Demand for beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories has proven resilient in recent years, with consumer interest in both electrical and non-electrical items piqued by innovation. In total, 93% of adults have used beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories in the last year – showcasing the category’s near universal reach.

COVID-19 has presented the category with both challenges and opportunities. There was an initial boost in demand, felt across the board, as consumers replaced professional treatments with at-home alternatives. However, a recession will see consumers adopt more savvy shopping habits, which drive trading down behaviours in less discretionary segments, alongside subdued demand for non-essential devices, tools and accessories.

The biggest threat facing the category is pricing, with this set to become particularly challenging in the electrical devices and appliances category. Whilst innovation and new technologies have encouraged higher value sales in recent years, the high price point of certain devices continues to deter and exclude many consumers from the category. This will only become more pronounced as a recession takes hold, driving demand for NPD at a more affordable price point across most segments.

Going forward, the primary opportunities to add value to the beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories category align with key shifts in consumer behaviour, with the rising interest in sustainability and wellbeing both key opportunities to boost both usage and value sales.

• The impact of COVID-19 on beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories.

• Usage and purchase of beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories during the last year.

• Channels used to purchase beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories.

• Factors that can drive usage of beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories.

This update on the impact that COVID-19 is having on the market was prepared on 7 October 2020.

The first COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the UK at the end of January, with a small number of cases in February. The government focused on the ‘contain’ stage of its strategy, with the country continuing to operate much as normal. As the case level rose, the government ordered the closure of non-essential stores on 20 March.

A wider lockdown requiring people to stay at home except for essential shopping, exercise and work ‘if absolutely necessary’ followed on 23 March. The Health Protections Regulations 2020 came into effect on 15 June allowing the reopening of all non-essential stores in England and the mandatory use of face coverings on public transport. Pubs, restaurants, hotels and hairdressers reopened on 4 July and beauty salons reopened on 13 July. The use of face coverings in shops and supermarkets became mandatory on 24 July.

On 21 September, the alert level was moved from 3 to 4, which means transmission is high or rising exponentially. New restrictions took effect from 24 September, including a 10pm curfew on pubs, restaurants and bars in England. On 23 September, the government announced that all shop staff must wear face coverings and people were advised to work from home if possible. On 30 September, lockdown measures were tightened across the North East of England.

Mintel’s economic assumptions are based on the Office for Budget Responsibility’s central scenario included in its July 2020 Fiscal Sustainability Report. The scenario suggests that UK GDP could fall by 12.4% in 2020, recovering by 8.7% in 2021, and that unemployment will reach 11.9% by the end of 2020, falling to 8.8% by the end of 2021.

The current uncertainty means that there is wide variation on the range of forecasts, however, and this is reflected in the OBR’s own scenarios. In its upside scenario, economic activity returns to pre-COVID-19 levels by Q1 2021. Its more negative scenario, by contrast, would mean that GDP doesn’t recover until Q3 2024.

This Report examines the UK beauty/grooming devices, tools and accessories market. Products included in the scope of this Report are as follows:

• Hairbrushes and combs

• Hair rollers

• Hair cutting scissors

• Facial hair removers (eg tweezers, dermaplaning tools)

• Nail tools (eg files, scissors)

• Foot files and pumice stones

• Facial rollers and stones

• Facial washcloths

• Cotton buds/pads

• Bath accessories (eg sponges, body brushes)

• Face makeup brushes, sets and sponges

• Eyelash curlers.

• Facial cleansing/exfoliating/microdermabrasion devices

• LED light devices with skincare benefits

• Acne treatment devices (eg with laser or heating properties)

• Massagers/infusion systems

• IPL/laser hair removal devices

• Epilators

• Gel nail lamps

• Makeup devices (eg rotating brushes, airbrush applicators)

• Hairdryers

• Curling irons

• Straightening/flat irons

• Hot rollers.