Hair and skin care: uncovering the trends at NACDS Marketplace

Drug Store News, August 4, 1997 by Lisa I. Fried

These days most people in business typically wear several hats to get their jobs done. Since January, I've been wearing a few. At that time, I had the good fortune of being appointed news editor of Drug Store News and editor of our weekly fax newsletter, Drug Store NewsFirst. The pace at which news has been breaking on the retail side of this business has made it an incredibly exciting year for us, and I am having a great time steering our coverage of it.

As a result of my new responsibilities, we needed to hire a new editor to spearhead our personal care coverage. We have a top-notch editorial staff at Drug Store News, and our search was done with the hopes of finding a star. It took a little longer than we would have hoped, and for months I have been struggling to stay focused on all of your needs and excel in my new job.

But, I have great news. Our search was worth the wait, for we have found a terrific, experienced editor to take over this coverage. Effective in our next issue, Peter Malbin, senior editor/category specialist for beauty and personal care, will take over this page and spearhead our coverage in this critical front-end segment.

Peter joins us from Supermarket News, where he was an associate editor covering pharmacy and HBC. Prior to joining Supermarket News, Peter worked as a freelance writer and copy editor and had stories published in The New York Times and Travel Agent magazine. He edited copy for GQ, Mademoiselle and Conde Nast Traveler.

We are truly fortunate to have such an experienced, well-rounded editor join our staff. I encourage all of you to call him with your ideas and news.

As I take one of my hats off, I have started to reflect on the evolution of the categories I have been covering since 1994. What was clearly referred to as toiletries back then is now often referred to as beauty and personal care. And, in many drug chains, these departments are now integrated with cosmetics and fragrances in a much splashier way.

Upscale bath and body products are often displayed in feminine, classy displays. And, while chains have yet to apply the same thinking to the upscale skin care and hair care products, it's the next logical step.

Indeed, it appears that personal care is no longer a stepchild to cosmetics. It's common to see many more personal care products featured in drug store circulars today than in the past, and these categories are receiving greater attention from manufacturers as well.

Marketplace highlights

Before I passed the torch to Peter, I attended the recent NACDS Marketplace conference. Over the past three years, I have watched new trends and niches emerge at this show, and this year's show was no exception.

It was impossible to meet with every manufacturer at the show, so I focused most of my attention on hair and skin care companies. I couldn't get to every manufacturer, but I believe I met with enough to offer you some insights on these categories.

There was a great emphasis at the show on antibacterial SKUs, multi-functional products, items to woo younger consumers, aromatherapy and products positioned to solve very specific problems. In addition, professional hair care products and department store products continue to move from salons and department stores to drug stores.

Germs, germs everywhere

In skin care, there were several antibacterial entries as well as new lines focusing on therapeutic benefits.

Germs are under skin care manufacturers' microscopes these days. Bristol-Myers' Keri was the first hand and body lotion to take an antibacterial positioning, and now several competitors have jumped in.

Alberto-Culver is launching St. Ives Swiss Formula Antibacterial Collagen Elastin Antiseptic Dry Skin Lotion. The company estimates that 90 million adults use antibacterial products of some kind and that the category produces approximately $1 billion in sales in all three classes of trade.

Gojo, which launched the Purell Instant Hand Sanitizer, has added three new products to the line: Purell with Aloe, Purell Icy Blue Mint and Purell Kid's Own. Chesebrough-Pond's has launched Vaseline Intensive Care Antibacterial Hand Lotion, which it plans to back with a $20 million advertising and marketing program.

Minneapolis-based IBN International, which markets kids' toiletries, is also getting into the act with a unique-looking product, Game Boy antibacterial body wash. The company licensed the Game Boy name from Nintendo and is marketing products that are both games and cleansing products. The packaging resembles the hand-held electronic Game Boy game, with usable play buttons.

St. Louis, Mo.-based Vi-Jon also has two antibacterial hand sanitizers: Germ-X and Germ Busters.

Therapeutic approach

Several other skin care players on the show floor were touting therapeutic products or products for people with blemishes.

Physicians Formula is launching A-Derma, a skin treatment line designed to help women cope with atopic dermatitis, extremely dry skin, allergic reactions, eczema/psoriasis and more.

The oat-based line has been marketed in France since 1977, and the company brought four of the SKUs to the United States. Two SKUs, foaming Cleanser Gel and Gentle Treatment Cream, are formulated to help treat dry, irritated, upset skin, which Physicians Formula describes as Level One severity problems. To help treat extremely dry, irritated or itchy skin, Level Two severity problems, Physicians is introducing Septalibour Ultra Gentle Purifying Cleanser and Exomega Ultra Rich Treatment Cream.