The Multicultural Beauty Market
Beauty brands are realising that they can benefit from diversifying and segmenting their makeup offerings based on ethnic and cultural needs. The multicultural beauty market or ethnic beauty market, is fast becoming a way for brands with a better understanding of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) audiences to increase their competitive advantage.
People have different skin types and preferences; no one product fits all. Hence why the diversification into ethnic markets can be very lucrative for beauty brands if they get it right. Very often, ethnic customers don’t buy cosmetics from general supermarkets, but instead from specialist ethnic stores such as PAK International – a well-established chain of beauty stores throughout the UK.
We aim to recognise what top beauty brands are doing to become more culturally diverse in their products and marketing. We also consider the challenges faced by those without an in-depth understanding of the demand from ethnic communities in their skincare and makeup offerings.
Understanding Multicultural Beauty
Makeup, cosmetics and hair care products are fast-becoming available in a wide range of colours, tones and types in order to suit market needs and expectations. For far too long, those with darker skin have found it very difficult to find products such as foundation, concealer or powder to match their skin tone. Instead, the beauty market has been dominated by lighter colours which, of course, are aimed at those with white skin.
According to a report conducted by Euromonitor International, the flow of tourism, migration, urbanisation and increasing purchasing power of multicultural consumers in developed markets, have all been contributors to demographic shifts. This in turn has seen the demand for makeup products in far greater array of tones and colours, to be available all around the world as there is a great mix of cultures everywhere you go now.
[envira-gallery id=”22989″]Multicultural Beauty Products
We decided to do a bit of investigative work ourselves. We’ve taken a look at the range of colour options for multicultural beauty products, specifically foundations, on sale by some of the leading brands in the industry. We also considered the tools they have in place to allow consumers to virtually ‘try before you buy’ to find their perfect colour match – something which has been particularly popular in light of Covid-19 lockdowns, in which non-essential shops have remained closed. Here’s what we found:
| Makeup Brand | Number of Foundation Shades | Try On? |
| Bobbi Brown | 43 for Skin Long-Wear Weightless Foundation | Virtual Try On |
| Chanel | 35 for Les Beiges Foundation | Chanel Try On – The Virtual Makeover |
| Charlotte Tilbury | 44 for Airbrush Flawless Foundation | Charlotte’s Magic Mirror Makeup Online Try On |
| Dior | 41 for Dior Forever Foundation | Try It On camera |
| Estee Lauder | 61 for Double Wear Foundation | Virtual Try On tool |
| Lancome | 45 for Teint Idole Ultra Wear Foundation | Try It On camera |
| L’Oreal Paris | 40 for True Match Liquid Foundation | Tap & Try camera |
| MAC | 67 for Studio Fix Fluid Foundation | Virtual Try On Foundation Matchmaker |
| Maybelline | 42 for Fit Me Matte & Poreless Foundation | Foundation Finder camera tool |
| Rimmel London | 25 for Match Perfect Foundation | Try Me On camera |
Diversifying In The Right Direction
As you can denote from our findings, it seems that a lot of the big, global, established brands have recognised the need for greater choice in foundation tones and have worked to provide a real range of colours for their consumers.
The leading brands for variety, MAC and Estee Lauder, have created an incredible 67 and 61 shades respectively for their top foundations, proving just how many colour options are now available on the market. With this amount of choice, we’d like to think we should all be able to find our perfect match!
Targeting Multicultural Audiences
It’s clear that bigger brands are becoming increasingly aware of the consumer demand for a greater portfolio of colours in their beauty offerings. The vast number of foundation tones alone has come a long way since they began, so it seems like the only way forward in this industry now is to jump on bandwagon so as to not be left behind!
Targeting The Multicultural Beauty Market With GottaBe!
Our sister brand, GottaBe! Health, is the Proud distributor of Foods by Ann, Phlov and RL9 Coffee in the UK and Ireland. Phlov is a natural, vegan brand which is strictly not tested on animals – something very close to a lot of people’s hearts. Phlov cosmetics, founded by the incredibly talented Polish fitness trainer, nutritional specialist and founder of Healthy Plan by Ann, Anna Lewandowska, is just one of the offerings that GottaBe! Health distributes from Lewandowska’s range.
Take a look at the wide variety of Phlov products available here, and feel free to talk to us today about how the GottaBe! team can assist your beauty brand in gaining best possible traction in the multicultural beauty market. We look forward to hearing from you!