Make-up sales increase despite recession
Sales of lipstick have increased as women aim to look glamorous for less
Sales of make-up have increased year-on-year despite the recession, according to new figures.
The study, carried out by market research specialists Mintel, shows that although women have cut back on purchasing clothes and shoes, sales of cosmetics have risen as women try to look good without having to buy costlier items.
According to the research, cosmetics enjoyed the highest growth in the expanding UK beauty market, increasing 7.4% to £1,200 million between 2007 and 2008.
Face and body skincare sales were up 6.7% to £1,000 million, while women's perfume rose 4.6% to £667 million over the same period.
Experts claim that the trend is a repeat of that seen during the Great Depression when tougher competition for jobs in the 1930s made women eager to look their best. The phenomenon has been dubbed the Lipstick Index or Lipstick Factor, a phrase coined by Estee Lauder chairman Leonard Lauder in 2001 after sales of lipsticks in the US, post 9/11, jumped 11%.
The figures also show that instead of trying to save by buying cheaper cosmetics, women are choosing upmarket make-up instead. This suggests that the fairer sex believes the cost of designer eye-shadow or lipstick pales in comparison to the expense of new boots or a day at the spa.
In April, Mintel revealed that a third of women in the US surveyed said they had switched to a lower priced brand for their skincare, hair care or cosmetics, compared to just 25% in the UK and France.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, George Wallace, chief executive of shopping consultants MHE Retail, said: "A 25 to 34-year-old woman in the UK is carrying £71 worth of make-up in her handbag and there is no sign of her giving this up in the downturn. If anything she is buying more to cheer herself up."
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