Happi checked in with Agnieszka Saintemarie of Kline Group about current trends and challenges in the multicultural beauty category, including differences between the professional/salon and mass-market categories.
 
HAPPI: Does Kline have recent data on the size and growth of the US salon/professional sector for black or multi-cultural consumers? How much has this sector grown in recent years and does this differ from the growth rates in the mass market?
 
Saintemarie: The US market of professional products for black consumers is worth $250 million at manufacturer level. The market is not performing very well. In fact we show a slight decline in sales of these products in 2014.

Comparing to the mass market for hair care products in the US, which Kline estimates at $8.3 billion the same year, this segment is very small. Ethnic products for professional use are also showing worse performance as the overall hair care category is up by over 3%. If we compare the ethnic market with the rest of the professional products market, which Kline tracks yearly, we also see a significant difference in performance as the rest of the professional market grows at similar pace as the retail  market products  for hair.

What makes the ethnic market sluggish is the fact that more and more consumers are moving away from chemical straighteners and relaxers. This is partly due to the global trend of embracing the natural hair. As relaxers capture a very big share in professional products for black consumers, this is definitely hurting the overall market.

Despite its underperformance, the US market remains the biggest market for professional ethnic products in the world.
 
HAPPI: What are the major trends right now in this category—and how does this differ from what it was five and 10 years ago? What do consumers want from these products?
 
Saintemarie: One of the key trends, not only in the US but also globally, is embracing natural beauty, which includes naturally curly hair. This cultural shift is associated with pride in African heritage and a rejection of Caucasian standards of beauty.

Another important trend in North America is that many younger people do not trust salons or stylists for advice or hairstyling. The do-it-yourself trend is predominant with the younger demographic
 
HAPPI: What are the challenges this marketplace and the companies operating in it face? Retail challenges? M&A issues? 
 
Saintemarie: There are a few important challenges that this market faces. First is the fact that there is important blurring between retail brands and professional brands with many retail brands present in salons and many previously professional brands not being salon exclusive.

Penetration of retail brands into ethnic salons drives average price points down and it’s difficult for premium brands to gain important presence in this market.

Another challenge for companies wanting to grab a share in this market is that it is extremely fragmented. Most players are ethnic-owned, small- and medium-sized brands. Key brands account for less than 10% of the market each. One of the key players in the industry that backs up the promotion for ethnic products, while putting marketing and communication efforts behind its own brands is owner of two key brands on the US (and global) market, the beauty giant L’Oréal, that competes with its 100% professional brand Mizani and retail brand widely present in salons, Dark and Lovely.
 

Agnieszka Saintemarie is a UK-based project manager with Kline Group. She can be reached at [email protected].