US. According to leading research company The NPD Group, 87% of men who wear fragrances believe some form of reorganisation at the fragrance counter would significantly help them when choosing and purchasing a fragrance.
Results taken from the NPD Beauty FragranceTrack 2003 men’s study also indicated more than half (53%) of all men wear a fragrance at least once a week and almost three-quarters (74%) of these purchase fragrances for themselves.
“With so many men visiting the fragrance counter, retailers and manufacturers would greatly benefit from efforts to make men’s fragrance shopping experiences easier and more enjoyable,” said Natalie Granik Seidman, director, NPD Beauty, a division of The NPD Group.
“Men want to see fragrances grouped together and sorted primarily by brand or by fragrance families. Men want to breeze through the fragrance selections.”
According to NPD, nearly 9 out of 10 men (87%) feel some form of reorganisation is needed to help make their fragrance shopping experience easier. Nearly half (46%) of men feel fragrance shopping would be easier if each brand’s fragrances were grouped together, while 38% believe fragrances should be sorted by scent (similar to the liquor category divided into whisky, vodka, rum and so on). A further 18% would like to see fragrances sorted by price, while only 11% would like to see fragrances organised alphabetically.
“In a fragrance market that has become more and more crowded, retailers can focus on two key decision variables to improve shoppers’ experience-brands and scent type. Organising the selling space by brand while having fragrance advisors give expert advice using fragrance family guides can give men the best of both,” according to Seidman.
NPD has recognised the need to view the fragrance market from both a branding, as well as a product point of view. In May 2003, NPD entered into a fragrance family licensing agreement for the first time that will enable its clients and retail partners to track consumer sales in US department stores by the type of scents they enjoy.
For more information on the NPD Beauty FragranceTrack 2003 men’s study, contact Natalie Granik Seidman at natalie_seidman@npd.com
Note: NPD Beauty, the beauty-tracking division of The NPD Group is a leading marketing information provider for the prestige beauty industry in the US. The BeautyTrends retail point-of-sale service tracks sales of prestige fragrances, makeup and skincare products sold in US department stores. FragranceTrack is an annual attitude and usage study that tracks consumer behaviour. A key component of FragranceTrack is the scent database and monthly blind scent testing that is based on responses from NPD’s consumer online panel.
