Cosmetics and personal care products are “essential,” European consumer study reveals

20 Jun 2022 --- A study by Cosmetics Europe has found that 72% of European consumers consider cosmetics and personal care products to be “very important” in daily life. The main reasons were that cosmetic products improve quality of life, boost self-esteem and help social interactions.

“From body care to skin care, hair care, oral care, perfumes, makeup, sun care, European consumers use, on average, over seven different cosmetic products daily and nearly 13 cosmetic products weekly,” shares John Chave, director general at Cosmetics Europe.

“The importance of cosmetics and personal care products in helping us protect ourselves against infections and prevent the spread of diseases have today never been clearer, but this is just a part of the picture,” he continues alluding to the broader role industry has in preventing and coping through disease and virus outbreaks.

The study implemented interviews through online questionnaires across ten European countries: Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK.On average, European consumers use over seven different cosmetic products daily and nearly 13 cosmetic products weekly, says Chave.

Self-esteem boost
The survey found that “feeling good about oneself’ was one of the top three reasons consumers use cosmetics across all product categories. 

“For 71% of European consumers, cosmetics are important in improving quality of life, for 70% in boosting their self-esteem. Hygiene is important, but we also use cosmetics to feel good about ourselves,” adds Chave. 

The top reason cosmetic products are used is that 88% of consumers believe cosmetics are effective ways to ensure personal hygiene. The second was to feel good about themselves, and the third was to protect their skin or hair. 

The study finds that cosmetics and personal care products improve users’ self-esteem and aspects of their social life. 

Seventy percent of European consumers reported that personal care and cosmetic products are important or very important for building up self-esteem. Whereas 62% of European consumers believe cosmetics and personal care products are important or very important in how they are seen by others or for how they interact with others. 

Age specific preferences
The study reveals that 80% to 90% of users consider oral care, body care, hair care and skincare products as important or very important. 80% to 90% of users considered oral care, body care, hair care and skincare products as important. 

Furthermore, the study finds that 74% of 25 to 54-year-olds believe cosmetics and personal care products are important in daily life, and up to 80% of women agree. Women, on average, were noted to use almost nine different cosmetic products daily and 15 weekly. 

Additionally, younger people aged between 18 to 24 years use up to 16 cosmetic products weekly. Twenty-seven percent of consumers under 25 said they used makeup to boost self-confidence. 

PersonalCareInsights recently spotlighted young-generation-influenced shifts in the beauty space toward embracing natural looks in combination with makeup.

“For this reason, natural makeup looks have resonated well within this group because it promotes an ideology that you who you naturally are beautiful. The No Makeup “Makeup” trend embraces what younger generations value the most: authenticity and inclusivity,” Myriam Bougdim, marketing and communication associate at Active Concepts, previously told PersonalCareInsights.

On the other hand, men’s perception of the importance of sun care, body care, skincare, perfume and makeup increased by 5.5% on average compared to 2017.

Edited by Venya Patel