According to Personal Care Poised to Benefit from its Unique Relationship with Shoppers, a new report from shopper intelligence firm IRI, overall value sales growth across Europe for the category fell by 0.2% by Q4 2013 to just below €28bn, while volume sales were flat.

The report – which looked at the personal care market across six Western European countries and the US – hair, skin and other personal care products are sacrificed in favour of more ‘essential’ products like food in tough economic times. Shoppers want to waste less, purchaser products that last longer and only buy what they need, it says.

According to the report, further innovation is needed in the sector to drive growth in value and volume sales: more specifically urging manufacturers to respond to emerging trends such as the demand for ‘salon-quality’ products in the home, and convenience products that combine a number of benefits.

“With consumers now seeing personal care products as non-essential items, it means that companies need to be more creative in finding new ways to seduce the shopper and respond to their demands,” said Emily Mayer, business unit director at IRI.

“The personal care category is unique in the FMCG world because products evoke strong emotional responses and retain loyal customers year after year […]. While promotions are still important and especially so for a successful new product launch, companies need to find a balance in their investment, as too much money spent on trade promotions means less money for research and development and real innovation across the market.”