The textured-hair category is inarguably the hottest in the haircare space today. This has been driven by the proliferation of founder brands started by curly and coily consumers and consumers who increasingly want products specifically for their texture type. According to the 2018 TextureTrends Report, more than 80 percent of women with curly and coily hair say they purchase products specifically for textured hair versus general market products.
This trend is underscored by the latest insights from NaturallyCurly’s 2018 TextureTrends report, released this week.
Developed by Naturally Curly in 2011, the annual TextureTrends consumer insights report incorporates surveys from roughly 2,000 textured-haired consumers segmented by wavy, curly and coily hair, as well as those with naturally straight and chemically relaxed hair. In addition to product evaluation, the report includes five years of trending data and explores many areas of purchasing behavior and product usage – including awareness, spending, retail preferences and brand loyalty, as well as a psychographic examination of how women feel about their hair. Rather than looking at sales once they’re in a store, TextureTrends explores the consumer’s attitudes before she ever walks into a store to purchase a product.
Key Insights:
- Textured-hair consumers are big spenders. Curly consumers spend more each year on hair products than any other texture type – an average of $247 vs. an average of $139 for naturally straight-hair consumers. Retailers would be well served to consider the power of the textured-hair consumer as they consider their planograms.
- The most important attribute for consumers when they are choosing where to shop for their haircare products is product selection for their texture. But the shelf space for curly textured hair SKUs still accounts for only roughly 20 percent or less of total haircare shelf space at most retailers. This percentage has stayed largely the same at many retailers, despite the huge number of new textured-hair brands.
- There is increasing competition to get coily and curly hair skus into the Texture planograms at retailers, whether from popular niche brands like Mielle, CURLS and The Mane Choice – founder-developed brands specifically for textured-hair women – or from general market brands like Head & Shoulders, Tresemme and Pantene. One large drug retailer recently evaluated 275 new skus this year to add to the 4 feet of shelf space devoted to the category. In contrast, an average of 16 feet of space is dedicated to general market SKUs.
Among other key findings from the second release of the NaturallyCurly TextureTrends’ 2018 findings:
- Certain brands attract a range of textures: SheaMoisture and Cantu are the brands used most often by curly and coily consumers. Those with wavy, straight and relaxed hair trended toward Pantene, Suave and Garnier.
- Ingredients Matter: Women with textured hair are more likely to seek or avoid specific ingredients in their haircare products. Argan oil and shea butter are the most sought-after ingredients, while sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate and isopropyl alcohol are the two ingredients consumers avoid in their products.
- Coilies are the Least Likely to Straighten: Sixty-six percent of women with coily hair say they straighten their hair rarely, if ever.
- Textured-Hair Consumer = Product Junkies: More than half of textured-hair consumers buy hair products at least once a month. More than one-third of curly and coily consumers purchase hair products at least twice a month.
- Conditioners are king: Of all product types, textured-hair consumers spend the most each year on conditioners – an average of $58, with leave-in conditioners topping the list for those with curly and coily hair. Leave-in conditioners are used by more than 80 percent of women with these curl types. That compares to 36 percent of straight-haired consumers who use leave-in conditioners.