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GRADUATE SCHOOL OF HEALTH SCIENCE

MARIA CRISTINA PINOS

WHAT ARE THE MARKETING RESTRICTIONS IN THE GLOBAL

COSMETIC INDUSTRY?

FINAL PROJECT

COS641 COSMETIC PRODUCT DESIGN TO MARKETING

YEDITEPE UNIVERSITY

Istanbul, 2022
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Table of Contents

1. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 4

2. Theorical Framework ................................................................................................... 6

2.1 Gender stereotypes ................................................................................................. 6

2.1.1 Definition of gender......................................................................................... 6

2.1.2 Definition of stereotypes ................................................................................. 7

2.1.3 Definition of machismo ................................................................................... 7

3. Marketing and gender stereotypes ................................................................................ 7

3.1 Machismo as a barrier of male’s cosmetic marketing ........................................ 8

4. Discussion ................................................................................................................... 11

5. Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 12

5. References .................................................................................................................. 13
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Table of Figures

Figure 1. Cosmetics Market Size Projection, 2020 to 2030 (USD Billion) ..................... 5

Figure 2. Nivea advertising for skin care products ........................................................... 8

Figure 3. Neutrogena’s a) male skincare products advertisement in Instagram and b)

social media ...................................................................................................................... 9

Figure 4. Men’s responses to survey about wearing makeup ........................................ 10

Figure 5. Neutrogena’s face wash for men campaign .................................................... 11

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1. Introduction

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), of the United States, “defines a

cosmetic as a product intended to be applied to the human body for cleansing, beautifying,

promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance” (2021). On the other hand, the

European Union consider cosmetics as:

“…any substance or mixture intended to be placed in contact with the external

parts of the human body (epidermis, hair system, nails, lips and external genital

organs) or with the teeth and the mucous membranes of the oral cavity with a view

exclusively or mainly to cleaning them, perfuming them, changing their

appearance, protecting them, keeping them in good condition or correcting body

odours” (2009).

Therefore, a cosmetic product can be defined as any product that will have contact

with any external part of the body, or with the oral cavity, to clean, beautify, or

camouflage any imperfection. For instance, products such as eyeliner, mascara, perfume,

deodorant, toothpaste, mouthwash, lipstick, serums, or cleansing gels among others, are

considered cosmetic products. It is important to keep in mind that cosmetics are different

from drugs as they do not treat illnesses and do not need medical approval.

By 2020 the global cosmetic market size increased its value to US$ 341.1 billion

and it is expected that by 2030 it will increase its value to US$ 560.5 billion (Precedence

Research, 2021). “The market size is made up of the total number of potential buyers of

a product or service within a given market, and the total revenue that these sales may

generate” (Mind Tools Content Team, n.d.). Figure 1 shows the growth expected of

cosmetics market size since 2020 according to Precedence Research (2021).

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Figure 1. Cosmetics Market Size Projection, 2020 to 2030 (USD Billion)

The growth of cosmetic market has occurred due to the burgeoning consumer

concern for personal care and well-being. This concern is a consequence of the effects of

pollution, global warming, and aging on skin care and how the wellness of this organ

plays an important role in the daily routine of body care (Onudi, 2015).

But the question is, how did the cosmetic market growth so much? Leaving the

necessity of consumers to keep their skin healthy and young aside, the cosmetic marketing

has helped in the development of this market. Companies like L’Oreal, Revelon, and …,

among others, have used marketing campaigns (networking, viral marketing, relationship

marketing, direct mail, and/or online web), to make customers attracted to buy their

offered product. This also is achieved by “creating a favorable image of the company and

product and ensuring the experiences customers get from the company to support that

image” (Cosmetic Index, n.d.).

Despite the growth of the cosmetic industry, there are some marketing restrictions

that are important to mention. However, this study will analyze the marketing restrictions
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related to the gender stereotypes that the global cosmetic industry has to face nowadays.

It will also propose solutions for this restriction.

2. Theorical Framework

2.1 Gender stereotypes

2.1.1 Definition of gender

Nowadays, there are different movements, being the feminism and the LGBTQ

movement the most remarkable ones, that want to achieve the equality of the genders.

This equality movements keep to redefine what the word gender means. Because of all

these new meanings, most people do not know the definition of gender and it has become

complicated to understand the difference between gender and sex, and when one must be

used instead of the other (Pryzgoda & Chrisler, 2000).

