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Wednesday, July 11, 2012

"Salonistas" Drive Up Sales in DIY Nail Care Market


Conventional wisdom might suppose an inverse correlation between the sales of do-it-yourself (DIY) nail care products and the use of nail salon services.  In fact, as the mass-market nail care category grew 25% between 2009 and 2010, the market for nail salon services did decline.  According to Nails Magazine Big Book 2011-2012, the nail salon services market fell nearly 5% in 2009, and was still below its 2008 level in 2010.

However, all signs now point to a return to popularity of nail salon services.  According to Experian Simmons National Consumer Study data cited in our recent report on The Nail Care Market in the U.S., an improving economic picture in 2011 resulted in a sharp uptick in the number of women who are frequently professional nail care services.  In 2011 the number of women having two or more manicures in a six-month period (defined as “salonistas” in our report) increased from 16.3 million to 18.1 million, or 11.3%. 

The question facing nail care product marketers in 2012 is whether DIY nail care sales will decline as women return to salons to get professional manicures and pedicures.

Paradoxically, the data strongly suggest that the reverse will be true: the more women go to salons for manicures, the more they buy and use DIY nail care products.

·         One in four (25%) salonistas used do-it-yourself (DIY) nail care products five times or more in the past 30 days, compared to only 15% of other women.  Salonistas are nearly twice as likely as other women to have used DIY nail care products two to four times during this period (39% vs. 22%).

·       Packaged Facts estimates that  the monthly number of DIY uses of nail care increased by 13.4 million in 2011.  Nearly half of this growth (46%) was due to the increase of 6.2 million DIY nail care product uses by salonistas.
Salonistas are at the core of the nailcentric fashion culture that is driving nail care market growth.  Rather than siphoning off dollar sales of DIY nail care products, the post-recession boom in professional manicure and pedicure services will serve to fan the flames of the mass-market nail care market.

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