Richard Scott – Editor, Personal Care
Reaching your target demographic used to be fairly straightforward. You knew the newspapers they read and the TV shows they watched and built your strategy around that. In general, consumers were trusting of major brands and uninterested in the methods used in their products’ manufacturing processes.
Today’s teenagers and young twenty-somethings do not fit this profile. Generation Z – people born after 1995 – are complete digital natives, born into a world with an entirely different language and consumer landscape than their predecessors. In short, they exist very comfortably in two different spheres – real life and digital.
For personal care companies catering to Generation Z consumers, one of the key focuses will be the sustainability and traceability of the ingredients used. This is important because Generation Z consumers are strongly motivated by their beliefs on matters such as climate change and inclusivity. If they feel a product offered to them does not embody these beliefs, they will use one that does.
The difficulty for brands is that in this digital world, there is very little time and space to make a positive impression. Natural ingredients can help make that pitch to the consumer as well as by delivering safe and effective formulations.
Recently, ingredient suppliers have been assisting formulators with their ingredients and formulation concepts. Sensory Crush from Givaudan Active Beauty, a concept launched earlier this year includes powerful ingredients combining the world of naturals and innovation to address the beauty expectations of Generation Z. Ingredients include rutin extracted from Sophora japonica, Yuzu extract, and beta-carotene from Dunaliella algae.
CutiBiome CLR, from CLR Berlin, is a synergistic complex of lipophilic extracts from manuka, black pepper and magnolia. It provides essential support for the natural balance between skin and its microbiota in difficult situations, like acne and dandruff, making it ideal for young consumers, including Generation Z, with perceivable and satisfactory results. While they are highly conscious of engaging with natural and sustainable brands, we can never forget the importance of efficacy. And with busy, fast-paced lives, they desire quick results too.
Generation Z, by some estimations, will now be making up 40% of consumers, which is an incredible figure for such a young demographic. Although they have been touted as being difficult to reach because of their preoccupation with YouTubers rather than traditional ‘experts’ and celebrities, they remain as focused as any generation on safe and effective products that are pleasant to use. If your brand can also authentically communicate your values of sustainability and inclusivity, you can give yourself every chance of succeeding.
Also in the Road to In-Cos Asia Series…
Gen Z: What do they look for in personal care & beauty products?