PARIS — Manufacturers and suppliers at the Beyond Beauty trade show here were optimistic that the cosmetics industry has come through the crisis. Certain players, notably those whose business is centered in Europe, issued a more reserved outlook, however, because of the debt situation in the Eurozone.
Attendance at the event, which ran from Sept. 12 to 14 at the Porte de Versailles exhibition center, grew 14 percent to 22,230 this year from last. Thirty-seven percent of attendees came from international markets, down from 39 percent in 2010. The show, which over the years has honed its positioning as a development booster for young and emerging brands — particularly in the natural and spa segments — housed 430 exhibitors in a 215,000-square-foot space.
Related Articles
“Two-thousand-and-10 was a great year for us; we almost doubled our turnover,” said Sonia Boukortt, business development manager for French spa brand La Sultane de Saba.
You May Also Like
Nevertheless, she expects weaker business for 2011 due to the economic climate in Europe, where the brand does the majority of its business.
“With what is going on in Greece, and to a lesser extent Italy and Portugal, people are uncertain about the future, and leisure purchases are not a priority,” she explained.
“Business in our international markets has been very good,” said Masanobu Fukuda, managing director of Japanese company Nippon Menard’s French subsidiary. The firm was exhibiting at Beyond Beauty for the first time in a bid to attract new French retailers.
“If our presence in France and Europe grows, our Japanese sales will grow, because Japanese people like France,” he continued.
U.S.-based mass-market fragrance manufacturer Parfums de Coeur, which generates 80 percent of its volume in its home market, was another new exhibitor, “aggressively looking for international growth opportunities,” director of international sales and marketing Adam Krauseneck said. The company — present in 35 markets abroad — does not yet have distribution in Europe.
“Our offer is well-suited for the current retail context, with shrinking discretionary spending,” Krauseneck added.
Business at German organic brand Lavera has also been good, according to its director of export sales, Sonia Czech. “Last year was a difficult year, but we nevertheless saw revenues grow 10 percent, and this year, we are expecting a 20 percent increase,” she said.
The company plans to focus its efforts in its existing key markets Germany — representing 70 percent of business — Switzerland, France, Italy and the U.K.
“Organic is a megatrend that is going to pick up further in the future,” said Czech. “However, the organic retail market is saturated, and there is going to be a further rollout into the mainstream.” The company plans to further build its presence in mainstream retail in order to grow business in the future.
On the supplier side, the organic and natural trend was also very visible. French company Alban Muller, well-known for its extraction of natural ingredients, was highlighting its full-service offer. Through the crisis, the company has noted the increasing importance of the BRIC countries (comprised of Brazil, Russia, India and China) to its business, with demand growing from local companies, notably in China, according to a spokeswoman.
At a conference on the outlook for the global cosmetics market, Euromonitor’s research analyst Mylan Nguyen predicted that in the period through 2015, growth is expected in all regions. “Asia is not expected to see high growth, however, because Japan represents half of the Asian market, and is not expected to see recovery before 2015,” she said.
In 2015, Euromonitor expects the mass market to make 76 percent of the total cosmetics and toiletries market, compared with 72 percent in 2010. “Mass will have strong growth globally, notably thanks to Latin America and because consumer perceptions of mass products will change thanks to manufacturers’ efforts,” added Nguyen. The fastest-growing mass-market segments will be fragrance, color cosmetics and skin care, according to the tracking firm.