According to the World Health Organization (WHO):

“Gender refers to the characteristics of women, men, girls and boys that are

socially constructed. This includes norms, behaviors and roles associated with

being a woman, man, girl or boy, as well as relationships with each other. As a

social construct, gender varies from society to society and can change over time”

(n.d.).

Meanwhile, sex is assigned when we born due to different factors such as the

combination of chromosomes and the sexual organs that the person has at the birth (Díez,

2020). Ergo, the word sex can be defined as physiological factors such as genitalia,

hormones, and chromosomes that differentiate men from women (Ngun, Ghahramani,

Sánchez, Bocklandt, & Vilain, 2021).

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2.1.2 Definition of stereotypes

According to the United Nations Human Rights, a stereotype “is a generalized

view or preconception about attributes or characteristics, or the roles that are or ought to

be possessed by, or performed by, women and men” (n.d.). Consequently, a gender

stereotype is the belief that a person must fulfil the expectations and behaviors settled by

society according to the sex at birth. The most common example of gender stereotype is

the fact that pink is mostly related as a female color, while blue is only for men. Another

example is the idea that men must be toughs and they do not cry (Secretaría de las

Mujeres, n.d.).

2.1.3 Definition of machismo

The word machismo comes from the Spanish word macho, which means men

(Machismo, n.d.). For instance, the word machismo can be defined as a form of sexism

characterized by the prevalence of the male (Comisión Nacional para Prevenir y Erradicar

la Violencia Contra las Mujeres, 2016). In this behavior, men tend to discriminate women

with actions, believes, and behaviors. Another kind of machismo is inhibiting male’s

emotions and feelings. It is relevant to understand that not only men can be machistas,

but women also can have this behavior, and men can also be victims of this form of

sexism.

3. Marketing and gender stereotypes

Gender stereotypes are common in daily life. They are present in products and

services that companies advertise (Crittenden, n.d.), but people are used to them that we

can barely noticed these gender stereotypes.

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Figure 2. Nivea advertising for skin care products

By analyzing Figure 2 it is possible to see a young woman with a perfect skin

thanks to the Nivea products, but why is it a woman and not a man or a trans-person?

3.1 Machismo as a barrier of male’s cosmetic marketing

In the present days, cosmetic brands have lunch skin care products for men.

Brands like Dove, Clear, and Head&Shoulders have a complete line for men’s hair care;

meanwhile Nivea and Neutrogena have developed a marketing strategy for their skincare

products to reach the masculine population.

Male skin care routine is important because unlike female skin, male skin is

somewhat more resistant, it is 25% thicker. Additionally, it can suffer more damage from

repeated shaving, which irritates, dehydrates, and modifies the epicutaneous barrier,

making it unable to fulfill its protective function against external factors (Sacoto, 2019).
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Figure 3. Neutrogena’s a) male skincare products advertisement in Instagram and b)

social media

Even though, some brands are changing their marketing strategies to be more

inclusive, there is a huge breach when it comes to their advertisements. In Figure 3Error!

Reference source not found. it is possible to observe that Neutrogena’s brand use more

female than masculine models to advertise its skincare products.

But when it comes to cosmetics products, there is also make-up. It is normal to

see women wearing mascara, eye shadow, foundation, and lipstick. The weird thing is not

seeing with their usual make-up. It is vital to understand that wearing make-up does not

means getting a glam or an eye-catching look, as the person can opt for a natural look.

On the other hand, people find it weird when men decided to wear it. In a study in the

USA, where 4400 men were surveyed, “thirty-three percent of men ages 18-29 said they

would consider wearing make-up, while another thirty percent of men ages 30-44 reported

said they'd be open to the idea as well” (Huba, 2020).

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Having a 30-33% of men that consider the use of make-up is a huge change in

comparison to past years. In 2004, the fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier decided to

lunch a line of male’s make-up, unfortunately the line failed because of the men

perception of make-up during that time (Garrido, 2020).

In another study which asked men if they would wear make-up, “twenty-three

percent of men said they’d be more likely to try make-up if brands had dedicated products

just for men, and 18 percent said they’d be likely to try it if stores had dedicated

employees to explain and test men’s makeup” (Piacenza, 2019)

Figure 4. Men’s responses to survey about wearing makeup

The same study shared the position of men about some statements. In Figure 4 it

is possible to observe that the 46% of all men strongly agree that make-up is a woman’s

thing. In the next section, 32% of me strongly agree with the fact that it is not socially

acceptable for men to wear make-up. These acceptances of make-up being a woman’s

thing or not being sociable acceptable for man could be due to machismo. As it was
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mentioned before, in machismo men must be tough, emotionless, and they should always

show their manhood, which means they cannot do the same things women do.

