When the typical shopper enters the beauty aisle or arrives at counter, chances are she’ll reach for the brand she knows. According to new research from Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), more than 90% of surveyed shoppers cite brand familiarity as the most important influencer when purchasing beauty products— far surpassing the 73% consumer packaged goods (CPG) benchmark. While pricing was also reported as important for many decisions, it was a distant second. Brand preference, in addition to a continued focus on affordability, remains paramount and underscores the rapidly evolving and unique nature of shopper attitudes and behaviors shaping the $11.5 billion U.S. beauty market.

“The beauty industry is characterized by significantly different dynamics than other CPG market sectors, creating a major opportunity for beauty marketers and retailers that can quickly and effectively leverage the nuances,” said John Deputato, senior vice president, Client Solutions, IRI. “Even within the hair care, skin care and cosmetic segments of the industry, shoppers often exhibit behaviors unique to each of those categories. Shopper behavior diverges a great deal among these segments particularly in times of changing economic climates, such as today’s emergence from the recession, where some consumers are exhibiting a new confidence, while others are keeping their frugal practices in place.”

“The IRI Beauty Shopper Report empowers us to understand and adjust to the needs of our core shoppers, who we want to retain and leverage to drive growth across our L’Oreal beauty portfolio of brands,” said Mark Anton, vice president, Consumer and Market Intelligence, L’Oreal Consumer Products Division. “These insights have proven to be valuable and actionable, given our ongoing efforts to incorporate ‘shopper behavior’ into our key go-to-market strategies.”

The IRI research focuses on the beauty market overall and also includes an in-depth review of “heavy” beauty shoppers—also dubbed “power” shoppers—who represent just 11% of households, but account for 40% of dollar sales.

The Changing Face of Today’s Beauty Market

IRI’s report reveals that, as with many markets, the recession has caused significant shifts. Beauty dollar sales for the 12-month period ending September 2009 were flat versus 2008, as manufacturer price actions were not offset by increased unit sales. As dollar sales at department stores sagged more than 4% in 2009, value retailers, such as supercenters and mass outlets, attracted increased consumer interest.

Shoppers also continued to employ multiple trade-offs to save money, including moving to lower-priced brands and switching retail outlets, buying products in bulk or smaller sizes of their favorite products, attempting to make products last longer, as well as sharing products in the home or purchasing multi-use products.

Further, in-home versus in-store purchase decisions vary widely depending on the beauty product and can be influenced by price or feeling of “need to have” or “have to have.” While shoppers believe there is a quality difference among channels, with spas/salons, department stores and specialty stores ranked as having higher quality, shoppers are flocking to value outlets anyway.

The report also looks closely at several critical shopper beliefs and behaviors. For instance, nearly three-quarters of surveyed shoppers believe leading a healthy lifestyle makes a person more beautiful, while just half are satisfied with their current appearance. These beliefs create synergy opportunities between better-for-you food, over-the-counter products and beauty makers. Further, half of shoppers count proof of effectiveness in clinical trials as important in the products they use, creating the opportunity for enhanced efficacy-based marketing.

Power Beauty Shoppers Continue to Rule

Power beauty shoppers, defined by IRI as purchasing $185 or more in beauty products per year, remain a powerful force and are more likely than beauty shoppers overall to purchase products as part of a skin or hair treatment system, purchase products that are proven effective in clinical trials and to try new products. Among power beauty shoppers’ attitudes about lifestyle, these consumers are most likely to try to look their best every day. Further, they are more likely to shop for multi-function products, buy in bulk and buy smaller sizes of favorite beauty products, while less inclined to purchase private brands.

“Power beauty shoppers influence the beauty market far beyond their numbers,” added IRI Consulting & Innovation Partner Timothy Ressmeyer, Ph.D. “Understanding these shoppers can help manufacturers and retailers drive sales within these categories. Marketers and retailers alike who can deeply understand and connect with this highly sophisticated and valuable segment of the beauty market can win and win big, despite challenging economic times.”