Stubble, chin curtain or fu manchu, there's a facial hair grooming product for every style

24% of US men don’t shave unless they have to

Growth in the US men’s personal care market has been slowed by a struggling shaving/aftershave products segment, and men’s laidback approach toward shaving is to blame. Younger men especially find that they don’t believe it is expected of them to remove hair regularly, while one quarter say they do not shave unless they have to.

Brands target beard grooming

As the stigma around facial hair lessens, brands are responding by creating new products that improve the appearance of facial hair:

• Dollar Beard Club offers beard grooming products at affordable prices, starting at a dollar. The brand offers subscriptions on a variety of beard grooming items including beard oils that keep facial hair moisturized, balms and waxes for styling, oils and vitamins to promote beard growth, and accessories such as beard combs, as well as non-beard related items including body wash and shampoo.
• Several premium-priced, niche brands are gaining traction by offering beard grooming products as well, including Smoky Mountain Beard Co., Beardbrand and Scotch Porter, with such brands offering oils that retail for up to $90.
• Well known personal care brands are also launching beard products, including Kiehl’s Nourishing Beard Grooming Oil. Additionally, Gillette offers an All Purpose Gillette Styler, a grooming tool that trims, shaves, and edges beards.

What It Means

New product launches that specifically address men’s growing facial hair needs may give the men’s personal care market a boost, helping combat struggling sales in the shaving products segment. We see that Dollar Beard Club is an example of a brand capitalizing on popular trends in  both male grooming and subscription services, which have shaken up sales in the shaving market over the past few years. Subscription services can simplify the purchasing process for men, while encouraging brand loyalty and repeat purchases. Launches in this arena have primarily been from niche brands; however, All Purpose Gillette Styler may inspire more mainstream brands to offer beard grooming products as the facial hair trend continues to develop across the US.

Margie Nanninga is a Beauty Analyst at Mintel and a member of the US Reports team. Her diverse background, which includes qualitative research and data analysis, allows her to spot patterns and trends in the market and create actionable recommendations across beauty, home and personal care topics.