U.S. Shaving And Grooming Products Consumer Insights - Usage, Attitudes, And Brand Performance Report

Introduction:

The significant growth in the U.S. shaving and grooming industry is due to ever-changing consumer preferences and the acceptance of male grooming. Consumers are looking for trendy, convenient, and technologically advanced products. Over time, social media has normalized grooming regardless of gender, promoting inclusivity. This has also led to more products for males, whilst the market already offers a pool of options for females. With these shifts taking place, especially in the men’s grooming section, let’s deep dive into the trends:

• Advanced Shaving Techniques and Technology: Many new techniques, such as single-edge safety razors, pre-shave oil, and after-shave balms, are gaining traction. Innovations in electric razors, including wet-dry capabilities, skin-sensitivity adjustments, multiple customizable settings, and smart features such as performance tracking and app feedback, are becoming more common to deliver a personalized shaving experience.

• Shaving Trends and Techniques: A shift towards minimal grooming is being driven by some consumers who are abandoning traditional shaving in favor of a more natural appearance. Products that help calm and hydrate skin after shaving, such as oils, lotions, and balms, are trending and stocking up on shelves.

• Convenient, Time-saving, and Sustainable Products: Most consumers lead busy lives and have less time for grooming, so they need fast, convenient products like electric shavers, all-in-one razors, etc. Multifunctional items, such as shaving gel with built-in moisturizer and shaving brushes with built-in soap dispensers, are also gaining popularity.

• Health and Wellness Integration: Men's grooming is increasingly aligned with wellness, combining health and personal care. Products like vitamin- and antioxidant-rich aftershave balms for healthy skin have seen a shift in demand.

• Expansion of Grooming Products: Men's skincare products, including moisturizers, serums, and exfoliators, have expanded, suggesting that more men are spending money on grooming practices beyond shaving. The need for beard care products, including oils, balms, and grooming equipment, has increased. Electric hair trimmers and laser hair removal are two new techniques becoming increasingly popular for their comfort, efficiency, and ease.

Methodology:

The insights covered in this report are drawn from GVR’s ‘Voice of Consumer Survey’ and its periodic updates. The latest survey represents 75,000+ consumer interviews conducted across 20 countries for 100+ product categories. These insights are specifically catered to thousands operating in the shaving & grooming industry to guide them in their strategic decision-making process. This report provides insights covering category usage & attitude, buying behavior, brand performance metrics, and brand health indicators of leading players in the U.S. shaving & grooming market.

Chapter 1: Usage and Attitude

The need for effective yet simple grooming across genders has risen, and 51% of consumers use shaving & grooming products weekly, i.e., at least once a week. However, a few consumers also prefer to use these products daily, i.e., once a day.

Shaving & grooming products are mostly used as part of the morning routine, according to almost 4 out of 10 consumers, followed by use before any special event. However, consumption can be improved by promoting the use of the product on other frequencies. For example, as a part of the evening routine (current usage 16%) or before bedtime (current usage 11%).

When consumers think of these products, they assign emotional and personal values, seeing them not just as materialistic things but as an important aspect in their overall well-being. Thus, they feel that shaving and grooming products enhance their appearance, in turn improving their confidence, leading to a sense of relaxation, and categorizing it as self-care. However, they also feel that the rising prices and number of options available are both overwhelming and a burden on the pocket.

When it comes to reasons for using shaving & grooming products, personal grooming and hygiene is the most important reason, as expected for both females and males. Enhancing physical appearance is the 2nd most significant reason for using shaving & grooming products among males, whereas females prefer to maintain their skin health. Lastly, enhancing physical appearance is similarly important across genders.

Keeping that in mind, we see that consumers feel delighted when the product is easy to apply and delivers visible improvements in their appearance with effective results. However, consumers find themselves confused and overwhelmed with the number of choices available to them, which in turn raises affordability concerns for them as the prices become competitive.

Buying Behavior

The key and initial step in purchasing a product is the accumulation of certain information to make an informed decision. The most sought-after points are pricing and affordability, product quality and effectiveness, and brand reputation and trustworthiness. Given that grooming products are used frequently, consumers usually like to stock up once a month.

When it comes to the mode of purchase, department stores overall are a go-to for consumers. However, when we further dig into each generation, Gen Z places equal importance on e-commerce marketplaces and department stores. Whereas Millennials, in addition to these methods, also assign the same preference to specialty beauty stores, signifying similarity in their purchase behavior.

Consumers generally like to think through their purchases; thus, 8 out of 10 people say their purchase is planned, among whom 46% say it is always planned. There is a mix of spontaneity and a well-thought-out purchase for almost every 2 out of 10 consumers, showcasing a window to leverage the impulse buying among consumers.

The factors that significantly influence the purchase of shaving & grooming products are price and discounts, as 7 out of 10 people have selected this as their main driver. Brand reputation and ingredient quality also significantly influence consumers. While these triggers encourage consumers’ buying behavior, some pain points might hold them back, such as products that contain harmful chemicals that might trigger allergies or cause irritation on the skin, clogging of the pores, triggering acne, and so much more. Another is finding a product suitable for a specific skin type that meets their unique needs. Thus, due to these growing concerns, consumers are conscious of the brands they use for shaving and grooming, with almost 7 out of 10 consumers being moderately to highly conscious.

Brand Power Play (Brand Health and Performance)

Some of the popular shaving & grooming brands among males in the U.S. include Gillette, Harry’s, Old Spice, Axe, and Dove Men Care. The male industry is less saturated than the female one, so these brands mainly dominate the market.

Having said that, for females, some of the popular brands are Dove, Neutrogena, Olay, L’Oréal Paris, Bath & Body Works, and Pantene. Since there are more offerings for the female grooming section, the industry has tougher competition, and some of the other emerging brands like Aveeno and TRESemmé are slowly making their way into the U.S. shaving & grooming market.

Purchase Funnel

For males, Gillette is a go-to brand and one of the most prominent, with a strong purchase funnel and equally strong consideration and purchase intent. As for consideration, Old Spice and Axe closely follow Gillette. Whereas Axe and Harry’s lead in preference and purchase intent, Gillette continues to dominate. These brands’ elevated performance can be attributed to higher repurchase rates, as consumers are satisfied with their purchases and product performance.

The overall NPS score for the leading male brands ranges from 0 to 33, and Gillette shows better performance (NPS of 33) than other shaving & grooming brands in the market.

When we talk about females, Dove is one of the prominent brands that exhibits a strong purchase funnel despite having significant drops at each step of the funnel. Even though Pantene's consideration preference and purchase intent are lower than Dove's, it is still better than other brands in the market. Bath and Body Works is a brand to watch out for, as it has been gaining traction and showcasing improved performance than other brands, closely following Pantene on all the power play metrics. Brands can focus on increasing repurchase frequency by improving consumer satisfaction.

While the overall NPS score of the leading female brands varies from 11- 55, Bath and Body Works scores 55, highlighting that, besides the lower awareness and consideration vs Dove, among users, it is recommended.