Skin health overtakes anti-ageing as key driver of skincare sales

When buying skincare, consumers care more about what it can do to make their skin look healthy, rather than its anti-ageing properties, according to research by global carotenoid specialist Lycored. More than three quarters (79%) said they use products to give their skin a fresh and healthy glow, compared to a far smaller number who do so to look more attractive (18%) or to appear younger (14%), the report found.

“The global skincare market is in the midst of a revolution – there has been a major shift from appearance to health,”said Zev Ziegler, Lycored’s vice president of brand and marketing.

Affordability is another key factor in influencing skincare product sales, with 64% of people citing it as important, followed by the reputation of the brand (63%), natural ingredients (56%) and having claims supported by clinical research (44%).

When asked what is most important for the health of their skin, diet came out top (43%), followed by avoiding too much sun exposure (22%), living a stress-free life (18%) and exercise (15%).