It began with the emergence of organic produce and has spread into the use of organic ingredients in all types of foods. Supermarket shelves are spotted with items - from ketchup to baby food to coffee - with organic claims.
The movement is now sweeping through other consumer products categories. Even apparel - from sleepwear to hosiery to denim - has begun to incorporate more natural and organic fibers.
Beauty products, most notably skin care, are becoming one of the most aggressive after food when it comes to incorporating organic and natural ingredients.
In the past year, Wal-Mart has created organic beauty sections in at least 350 stores and that number is expected to grow, according to manufacturer sources. Not to be left behind, Target is currently rolling out Erbaorganics, a USDA-certified organic skin care line for mothers and babies.
A report from the Natural Marketing Institute of Harleysville, Pa. says that the natural personal care market in the U.S. grew 15 percent in 2005, compared to 3.5 percent growth for the overall U.S. cosmetics and toiletries market. NMI also said that 50 percent of consumers polled "indicate they want personal care products made with natural or premium ingredients and 44 percent said they are looking for organic ingredients."
Buoyed by such statistics, beauty manufacturers have been hastily creating new natural/organic collections.
This year, Commonwealth Soap & Toiletries of Fall River, Mass. is re-launching Simply Be Well as an organic skin care line after it was reformulated to contain more organic extracts and botanicals. Dallas-based Delicious Brands is introducing Habitat Naturals, a collection that features both natural and certified organic ingredients. For instance, the products use a coconut-based surfactant rather than the standard sodium laurel sulfate. It will debut at Rite Aid in March. And then there is Pureganic, a Swiss organic line that is being made available to U.S. retailers for the first time. It is certified by Swiss farming organizations and Bio-Inspecta, a third party certifier in Europe. The products use seven organic herbs and no animal-derived ingredients.
These are just a few examples of the numerous new brands trying to break into the market. For years, the natural food and health stores channel had a near monopoly on sales of natural/organic beauty items. But now the trend is going mainstream.
HBA Global Expo, the annual ingredients, technology and packaging show for the beauty industry, has reorganized this year's event into three segments. They are: Marketing, Technical and Naturals. The Naturals piece will focus on the merging of nature and beauty and include exhibits of the latest botanicals, organic and healthy ingredients and natural products.
With natural beauty still dominated by small, independent players, the question begs, what role will the corporate giants ultimately play?
For now, L'Oreal has gotten a step ahead by bringing its European Garnier skin care brand to the U.S. this year. It is a line noted for its use of natural ingredients. And last year it acquired The Body Shop and the French company Sanoflore, a maker of natural cosmetics.
It is unlikely, however, that Olay and Dove will quietly stand on the sidelines.
Discussion Questions: How will the trend toward organics and natural ingredients impact product development and marketing at the major manufacturer level? What does the increase in organic/natural items in beauty care mean for retailers, specifically those that do not already have a sizeable presence in this niche?