Fragrance overperformed throughout the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in the United States. That trend has continued.
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Fragrance overperformed throughout the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in the United States. That trend has continued.
Prestige fragrance sales in 2021 were up 49% year-over-year, totaling $6.3 billion, per NPD dataa. On the mass side, sales were up 45%, per NielsenIQ.
Notably, the prestige sector’s growth was up in the double digits compared to 2019. In addition, fragrance comprised nearly 45% of 2021 holiday beauty sales. But most impressive was the fact that, for the first time ever, fragrance sales matched the heights achieved by the skin care segment. And, in department stores, fragrance was actually bigger than skin care.
Sales of perfumes, colognes and other fragrance “juices” rose by 61%, year over year, while sales of candles, reed diffusers and other home scents grew by more than 20%.
The final quarter of 2021 accounted for 45% of fragrance category sales revenue, per NPD, growing by 35% during the holiday selling season.
What drove all this growth? About 12 million buyers coming into the category, per NPDb, with spend per buyer rising 26%. As NPD data shows, 80% of surveyed fragrance consumers are willing to pay more for a scent they really like. Other drivers include self-gifting; 47% of consumers purchased a fragrance as a treat for themselves.
More recently, prestige U.S. fragrance sales totaled $1.1 billion in Q1 2022, an 18% year-over-year increase, per NPD. Fragrance juice sales alone, including perfumes and colognes, grew 23%.
A market report from ResearchAndMarkets projectsc the global perfume market to reach $47.6 billion by 2027, growing at a 6.1% CAGR during the forecast period. The report valued the market at $33.5 billion in 2021.
Footnotes:
awww.gcimagazine.com/consumers-markets/news/22018003/the-npd-group-2021-us-prestige-beauty-growth-drivers-ranked; www.npd.com
bwww.gcimagazine.com/consumers-markets/article/22056103/beauty-20212024-decoded
cwww.researchandmarkets.com/reports/5578025/perfume-market-global-industry-trends-share
For the full article, please check out the Perfumer & Flavorist+ August 2022 issue.
