|
3 April 2007
Hong Kong
To maintain or enhance their looks, two thirds of the world’s consumers focus on taking care of their hair - in conjunction with a daily skincare regime and regular facial treatment – and if money were no object, they would spend more on body massages and teeth-whitening besides taking care of their hair, according to a study just released by The Nielsen Company.
In a recently released Global Consumer Report on Personal Grooming, Nielsen surveyed 25,408 internet users in 46 markets from Europe, Asia Pacific, North America and the Middle East about their attitudes to personal grooming, what and how often they invested in beauty products and treatments, and what they would spend, and on what, if money were no object.
“According to the world’s consumers, having a bad hair day is simply not an option when it comes to looking ones best. Sixty-four percent of consumers invest in daily, weekly or monthly hair care, compared to just over half (53%) of those who follow a similar skincare regime,” said Ms Angel Young, Executive Director, Client Solutions, The Nielsen Company, Hong Kong.
In Hong Kong, nearly two thirds of Hong Kong people are currently ‘investing’ on skin Care regime, Hair Care (53%) followed by Facial Treatment (37%) as the third most popular personal grooming option that people will do monthly or more frequently in order to maintain or enhance their appearance.
Chart 1
“The pressure is on for people to look good in Hong Kong these days and is most shared among the young people who have started their personal grooming habit much earlier than their parents did in those days.” Ms Young added. “With the economy continues to perform, it is true that people will if not already, become more generous in brushing up their appearance.”
Hong Kong people are no doubt ahead of many international counterparts in terms of enhancing their looks. Hong Kong ranks among the world’s top 10 markets with most people claim to be investing on a host of personal grooming activities like Skin Whitening (2nd) , Teeth-Whitening (3rd), Skin Care (5th), Body Massages and Exfoliations/Scrubs (8th).
Table 2: To maintain / enhance my appearance, I invested in:
| |
HK's Global Ranking |
Global Top 3 |
1st |
2nd |
3rd |
| Skincare regime |
5 |
Poland |
Thailand |
China |
| Body Massage |
8 |
Vietnam |
China |
Indonesia |
| Exfolliation / scrubs |
8 |
Taiwan |
UAE |
Russia |
| Teeth Whitening |
3 |
China |
UAE |
HK |
| Skin Whitening |
2 |
China |
HK |
Taiwan |
People in Asia Pacific, Thailand in particular, make a great effort to enhance their appearance monthly or more frequently through Hair Care (66%), Skin Care (57%), Facial Treatment (40%) and a host of other applications such as Body Massages, Skin Whitening, Eyebrow / eyelash tinting / shaping and Teeth Whitening, compare to their counterparts in the North America, Europe and Latin America.
When broken down by gender, however, nearly three quarters of women considered a regular skin care regime to be as important as regular hair care when it comes to looking well-groomed. Back home, Hong Kong women are more into Skin Care with eight in 10 claimed to invest on it in order to look good, followed by Hair Care, Facial Treatment and Exfoliation/Scrub each garnering 54 percent of followers. It is interesting to mention that among the various options, Body Massages is the one with more men (30%) in Hong Kong claimed to be taking than women (24%).
When Money Is No Object…
When it came to what types of personal grooming consumers would spend more on if money were not object, the sexes were in agreement that body massages would be the ultimate indulgence for over half (54%), and particularly for over three quarters (76%) of South Africans, 73 percent of Austrians, 71 percent of Czechs, Hungarians and Chileans…and 60 percent of women and 30-somethings. 47% of Hong Kong people shared the same aspirations.
In Hong Kong, 58 percent of people surveyed are most aspired to spend more on improving their skin and hair respectively, along with having white and shiny teeth (48%) and pampering themselves with body massages (47%) too! By gender, again Skin care (68%) tops Hong Kong women’s most aspired-to personal grooming option if money was no object, followed by Facial Treatment (65%) and Hair Care (55%). For men in Hong Kong however, it is better hair dos (60%), shiny white teeth (52%) and better skin (50%) that are closest to their hearts if they could afford it.
Table 3: If money was no object, I would spend more on:
| |
Hong Kong |
Male |
Female |
Total |
| Skincare regime |
50% |
68% |
58% |
| Facial treatment |
25% |
65% |
44% |
| Hair care |
60% |
55% |
58% |
| Body massage |
49% |
46% |
47% |
| Teeth whitening |
52% |
43% |
48% |
| Skin whitening |
9% |
37% |
23% |
| Hair removal (wax / laser) |
4% |
24% |
13% |
| Exfoliation / scrubs |
18% |
22% |
20% |
| Manicure / Pedicure |
8% |
21% |
14% |
| Eyebrow / eyelash tinting / shaping |
5% |
15% |
9% |
| Tanning (spray, lotion, sunbed) |
8% |
8% |
8% |
While not a beauty treatment many people claimed to indulge in regularly except in China, where 38 percent claimed to do it daily, teeth whitening was particularly popular – if money were no object – for around two thirds of Chileans, South Africans and South Koreans….and more than half the teens and those in their 20s.
Hair care is the third most aspired-to personal care regime for the world’s consumers, especially the Thais (70s), Brazilians (67%) and people in the UAE (65%) if money were no object.
Meanwhile 52 percent of Koreans would lighten their skin, followed by a third in Taiwan, 28 percent in the Philippines, a further 26 percent in China and 23 percent in Hong Kong if money were no object.
“Consumers around the world are becoming more sophisticated, which is reflected in their attitude to personal grooming, making personal care an increasingly competitive sector for manufacturers,” added Ms Young. “In particular, Hair and Skin Care is considered very important for all, generating huge market potential for manufacturers. According to Nielsen Media, manufacturers of hair care and skin care products spent more than US$6billion on advertising in Asia Pacific alone in 2005-6 representing a 12 to 15 percent increase year on year, and US$52.6 million (i.e. HK$410MM) was spent in Hong Kong for the two categories.”
Markets Covered
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Czechs Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Thailand, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom, US and Vietnam.
About ACNielsen
ACNielsen, a service of the Nielsen Company, is the world's leading marketing information provider. Offering services in more than 100 countries, the unit provides measurement and analysis of marketplace dynamics and consumer attitudes and behavior. Clients rely on ACNielsen's market research, proprietary products, analytical tools and professional service to understand competitive performance, to uncover new opportunities and to raise the profitability of their marketing and sales campaigns. To learn more, visit www.acnielsen.com.
About The Nielsen Company
The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions and recognized brands in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek) and trade shows. The privately held company has more than 42,000 employees and is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and New York, USA.
Back to Top
|
