Millennials are changing up a lot of things in a lot of different markets, including the beauty industry. According to Forbes, there’s about 80 million millennials with more than $200 billion in purchasing power annually. Key findings from a report by Bay Area Beauty Association and Perfect365 suggests that more than 94 percent of millennials purchase makeup with 72 percent preferring to purchase their products in-store rather than online.
Coresight Research’s recent report suggests that millennials, between ages 19-39, are the largest consumer of makeup products, shopping at discount stores to purchase most of their beauty supplies.
Coresight states that millennials, born between 1980 and 2000, are particularly important for the beauty market due to the sizeable consumer base they represent and their growing spending power.
Although they are dominating the makeup industry, millennials aren’t spending quite as much on personal care products as Generation X, born between 1966-1979) or baby boomers (1946 and 1965). Coresight predicts that millennials will increase their purchasing of personal care products as they enter the workforce and “move up the professional ladder.”
“When buying beauty products, price and brand trust are major purchase drivers for this generation,” Coresight Research states. “Millennials are more likely than older generations to care about the social values, including ethics, eco-consciousness and social responsibility, of the beauty companies with which they associate. In addition, millennials are health conscious and prefer natural and organic cosmetic products.”
Millennials are also more likely to trust a beauty guru, social media influencer or their own peers when purchasing a new beauty product.
Traditional salespeople and authority figures are no longer the experts, instead millennials trust themselves and their peers for recommendations on beauty more than anyone else,” the BABA and Perfect 365 report states. “In fact, 65 percent trust the makeup recommendation of a makeup artist or beauty guru on Instagram or YouTube over a salesperson in the store, even if they’ve worked with them before.”
The rise of the digital-beauty evolution may push more brands to push products on social media platforms and discover a new avenue to market to millennials. Many entreprenuers like Kylie Jenner, have successfully launched their own beauty line by advertising and showing their brands on social media platforms.
More companies will look to have their products accessible online and trusted by millennial consumer beauty experts.
