Trends in Aesthetics: The New Demographics
Trends in Aesthetics
one: the new demographics
In our increasingly agender world, and with society’s raised - and long overdue - consciousness around diversity and inclusivity, it was never going to be long before the beauty and aesthetics sectors responded to these shifts. Because of their intimate relationship with people’s sense of self, these sectors, together with fashion, are often where we see the first full expressions of major social change in any case.
1. Diversity – Still a Way to Go
2. Marketing to Men
3. The Rise of the Degendered Consumer
4. Individualisation
Diversity – Still a Way to Go
In a recent survey, Britain’s Black Aesthetics Advisory Board found that 62.5% of aesthetic practitioners with a majority of patients with darker skin felt that this group was not yet represented in aesthetics, however. One of the Board’s Founders commented on a conference where ‘the talk was about examples of beauty across the world, and there was not one Black person. It’s one of the biggest things I’ve said, ‘As a community, if we don’t see us, we don’t think it’s for us. Representation matters’.’
Each ethnicity has unique needs in terms of skincare, haircare and ageing patterns. Treatments – and marketing campaigns – must now step up and recognise this. The Black beauty sector is evolving quickly, from adaptive major brands to sector-specific start-ups, in order to win over an influential beauty consumer who currently remains underserved.
Black consumers are not only underserved by products, but also poorly served by brand messaging, which has rarely celebrated Black beauty. Now, industry giants are creating more affirming communications, focusing on Black beauty history, supporting kids’ self-image, campaigning against bias, and highlighting harmful language.
Sephora worked with US-based Vox Media to produce the 2022 documentary Beauty of Blackness, which follows the relaunch of Black American cosmetics brand Fashion Fair, originally created in 1973 and now stocked by Sephora. The film is available on HBO Max.
CB Insights also notes that in the South Asian region the Indian market is expanding particularly rapidly, with the beauty sector there set to surpass $20bn in value by the year 2025. The message to brands is clear: the market is global, one size definitely does not fit all and each ethnicity needs to see itself clearly and authentically represented in marketing collateral.
Marketing to Men
As definitions of masculinity change and men are liberated from prevailing gender strictures, contemporary - especially younger - men feel much freer to experiment. Mass culture, especially in music, from K-Pop to Harry Styles, is leading the way, whilst increased self-consciousness and self-reflection during the pandemic have both served as catalysts for growth in this demographic.
The changes are being felt not only in beauty but also in plastic surgery, though with notably-pronounced geographical variants also. In the USA, for example, according to Allure, men in Silicon Valley and the tech industry are looking to stay young to ward off ageism, while power players in Washington, D.C. are seeking a more classic inscrutability, wanting to look more serious and conceal facial expressions. Reduction in breast tissue in males is also increasing in popularity more generally meanwhile, as is the demand for hair removal.
Nearly all (87%) American men buy products “made specifically for men” (The Benchmarking Company, 2022), pointing to the success of brands able to identify and target the unique needs and concerns of their audience. Skincare in particular benefits from a differentiated lens, especially for melanin-rich skin.
“Hand back your partner/mom/sister’s eye cream, cause it just ain’t gonna cut it,” says premium brand Lumin, which develops products to tackle the unique issues associated with male skin. The US-based brand joins other independents championing formulas for sebum-rich, sensitive and post-shave skin.
Lumin
Lumin
Lumin
The Rise of the Degendered Consumer
At the same time as specific trends driving male and female markets, degendered marketing is on the rise across many product areas, especially those targeting Gen Z consumers. While genderless couture hit the runways several years ago, mainstream brands in other markets are catching on, launching gender neutral collections and store layouts. Toy manufacturers are ditching ‘girl’ and ‘boy’ labels, for example, whilst in the beauty sector, brands are prioritising gender inclusivity by un-siloing products and speaking to everyone with one inclusive voice, whether male, female, nonbinary, trans or undecided. One Korean self-care brand has ditched demographics entirely to target the gaming community with shared cultural references. We are also seeing a flurry of nonbinary beauty lines which champion inclusive or neutral messaging.
The degendered approach does not resonate in every market (or else has not yet emerged in some), but in certain countries – from Brazil and Japan to Europe and the USA – it’s to be explored. Italian dermatologist Chantal Sciuto states that dividing along gender lines no longer feels culturally relevant in aesthetics. ‘Everyone has their own personality. Splitting by gender is not the way to differentiate patients.’
The new beauty book is open to all and people of all genders are feeling playful with their looks. There’s an increased requirement amongst women, for example, for a sharp jawline, as a symbol of strength and confidence. Gender is becoming a choice rather than a precondition.
Individualisation
Aesthetic procedures have always been individualised to reflect differing facial anatomies and aspirations, but freedom of individual expression is definitely on the rise, as a separate trend away from more mass social trends. The importance of properly training the staff who provide initial assessments is going to increase too. As clients trust more in their imaginations, the artistry of those commissioned to fulfil those requirements must rise to match this.
One aspect of individualisation currently increasing in popularity is advance DNA testing for skincare procedures. DNA tests consider single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs or ‘snips’), which can indicate how people metabolise medications, as well as how they might react to environmental factors and risk factors for certain diseases. Additionally, in terms of skincare, they can provide an insight into how the body forms collagen, protects itself from the sun and how likely it is to become inflamed.
Sceptics say that just looking at one’s parents will show how you’re going to react to age or environmental stress - but of course DNA is multi-generational, whilst a good number of people don’t know one of – or even both – their birth parents, so the picture isn’t quite that simple. We’re also really only at the beginning of understanding what DNA has to tell us.