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 $1,000 face cream? Lotion infused with gold and diamond powder? As one expert puts it: 'Beauty does well in hard times.'

ANOTHER evening clutch? No, thanks. The latest take on the tote? Pass. How about one of those classic crocodile satchels? Sniff. It seems rather silly to splurge on an expensive exotic skin when your own epidermis is crying out for attention. Besides, haven't you heard?

In fact, it may be the very reason the upscale skin-care market has yet to feel the ravages of the recession. The overall skin-care category is up 2% for the first half of the year over the same period in 2007, according to research firm NPD Group. But get this: Sales of super-premium products -- priced at more than $150 -- have climbed 21%.

"When you are spending almost $100 to fill up your gas tank, you can justify spending $70 on your face cream," says Karen Grant, NPD's analyst for beauty.

Make that 10 tanks of gas and a quart of oil. This month, La Prairie introduced its Cellular Cream Platinum Rare, priced at $1,000. "The world has grown outrageously wealthy," trills the news release. "New wealth has spawned new dreams. . . ." Of course, until a few months ago, visions of vacation homes in Gstaad and mink-lined oven mitts weren't so snort-worthy for some. And yet, perhaps it would have behooved the company to temper its pitch when Wall Street first started begging for a bailout.

"Our customer has always been a woman who seeks the best in luxury skin care," says La Prairie President Lynne Florio. "Despite the economy, investing in their skin is a part of their lifestyle."

La Prairie is no pioneer when it comes to haughty pricing. Last month, Kanebo unveiled a $400 body cream. Chantecaille has its $420 Nano Gold Energizing Cream, and Sisley Paris recently introduced a $460 anti-aging cream. Even Clinique, the lower-priced brand in that signature clover green packaging I treasured during my lean college years, has a $225 entry in the super-premium face-cream market. Et tu, Clinique?

The over-the-top price tags aren't revolutionary. Luxury purse and shoe prices have been rising exponentially over the last few years. Plus, cosmetics and skin-care sales have always glowed in the face of a sour stock market because women still traditionally splurge on luxurious incidentals. It's called the "lipstick effect." Gals buy Chanel lip glosses instead of purses and pumps; men overhaul their closets with new neck ties.

"Historically, beauty does well in hard times, and it's considered recession-resistant," says Linda Wells, editor in chief of Allure. "But now, some beauty products are as expensive as shoes or a dress, so it still remains to be seen."

The companies justify these prices by touting precious ingredients. Chantecaille's cream contains nano-particles of 24-karat gold. La Prairie's emollient boasts malachite and hematite, in addition to platinum. La Mer's Refining Facial has diamond powder.

Though it may seem gauche to bathe in liquid emeralds when layoffs abound, the craving for indulgence can be quelled with a swath of moisturizer -- in a most inconspicuous way. If you can't afford a Cartier Love bracelet, you can pamper your pores with platinum. Or gild your elbows with gold lotion. "Because I'm worth it," you might say -- to borrow L'Oreal's famous come-on.

"My last customer told me that she was buying face cream instead of shoes," the La Prairie saleswoman at Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills answers when I ask the $1,000 question: "Is this stuff really selling?" She nods brightly and adds that the counter sold 37 jars last month.

It's easy to feel that your face is your best investment. Ten years from now, you may not be carrying that $4,500 Bottega Veneta lizard clutch. But your mug, much like a diamond, according to De Beers, is forever. And since we're not buying new clothes this season, why bother looking in a full-length mirror anyway?

 

http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-ig-rage19-2008oct19,0,691112.story

By Monica Corcoran, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 19, 2008

Anti-Aging Tipped to Survive the Recession Unscathed

By Guy Montague-Jones

http://www.cosmeticsdesign.com/Products-Markets/Anti-aging-tipped-to-survive-the-recession-unscathed

Mintel expects anti-aging creams to remain unblemished by the recession following years of market leading growth.

