Skinified body care taps multifunctionality and gourmand fragrances

Body care brands are tapping multifunctionality and mood-boosting trends through new product launches in the US. Nivea has launched its Smooth & Glow Body Milk, combining hero ingredients like niacinamide and hyaluronic acid to deliver 72 hours of “deep moisture” at an affordable price point. 

Meanwhile, accessibility-focused hair and body brand Suave has launched its 48-hour Moisture Lotion Collection, leveraging gourmand fragrance trends and dessert-inspired scents for under US$5.

The launches arrive as body care is increasingly utilizing trends from skin care and fragrance, and becoming a focus point for the beauty industry. Both launches emphasize affordability that maintains efficacy.

Multifunctional moisturization 

Beiersdorf subsidiary Nivea’s Smooth & Glow Body Milk targets dry and rough skin and is touted as a body lotion that delivers immediate smoothing properties by rapidly absorbing into the skin.

Nivea positions the lotion for multifunctionality with niacinamide, vitamin B3, hyaluronic acid to help draw moisture into the skin, and Nivea’s Deep Nourishing Serum. The product is said to have an ultra-light, milky serum texture for normal to dry skin.

“Consumers expect more from their skin care products than ever before, and brands must continue to raise the bar,” says Andrea Mondoni, general manager of Beiersdorf North America. 

The company cites its self-commissioned consumer study, the 2025 Finch Panel Hand and Body Lotion User Study, stating that 43% of lotion users addressing rough, dry, or dull skin are dissatisfied with current hand and body lotion offerings. 

This gap highlights an opportunity for effective products that don’t require consumers to compromise on performance or feel, says Nivea.

Gourmand scents and sensorial textures are shaping body care product launches.

According to the company, Nivea Smooth & Glow Body Milk was developed to address this growing demand by combining well-known skin care ingredients and hydration with a sensorial formula that doesn’t feel tacky.

Nivea emphasizes the new formula’s affordability with its US$5.99 starting price tag and is available US-wide on TikTok Shop and Amazon, as well as in Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS stores.

Accessibly gourmand 

Suave’s 48-hour Moisture Lotion Collection is touted to have lightweight, non-greasy formulas that absorb quickly. Its clinically proven 48-hour performance is positioned as skin barrier-friendly through its “nourishing” formulation.

The collection features five butters and oils with three dessert-inspired scents, tapping the growing gourmand fragrance trend. Vanilla Suede has notes of cacao cream, vanilla, and sueded musk. Strawberry Delight carries fresh strawberries, caramel, and Chantilly cream, while Pistachio Cream features almond, sugar praline, and roasted pistachio notes.

The formulations contain a blend of five butters and oils — shea butter, cocoa butter, coconut oil, argan oil, and soybean oil — which are touted to soften the skin and give it a healthy appearance.

Rachel Behm, chief marketing officer at Suave, states that the lotions deliver an “instant mood boost,” reflecting growing interest in fragrance and neurocosmetics-inspired beauty experiences.

Fragrance companies highlight scent’s close relationship with memory and emotion due to connections between olfactory processing and brain regions involved in these responses.

Michal Benmayor, head of Perfumery Innovation and Sustainability at dsm-firmenich, previously told Personal Care Insights: “We know that scent has a powerful impact on how we feel. It’s the only sense directly wired to the brain’s emotional and memory centers, which makes fragrance a unique tool for triggering positive emotions.” 

The lotions are free of parabens, mineral oils, dyes, and phthalates and come in 18-ounce bottles available US-wide at Walmart and Amazon.