Styling aids continue growth path

Drug Store News, April 7, 1997 by Liz Parks

The styling segment of ethnic hair care, which some buyers define as including shine enhancing products as well as gels, mousse, wrap lotions and spritz, continues to do well: up 3 percent in dollar sales and up 6.6 percent in unit sales for the 52 weeks ended Dec. 1, 1996, according to Information Resources Inc.

Styling aids, such as hair color, has become a segment that chain drug category managers say they are expanding as they rework their ethnic product planograms.

One of the reasons the styling/sheen enhancing segment of ethnic hair care continues to grow, said Connie Merritt, national sales manager of Little Rock, Ark.-based J.M. Products, is because women and men tend to make multiple purchases when they're buying styling products.

"Relaxer kits don't have everything that people need to style their hair," Merritt pointed out. "After you buy the relaxer, you still need a setting lotion or a wrap lotion to set and style the hair, an oil sheen for shine. a mousse or a gel for styling and a spritz for hold."

"I don't see any signs of a letup in the sales of styling products," said Joyce Roche, president of Savannah, Gal-based Carson Products. "People are still wearing their hair in so many different ways, and products like gels, spritzes and mousse help them achieve a wide variety of styles."

"You are seeing more styled hair today than ever before," said Arnie Kranz, vice president of marketing for Attitudes Unlimited, the Oxnard, Calif.-based manufacturer of the Let's Jam line of styling and conditioning products. "More women are relaxing their hair, and the frequency in between the hair relaxing process is growing.

George Boykin, director of marketing for Chicago-based Luster Products, said that one of the drivers in the styling aids category is "women who are always concerned about their hair, and that will never change. The key for hair care manufacturers is to have their fingers on the pulse of what women are looking for in the present moment, which of their needs are not being fulfilled. Then to come up with the product formulations that satisfy their expectations."

"Technology is really what is driving the sales of styling products," said Kellie Beadsley, the brand manager for Smooth 'N Shine Polish Laminates made by Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Advanced Research Labs.

"The trend is that people are getting away from petroleum-based styling products because they make the hair look heavy or greasy and they don't add moisture to the hair which is important because African-Americans typically have dry hair to begin with, and it gets drier when it's relaxed."

Both manufacturers and buyers also believe that the young members of Generation X are driving sales of styling aids in the ethnic market, just as they are in the general market.

"It's the younger men and women who are buying the styling aids, for the most part," said one buyer for a large regional drug chain. "They are the ones wearing the Let's Jam gels, the Smooth 'N Shine Polishing laminates, the Pump It Up Spritz from Bronner Brothers. They're the ones who are also buying the TCB Naturals products or Revlon's HerbaRich or Pro-Line's Botanicals.

This year, Johnson Products will be aggressively going after the Generation X market with a new ad campaign for its Afro Sheen styling line. Last year, Johnson decided to build on the strength of its Afro Sheen Conditioner, a single SKU that has been on the market for many years, by extending the brand into a whole family of styling products targeted to Generation X'ers.

Natural sells

Memphis-based J. Strickland, which owns several popular conditioning brands, has entered the natural ingredients segment, with the launch late last year of Royal Crown Naturals, a four-SKU line extension that is building on the strengths of its 60-year-old Royal Crown Conditioning hair dress.

Larry O'Malley, the national sales manager for J. Strickland, said the launch coincided with the 60th anniversary of the Royal Crown brand. Royal Crown Naturals is targeted toward younger men, the sons and grandsons of the men who have made Royal Crown a top seller for many years.

The company has also just introduced a Coconut Conditioning formula to its Blue Magic Bergamot conditioning line.

Both brands are priced moderately for value-priced positioning in the emerging naturals market.

Male preferences

African American men don't need to have long hair to need styling and conditioning aids. Even young men who sport the popular bald look or who wear their hair cut very short are still buying scalp treatments and pomades used to make short hair look sleek.

Pro-Line's vice president of advertising Roy Brannon said he expects sales of pomades and other men's styling aids to continue to go up in 1997 because they meet so many consumer needs, not just for styling, but also for moisturizing the scalp and the hair.

Brannon said, the sales of natural ingredient products will continue to grow because they meet changing consumer needs.

Driving force in styling aids

J.M. Products has been very successful with its styling aids. Its sales volume year to date is up in double-digit increments, thanks in part to three styling aids launched last year.