2022 Key Beauty Trends and how Beauty Tech solves them
Beauty tech involves the use of digital solutions such as INCI explainers, digital shade finders, skin and hair care digital consults and one that is growing increasingly important; clean beauty solutions. These beauty tech solutions revolutionise the customer’s experience by allowing you to be there for them anytime, to go the extra mile, and increase transparency and diversity by being able to collect data about your customers.
As the beauty industry looks ahead to new goals in 2022 namely; the need for self-care. That means a renewed focus on niche and potentially unsung health issues including
hair loss
sensitive skin
"This year, wellbeing will be front and centre," says Lisa Payne, head of beauty at Stylus, a trends intelligence organisation. "The pandemic has forced people to see how vulnerable we all are, and it has made us want to take better care of ourselves." Here are some top skin trends consumers are interested in and your brand could use beauty tech as a solution to satisfy these trends.
The Skin Barrier
The concept of the skin barrier — how well the skin can resist external irritants like pollution or mask-wearing — is driving advancements in skincare. Increased skin sensitisation and rashes are symptoms of a compromised skin barrier. "The skin barrier will be vital as long as individuals have mask-related difficulties and live in urban areas," says Ransley Carpio, a beauty investor and managing partner at Patina. It's an outgrowth of the ongoing discussion about the skin microbiome, he says. Varga connects all of this to the epidemic. "It's fuelled an understandable concern with health, and customers are eager to find items that can help them achieve their goals." Microbiome, probiotics, and prebiotics searches and social discourse
Over the last 12 months, prebiotics has grown in popularity."
The performance of skin care products is expected. "People are moving away from wanting clean and natural at all costs and toward having skincare that is really efficacious and works," Carpio observes.
Consumers respond strongly to marketing that emphasises barrier protection and restoration, according to Stylus' Payne. "Consumers understand that they need to protect themselves to stay safe," she says, citing Dr Jart, a Korean-founded line owned by Estée Lauder, as an example of a brand with good skin barrier messaging. The Nue Co released Barrier Culture, a cleanser, and moisturizer with probiotics to help soothe and build the skin barrier, in 2021. Sarah Chapman, a London-based facialist, launched the Comfort Cream D Stress under her eponymous line in response to customer demands for greater support for their skin barriers, according to Vogue Business.
L'Oréal launched a multi-year agreement with climate tech company Breezometer in December of last year to investigate and track how environmental exposures affect the skin. The two companies have already collaborated on projects like My Skin Track UV, a wearable sensor and app that alerts users to UV exposure hazards and potential pollutants.
Hair Wellbeing & Hairloss
The frequently taboo topic of female hair loss is also in the sights of the beauty industry, which is partly linked to an increase in a condition known as telogen effluvium, which causes hair to lose after a stressful event or illness. Hair loss caused by covid and telogen effluvium are hot topics. "Topical solutions that assist stimulate the scalp and boost hair development will undoubtedly become more popular this year," adds Payne.
"A whole behavioural adjustment and what I would term a ritual of hair wellbeing," explains Patina's Carpio. He mentions companies like Briogeo and Ouai, which have produced scalp-care products. Augustinus Bader, a luxury skincare firm, introduced a five-piece hair collection with a scalp treatment in 2021. Hers, a telemedicine platform, unveiled two new prescription-only alternatives to combat excessive hair shedding in January. Spironolactone, as well as a topical finasteride and minoxidil spray, will be added to the company's current line of over-the-counter medications. Guerlain, a French cosmetics business, will release a scalp and hair serum in February. This is going to be a hectic year.
How can you keep up with these trends?
Beauty tech enables brands to gather data about their consumers in order to know which products are more requested. For both of the trends mentioned above Skin Match Technology has developed digital solutions to ensure transparency and individuality for the brand and consumer.
This data-driven solution recommends the best products for the customer. The accurate recommendations are based on their answers to a skin and haircare quiz, respectively, where the customer is able to select their skin/hair needs whether it be sensitivity, dry, oily or any other challenge they’re facing. The digital solution is also adaptable and personalized to each brand based on your values.
