Bite-size Beauty

Future opportunity for beauty brands may lie in providing small experiences that combine convenience, function and indulgence.

By Jonathan Ford, Pearlfisher

While beauty has always followed fashion’s lead when it comes to the next big thing, food, rather than fashion, may be shaping today’s beauty market. Food ingredients are more prominent than ever, the naturals and organic sector is going strong and there are daily advances in ingestibles with everything from pills to beauty drinks moving the category into the future and creating interesting cross-category offers. But, just as food is becoming more focused on convenience and presenting us with more diverse and sophisticated snacking offers, so, too, are we looking to beauty to offer us the ultimate in convenience and beautiful, but bite-size, beauty options.

The trend for giving us the most portable solutions, in the form of mini versions, travel sizes or even solid perfumes, has been around for a while now and probably did kick-start the desire for convenience. However, the new move toward convenience has probably been most notable in the number of girly gadgets hitting our shelves.

Beauty tools have never received the publicity that new makeup brands and collections get—until now, that is. This is particularly true of hair removal. This sector has come an inordinately long way from the days of the Ladyshave with the advent of the new SensEpil and the No!No!.

No!No! uses color to encourage consumers to say “yes! yes!”

Yes, these products may seem quite pricey (SensEpil at $499), but presumably you have to weigh the one-off cost against not only the number of uses you will get—and how quickly you will be back in pocket against the number of salon visits you might usually have in a year—but also the fact that you can pretty much use it when and wherever you want. You are in charge of the appointment book. But, the reason many of the new gadgets, and these two brands in particular, are getting the publicity comes down to the way they look.

Both SensEpil and No!No! are sleek and professional looking, with No!No! available in a range of colors to suit—rather like an iPod—and the name is young, fun, unusual and, above all, not technical. Technical gadgets are good—but technical, glamorous gadgets are even better.

We want products that function well, but this is still beauty and we expect beauty to be about indulgence and a sense of pampering. And so to truly reel us in, convenient beauty offers now need to combine function and indulgence. These new gadgets provide this in a similar way to, say, the walk-in, 10-minute manicure. But a whole new evolution is coming to the fore as brands find new ways to combine function and indulgence through their packaging, and this is where the future opportunity could lie for beauty brands across the board.

DIY Beauty

Olay recently launched its Regenerist Derma-pods—a DIY anti-aging treatment for eyes that provides resurfacing, wrinkle filling, etc., in one handy pod. The functional design of the pod cannot be faulted and I would say that it is also being perceived as an indulgent beauty solution as we are actually getting the perfect quantity of product in a perfect moment of time, which is just what today’s new, convenient and sophisticated beauty “snacks” are all about. However, although the design ties in with the branding of the overall Regenerist range, the graphic execution could perhaps better match the compact and resourceful product delivery by being a bit more bold and compelling.

Olay packs its eye treatment into individual pods.

Another new innovation is Dermadoctor’s Med e Tate: a packet of towelette wipes containing the highest potency antiperspirant for those who suffer from excessive sweating. The packs are the same practical format as self-tanning or cologne wipes—and could easily be mistaken for one of these other types of products; the name and packaging giving nothing away, just focusing on pretty, feminine colors and illustration.

Both the Regenerist Derma-pods and Med e Tate do beg the question: Will copy once again come to the fore, with a chatty tone being replaced by an instructive one, as we, rather than a beauty professional, take control? And, just as important: Are we losing the time, ritual and pampering, which beauty routines have traditionally provided?

From Nail Bars to Beauty Bistros

We want pampering and speed but, ideally, not one at the expense of the other. Walk-in spas and beauty bars have obviously paved the way, but we might now see new beauty snack bars or beauty bistros that would bring the “tasting menu” of the salon into the retail environment with the chance to maybe mix and match ingredients and treatments under the guidance of a beauty chef. This would allow the consumer the chance to get creative with the product and the delivery element would present a ready-made opportunity for brands to mirror the creativity of the product through the packaging design—both in-store and as a take-away.

Dermadoctor’s Med e Tate lets you swipe on antiperspirant with a towelette wipe.

Although beauty bistros may still be something for the future, beauty snacking is set to become more commonplace as part of the drive for more convenience. But, that doesn’t mean that the offer is cheapened. Snacking (in food and, ergo, in beauty) is no longer seen as just functional, and while functional, structural solutions are still important, the future of snacking equals seduction and this is where all the elements of packaging design—including clever structure—have the scope to tell, or at least tease out, the story of the beauty snack experience.

That’s Pretty Personal

Ralph Lauren’s new fragrance couldn’t be more obvious in its attempt to be convenient. Trying to tap into this new consciousness, the fragrance is housed in a new slimline, aerosol type canister—a real breakaway for the luxury perfumer—and the name Ralph Lauren Ralph To Go reflects the desired usage but, at the end of the day, it’s just another portable perfume solution.

Benefit, however, also uses the name as the descriptor of the product with its new One Hot Minute, “a sexy in seconds face powder.” But, the name is totally reflected in and supported by the design with the name placed in the center of a clock face that forms the lid of the powder pot. Yes, it’s a fairly obvious design route but it’s also simple, sassy and stylish.

Other directive and forward-thinking brands are trying to better tap into our need for multitasking or for answering different needs at different times in a compact and convenient format such as Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Deflect & Mini DiorShow Duo, an ultra shiny, mini lipgloss paired with a travel-size DiorShow mascara to “steal the show wherever you go.”

Benefit gets its convenience message across instantly.

Similarly, Stila’s new Made In Your Shade Foundation Wardrobe contains six top-selling complexion products that work collectively to create fresh, modern skin and provide different levels of coverage and finish—a mix-and-match personal selection in mini format to try out at home. The packaging is simple but pertinent, with a clear front to show all the products as individuals, but also grouped together as a collection. In addition, it opens like a mini wardrobe for the consumer to dip in and out of, creating a sense of revelation and experimentation each and every time.

The opportunity for beauty brands lies in combining convenience with an intensely personal connection, moving from the purely functional to the intensely indulgent and seductive, and this is where packaging design can help dial up the experience and its delivery time and time again.

About the Author
Jonathan Ford is creative partner of Pearlfisher, a future-focused design consultancy in New York and London. [email protected]