The natural and organic personal care market has experience double-digit growth for the sixth year in a row since 2007, when Kline & Company started to report the category separately, according to Carrie Mellage, VP consumer products at the company in a blog.
Europe accounts for a quarter of global natural personal care sales and is the second biggest region for these products. It experienced a 6% increase in sales in 2013, more than double the pace of the total market, which is estimated to have grown by around 3%, and the natural personal care market is one of the few areas showing sustained high growth in the region.
Mellage says that natural beauty, which is now worth almost $30 billion globally,
has strengthened its position as a mainstay in the industry and not a passing fad. She cites increasing consumer awareness and the need for product efficacy as attracting those who want to avoid chemically-processed personal care products. “Plant-based ingredients were once enough to entice consumers; today a product’s function and efficacy are now regarded as at least as important as the ingredient source by many consumers,” she writes.
Mellage highlights the fact that natural products manufacturers have become quick to capitalize on market trends, with the introduction of alphabet creams, for example, and the use of on-trend ingredients such as argan oil, acai berry, pomegranate and calendula.
