Study: Professional-effect products fueling nail care growth at mass

ROCKVILLE, Md. — Dollar sales of nail care products in the mass market will reach $2 billion in 2016, according to "The Nail Care Market in the U.S.," a recent report from market research firm Packaged Facts.



A continuous flow of innovative technologies and products designed to empower women to imitate nail salon effects simply and cost-effectively on their own has been a driving force in the growth of the nail care category, according to Packaged Facts publisher David Sprinkle.



For example, do-it-yourself products mimicking the salon effects of Minx nails — adhesive nail stickers made in a range of wild colors and patterns that are available only in salons — have had a major influence on the expansion of the DIY nail care market.



Another breakthrough has been the introduction of products allowing consumers to apply their own gel manicures at home. A salon gel manicure lasts twice as long as a traditional manicure but can cost $50 and up at a salon.



Products enabling DIYers to create textured nails, such as crackle nail polish, have also contributed to the explosive growth of the nail care category. Magnetic nail polish, a newer entry in the field, is increasingly seen as offering stiff competition to crackle nail polish. Glitter nail polish provides another way to make nails stand out.



Along with this continuing flood of innovative nail care products, a combination of trends create conditions favorable to market growth. These include an increase in the number of frequent users of DIY nail care products; the overlap between women who use professional nail care services and women who make frequent use of DIY nail care products; and rapid growth in the population of multicultural women, who are much more likely than non-Hispanic white women to be frequent nail care product users, the study stated.