Asia Pacific slow to take up on the global trend for nail lacquers

A new report from Kline Group on the state of the global nail care market highlights the fact that innovations such as hybrid lacquers combining both gels and regular nail polish are behind significant growth, particularly in Europe and the Americas.

However, it is interesting to note that Kline’s research finds that in the Asia Pacific, the trend for nail art, which appears to be fading in Europe and The Americas, is still very popular.

South Korea slow off the blocks​

Even more interesting is the fact that in the hyper-trendy South Korean cosmetic market, things have remained even less changed, with consumers still preferring to opt for more traditional nail care regimes.

Indeed, the rise of nail lacquers elsewhere in other parts of the world has led to a big increase in demand for more sophisticated and more effective nail polish removal systems, but in South Korea, Kline researchers note that the preferred mode of removal remains to be the most popular.

That the South Korean nail care market remains so underdeveloped is also underlined by the fact that Bandi is the only local player to be offering long-wear nail varnish options.

These trends are amongst the stand outs in a new market research report from Kline Group, titled Professional Nail Care: Market Brief​ , which underlines that the market is continuing to grow at an annual rate of 6%.

Long-wear products growth in triple figures​

Indeed, stressing how much of an impact the emerging hybrid category is having worldwide, Kline Group’s data shows that growth of these long-wear products is currently being recorded in triple digit figures.

“While this innovation is the key market driver, it is also leading to cannibalization of sales between product types, which causes several brands to suffer declines in sales for their nail polish product lines as loyal consumers shift to use long-wear nail polishes,” ​said Agnieszka Saintemarie, the report's project manager.

“These products particularly target nail polish users, while gel users only use it for a shorter period of time, wanting to take a break from gels.”​

Effective yet safe nail removal​

While the growth in hybrids continues, this is also feeding the need for effective yet safe nail polish remover products.Kline’s report points to the fact that there is a growing awareness of the use of acetone, or fillers, which can actually damage nails.

Nail care providers have jumped at this opportunity, extending their portfolios beyond lacquers and varnishes, and into a variety of removal options that now include everything from peel-off base coats to steamers.

Innovation in nail varnish removal hits peak​

Kline says its data shows that 2015 was in fact the most important year to date for new innovation and launches in the nail care removal category.

The steamer removal systems rely on warming up acetone-based removal solutions to help make the removal of gels and acrylics easier, and have included launches such as Steam Off from The Painted Nail and Gel II’s Steam Gel-Polish Removal System.