According to recent SPINS data, collagen protein supplements with a focus for beauty recorded an increase in sales of 64% over from mid-June 2020-21, making up for $59.4 million out of $107.9 million in total beauty supplement sales across the multioutlet and natural channels*.
“Sales [of beauty supplements] are in fact increasing, driven by consumers’ interest in self-care and collagen being a main factor here. But we also see the category as a whole rising as shoppers are venturing out more and looking for these types of products more than they did during lockdown,” said Farhana Majid, Marketing Operations Associate, SPINS.
As more consumers are staying home, they are paying more attention to their health, including their skin health. Staying at home may also lead consumers to shift their focus from makeup routines to nutricosmetics for a low-maintenance and natural look.
“During the pandemic, as consumers have sought alternatives to their regular skin care regimens, we have seen our ingredients sales increase substantially and, in some cases, dramatically,” Douglas Jones, Global Sales and Marketing Manager, BioCell Technology, told us.
Consumers are also seeking clinically validated products that provide the desired result of improving skin health through anti-aging properties. There have been numerous scientific studies that have shown the benefits of hydrolyzed collagen supplementation in improving signs of skin aging which makes collagen an attractive nutritional supplement to the consumer that is seeking to improve their skin’s appearance.
Backed by science
A systematic review published in March of this year identified 19 randomized, double-blind, and controlled clinical trials using hydrolyzed collagen supplements for one of the following outcomes: skin wrinkles, hydration, elasticity, and firmness.
After evaluating a total of 1,125 participants aged between 20 and 70 years (95% women), findings showed favorable results of hydrolyzed collagen compared with the placebo in terms of skin hydration, elasticity, and wrinkles. Based on results, ingestion of hydrolyzed collagen for 90 days is effective in reducing skin aging, as it reduces wrinkles and improves skin elasticity and hydration (de Miranda et al. International Journal of Dermatology, doi: 10.1111/ijd.15518).
Knowledge gaps
Despite collagen showing evidence of skin health improvement and a growing popularity, there are still knowledge gaps in collagen clinical trials.
A large area for clinical trial improvement is standardization in the clinical trials, explained Dr. Mal Evans, Chief Scientific Office, KGK Science. Factors like time of year, ethnicity, geography, source of collagen, location of skin being tested, and bioavailability can all have an active effect on the results in the clinical trials.
Jill Stocki, Director of Business Development, Biofortis Research, added that not everyone reacts the same, and personalization will be a key area in the future. “How to understand and assess this individualization in clinical trials is just starting in areas of health that we understand better than skin health,” she said. “So, a big area for the future will be to understand the personalized responses, how to predict who will benefit most, for supplements targeted to skin health.
“The skin microbiome is an emerging area and we hope to see more of these types of studies in the future.”
The foreseeable future
Collagen beauty supplement suppliers are confident that collagen sales will remain high even as people head back to the offices because online meetings are likely to continue and people will continue to be aware of their appearance on camera.
“We fully expect to see the market continue to grow and expand. The trends that we are seeing started a long time ago and have been building. Consumers see a benefit when taking collagen supplements particularly with BioCell Collagen. That trend is not going to change,” said BioCell’s Jones.
“Yes, the world of beauty is booming as consumers seek solutions for skin health. Here, demand for beauty and collagen are positioned to grow,” added Lara Niemann, Global Marketing, GELITA.
* SPINS definitions for mass channel: The Conventional Multi-Outlet Channel (powered by IRI) covers the Grocery Outlet (store with $2M+ annual ACV), the Drug Outlet (chains and independent stores, excluding Rx sales), and selected retailers across Mass Merchandisers, including Walmart, Club, Dollar, and Military representing over 105,000 retail locations.
** SPINS’ Natural Enhanced Channel is composed of full-format stores with $2 million+ in annual sales and 40% or more of UPC coded sales from natural/organic/specialty products. It Includes co-ops, associations, independents, and large regional chains (excludes Whole Foods & Trader Joes).
