells; These consumers believe that the moisturizing effect of body lotion is not long-lasting and needs to be reapplied the next day. It cannot provide deep nourishment and has relatively basic efficacy; They expect the functional requirements to be able to smooth dry lines and skin in a timely manner after applying body lotion. Consistent use can make the skin delicate, radiant, deeply repair, and reduce the frequency of reapplication; Emotional needs pursue the improvement of the body and skin, achieving beauty and confidence.
