Cosmetic brand État Pur, whose products are sold only on the Internet, joined forces with market research firm Come & Stay, a specialist of digital communication, to build a barometer on the behaviour of those ho chose to buy their cosmetics online.
First of all, this initial barometer confirms the strong interest of French women in cosmetic products. Indeed, 66% of them say they love to test new cosmetics and own dozens of products already. A majority of French women also claims to spend between 30 and 60 euros per month for purchasing cosmetics, and 47% of French women purchase between 30 and 60 euros, all retail channels combined.
Buying cosmetics on the Internet is becoming usual
More over, the results confirm the increasing confidence of consumers towards online sales and the steady increase of the e-commerce, which gradually becomes as legitimate as physical distribution networks. In an area where personal advices as well as the need to test products before purchasing it were considered as major impediments to the development of online sales, the results of the study show, on the contrary, that this distribution channel is becoming as usual as the others.
Actually, 30% of consumers say they have made regular online purchases over the last 6 months and two thirds of the respondents have bought online over the 6 months (to compare to 82% for brick and mortar perfumeries and 88% for brick and mortar pharmacies and drug stores).
Regarding product categories, 61% of respondents have bought a face care product (moisturizer, serum, ...) online over the last 6 months and more than 47% have bought a body care product (cream, oil, specific treatment, ...). Over 40% of buyers say that they even get on the internet to buy a brand they did not know.
Brands’ e-shops are the most appealing
These online shopping cosmetics are overwhelmingly made from home (about 96%), and most frequently during the evening (42%). Furthermore, French women prefer massively (71%) turn to the online shops of renown brands (Clarins, Yves Rocher,...) rather than on the merchant site of a specialized distributor (39%).
Also note the good score of private sales sites (BrandAlley, Beauty Private ...) that almost score as high as with the online beauty stores (35% compared to 39%). As far as online drugstores are concerned, they appeal for 24% of the buyers.
The main motivations of online shoppers include the opportunity to make "good deals" (69%) and to save time (64%). When purchasing cosmetics online, the most important criteria are: prices (66%) and product information (57%).
The survey was conducted online between May 9 and June 21, 2012 with 1,230 women. The sample was adjusted according to the quota method, based on French demographics for the following variables: age and distribution by region.
