Teens tell all about cosmetics

Drug Store News, August 5, 1996

It's always nice to know what teen shoppers are thinking and doing. Teens are major spenders in the cosmetics and fragrance category, so a few months ago, Maybelline and Teen Magazine, as part of their 1996 Great Model Search promotion, brought their teenage contestants together to talk to the press about their shopping preferences.

Adopting a focus group format, Teen moderated the discussion, asking the teens about where they bought cosmetics, as well as what they typically wore.

The group consisted of a sampling of teens so their responses are not statistically projectable, but the answers were interesting.

For example, the teens in this group said they bought their beauty care products at a wide variety of store types, ranging from grocery stores to discount department stores and drug stores.

Mall outlets were popular, but the teens had not yet developed any real store loyalties. One teen summed up her shopping preferences this way: "I buy my cosmetics in Walgreens, Wal-Mart, drug stores at the mall, whatever."

Scentarama

When it comes to buying fragrances, the teens said they looked at a store's prices, its convenience to their homes and the variety of products offered.

All the teens said lipsticks were what they bought most often, and lipsticks, along with nail polish, were usually the first cosmetics they began wearing. One girl said she started with nail polish when she was six.

Many of the teens have tried the newest lipsticks, singling out ColorStay, Colour Endure and Great Lip as brands they are currently using.

Some of the teens said they seldom use coupons when they shop, but others said they looked for coupons and frequently-used them to subsidize their beauty care purchases.

Scent of a teenager

When it comes to fragrances, advertising does seem to influence what a teen buys. Several teens said they used Navy by Cover Girl, often featured in teen magazines. Other popular selections were Revlon's Fire and Ice, Victoria Secret's products, cKone and Sunflowers. Some said they used the same fragrance their mothers used and were generally given fragrances as gifts.

The teens who said they bought their own fragrances generally shopped for them every few months.

When it comes to price, these teens were cavalier. From affluent or upper middle income families, the teens made it clear they are not entirely concerned about fragrances' prices. Many had no idea what their scents cost.

The teens said they started using cosmetics seriously at between the ages of 12 and 13. Many said they first started out using whatever their sisters or mothers used, and they learned how to apply makeup by watching their mothers.

Polishing it off

The teens had emphatic ideas about the nail polish. About half said they preferred to wear their nails naturally, without color, or they liked to apply clear or light pastel shades.

The rest said they liked sparkling colors with most citing blue and green as their favorite colors of the moment.

Ad appeal

Teens do notice ads in magazines, and they prefer their ads to be entertaining and different. They do not like ads they come across as cheesy or condescending.

Most said they loved the cKone ads, as well as the Maybelline ads, particularly the tag line: "Maybe she's born with it. Maybe it's Maybelline."

Teens had some pretty clear brand images based on what they remembered from the ads. They associate Maybelline with mascara, noting the pink and green Maybelline package. They associate Revlon with Cindy Crawford, Cover Girl with Nikki Taylor and Tara Banks, L'Oreal with curly hair, and Jane with bright colors.

Impulse purchasing is popular with teens. "If it looks like fun, I'll buy it," one girl said.

The girls also agreed that drug stores were not the places to experiment. "If you buy something and you don't like it, you can't take it back," one girl said.