Online Beauty Market Set To Explode
By Anna Johnson on May 17th, 2010One in ten women buy cosmetics and skin care products online, according to Mintel’s recent Beauty Retailing report. Mintel expects the online beauty market to grow as the number of female baby boomers increases and they embrace the convenience and privacy of shopping online.
Where do shoppers buy beauty products online? According to Mintel, 8 percent visit mass merchandiser sites, 8 percent order from Wal-Mart.com, 8 percent order from Target.com, 5 percent patronize drugstore sites such as CVS or Walgreens, and 8 percent visit other unnamed online retailers.
47 percent of women prefer to be left alone when shopping for cosmetics, making an online store – where shoppers can take as much time as they like without interruption – highly attractive.
Meanwhile, Mintel expects the online beauty market to continue growing as the numbers of its biggest-spending demographic – female baby boomers – increase by an estimated 30.9 percent between 2005 and 2015. Says Kat Fay, senior analyst at Mintel:
“Female Baby Boomers are one of the largest beauty care segments, known for their spending power, proactive health habits and dedication to product research. In fact, these women spend 13 or more hours online a week, making the online market a powerful resource if retailers can get Boomers to log on.”