Anti-aging skincare sales in the US rose 13 percent to $1.6bn between 2006 and 2008, outpacing the general facial skincare, which was up 11 percent over the same period, according to Mintel.

This trend is expected to remain on track even as the economy struggles.

“Anti-aging won’t fall to the recession,” said Kat Fay, senior beauty and personal care product analyst at Mintel.

“Looking young is extremely important to many women, especially Baby Boomers, and it’s not an issue they’re willing to compromise on because of tightened budgets. Many women see anti-aging skincare as a reasonably priced investment in their appearance and well-being.”

Strong growth forecast despite recession

So even as income drops Mintel expects the anti-aging skincare market to grow some 20 percent at inflation-adjusted prices over the next five years.

Even if growth rates are set to remain strong, the recession will not pass by the anti-aging market without leaving a trace.

Fay told CosmeticsDesign.com: “Drug store brands are likely to attract department store shoppers looking to "trade down" from prestige products.”

Shelves swell with new products

Over the past year, manufacturers have responded to growing demand with more and more new anti-aging products.

According to Mintel’s Global New Products Database almost a third (32 percent) of all US facial skincare launches last year were supported with anti-aging claims.

“Manufacturers see the growing demand for anti-aging benefits and they’re responding accordingly with a constant flow of new products,” said Kat Fay.

Skin Care Sales Stay Afloat

Meanwhile prestige skin care products were the most successful performers in 2008 staying even with the previous year on a dollar basis at $2.4bn.

Within the category anti-aging performed well as did “specialization” products such as whitening and allergy relief products which enjoyed double-digit growth.

Face products priced over $70 also enjoyed healthy growth of 4 percent and natural/spa/wellness brands grew 6 percent to $304m.

Commenting on the figures, NPD beauty analyst Karen Grant said: “Across all three prestige beauty categories, there were areas that experienced growth despite overall soft performance.

“We saw growth in premium price, natural and new innovations among trusted brands as well as alternative brand types.

“Moving forward, we must continue to look for these opportunities, find new ways to reach our consumers, and build our relationship and communication with them – that relationship is an increasingly critical part of the total value - not just price - they see in what we are offering them and in whom they choose to invest.”  

Marketers need to find a way of engaging with male consumers if they want to take advantage of the significant potential that the market presents, according to a Datamonitor report.   

According to the market research company, the male grooming market continues to expand. 

 In the US, the male personal care sector makes up just over a quarter of the market value ($11 Billion out of a total market value of $38.7 Billion).  

Datamonitor analyst and author of the report, Mathew Taylor described the potential of the market as ‘enormous’, but he warns marketers against ignoring differences between men and women.  

“The male grooming market needs a markedly different approach in order to succeed than the female market, however, due to some substantial differences in attitudes and behaviours that exist across genders,” he said.

The current male grooming market is characterised by products deemed to be necessities such as oral care and personal care – in contrast to the female sector where skin care, and anti aging dominates.  The male market needs to be exposed to the benefits of good skin care.

 Anti-aging holds huge potential

Concerns over the signs of aging are also common among men but anti-aging benefits are only present in a small number of male grooming products, meaning this category has huge potential, according to the report.  

The male consumer is not an easy target for companies and products new to the scene, as new releases were not deemed to be particularly important among the majority of respondents to Datamonitor’ survey.   

While 48.6 percent of female respondents said they kept an eye out for new products, only 35.9 percent of males did. Approximately 29 percent of females said did not seem to notice new products; however this figure was much higher (54.9 percent) among men. 

Price was found to be a particularly important influence on the male consumer’s choice of product, as was habit and ease of use.

Unlike the female category there is not a high level of brand engagement within the sector, and the report states that marketers must strive to ensure that men feel a stronger attachment to their male grooming products and brands.

Votre Vu has taken all of this information into consideration creating an easy to use, reasonably priced, anti-aging Men’s skin care line that launched in November, 2009.  It is becoming vastly popular and should become of every man’s daily routine.