4. Discussion

It is important that companies “recognize that they cannot appeal to all buyers in

the marketplace—or at least not to all buyers in the same way” (Armstrong & Kotler,

2017), they should understand that machismo is present in most of the cultures, not only

in Latin America.

There are different ways to affect the consumer behavior being the attitude of

consumers one of them. One of the strategies that had a positive reaction in consumer’s

behavior is the attitude consumers have towards marketing strategies. Consumers have a

positive attitude towards advertisements in which “ads producers create dialectics that

encourage men to become consumers of feminine-style products, but let them retain the

quality of traditional masculinity” (Sarwono & Fayardi, 2018). For example, in 2014 the

brand Neutrogena lunched and advertisement for men’s face wash which will battle

“junkface”. This publicity battles the idea that men do not need to take care of their skin,

for instance they do not need any cosmetic.

Figure 5. Neutrogena’s face wash for men campaign

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On the other hand, as shown in Figure 4, 9% of all men strongly disagree with the

idea that make-up is only for women, while the 13% somewhat disagree and the 9% do

not have an opinion; this sums a 31% of possible consumers that marketers can reach.

According to the Allied Market Research “the male personal care market has grown

exponentially over the past decade, and is expected to hit $166bn by 2022” (Arwa, 2020).

Marketers can use different resources to reach men like publicity, a more masculine

package for the products, a section just for men’s cosmetics with someone that explains

them how to use the proper amount of make-up or how a cleanser works. This last one

will have a positive effect, as most of men do not know how to start with cosmetics or

what they need (Piacenza, 2019). For example, the British brand ASOS posted a video

on Facebook, called "How to do natural make-up for men", in which a young man applies

make-up.

5. Conclusion

As detailed in this study, men do not buy enough cosmetic products due to the

idea that it is exclusive to women. Even though, cosmetic’s market for men could grow

much more, marketers must work more to reach these possible consumers. The usage of

publicity and more masculine package are some of the solutions. On the other hand, a

men’s section with an expert on it, will help the customers to explore among different

cosmetic products, and it will also help men to learn on how to use them and what do they

need. As younger men are most interested in cosmetic products, marketers should select

them instead of offer cosmetics to men above 40 years old years.

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5. References

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Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Stereotype. Retrieved January 05, 2022, from Cambridge

Dictionary: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/stereotype

Comisión Nacional para Prevenir y Erradicar la Violencia Contra las Mujeres. (2016,

April 4). ¿Sabes qué es el #Machismo? Retrieved January 6, 2022, from Gobierno

de México: https://www.gob.mx/conavim/articulos/sabes-que-es-el-

machismo?idiom=es

Cosmetic Index. (n.d.). What is Cosmetic Marketing. Retrieved February 4, 2022, from

Cosmetic Indes: https://www.cosmeticindex.com/_what-is-cosmetic-marketing

Crittenden, V. (n.d.). Exploring the issues of gender and stereotyping in marketing.

Retrieved January 5, 2022, from Emerald Publishing:

https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/archived/bizfocus/crittenden_blog.ht

Díez, B. (2020, August 31). Cuál es la diferencia entre sexo y género (¿y son términos

que están quedando obsoletos?). Retrieved January 05, 2022, from BBC News:

https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-53155899

European Parliament and Council of the European Union. (2009). Regulation (EC) No

1223/2009 of the European Parliment and Council of 30 November 2009 on

cosmetic products. Official Journal of the European Union, 342-493.

Garrido, R. (2020, January 24). Cosmética para hombres: la última gran barrera.

Retrieved January 6, 2022, from 20 minutos:

https://www.20minutos.es/noticia/4127150/0/cosmetica-para-hombres-la-

ultima-gran-barrera/?autoref=true
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Huba, J. (2020, October 22). Why Cosmetic Companies Targeting Male Consumers Are

Marketing On The Down-Low. Retrieved January 6, 2022, from Forbes:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackiehuba/2020/10/22/why-cosmetic-companies-

targeting-male-consumers-are-marketing-on-the-down-low/?sh=48940d5e9b46

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release/2021/10/05/2308851/0/en/Cosmetics-Market-Size-to-Worth-Around-

US-480-4-Bn-by-2030.html
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