The professional skin care market in Europe and the U.S. continues to register strong growth in 2018, according to our soon-to-be-published Professional Skin Care Global Series report. The increase in both these markets is mainly driven by the medical and retail channels, and consumer demand is high for products containing retinols, hyaluronic acid, and vitamin C in both markets.
The professional skin care market in Europe continues on a steady growth trajectory, completing another dynamic year in 2018 and registering higher growth than the year prior. The U.K. registers the highest growth of over 6%, followed by Poland. However, all other segments comprising smaller markets, including Scandinavia and the Nordics, register strong growth in 2018.
Medical beauty, comprising topical products and nonsurgical aesthetic treatments, is the key market driver behind the U.S. market’s growth, with more and more consumers opting for skin treatments such as body contouring and micro-needling. Skin care products that are recommended for pre- and post-treatment help drive sales within the medical care providers channel, which is also the fastest-growing channel.
In Europe, beauty institutes and salons still remain the largest channel but record the slowest growth, owing to a rising shift of the consumer base toward Internet and retail channels, especially for product replenishment. Express treatments are popular in both the U.S. and Europe as consumers are attracted to fast-acting solutions and targeted treatments that take 20-30 minutes to show results.
The U.S. professional skin care market is expected to have its most vibrant year in the last five years, with growth projected to exceed 7% for 2018, up from 6% in 2017. The medical care providers channel continues to be the largest channel of distribution, with impressive gains in 2018. Some emerging trends include blue light defense products, pre- and post-procedure skin care, and the rise of express aesthetic boutiques like Alchemy 43 and Skin Laundry. Fueling growth of the spas and salon channel is the rising popularity of wellness and self-care, which continues to make spas an attractive destination. Also, in 2018, cannabis is making a splash in the skin care scene with both take-home products from brands like CBD Care Garden and spa treatments that are infused with CBD oil.
In addition to the Professional Skin Care reports on the U.S. and Europe, we will also be publishing a report on China in the first quarter of 2019. Each of these reports highlights the market overview with sales and growth, product novelties, hot trends, and much more as well as key brand profiles and all purchase channels. The Professional Skin Care Global Series report also features a smart database with brand sales for nine countries and sales by channel, product type, and segment.
