Perfumes UK And USA < Retail Shopping In Personal Care Category

Perfumes have being with mankind for thousands of years now. The word ‘Perfume’ is derived from the Latin per fume "through smoke". It is the Egyptians who are credited with using the perfume for the first time. Applying perfumed oils was a ritual first used by the Egyptians and later by Indian Kings as well. They would use it for all personal care needs like cosmetic or medicinal purposes.

With the advent of the 19th century perfumes acquired a whole new meaning. It was no longer the domain of the kings and queens but still remained a bastion of the rich and famous.

LMVH the global fashion major in its annual report for Perfumes and Cosmetics has said that the current economic environment is tough for the perfumes retail business. According to the groups head Patrick Choel the estimated growth for the perfumes business for selective perfumes in 2002 was projected at 3%. While the company posted organic growth of 6%, double the market average. In its results the group has reported net sales derived from the perfumes business to be 2,336 million euros. Income from operations totaled 161 million euros.

The reports that is available for the year ending 2008 show that global perfumes business witnessed a growth of 3.6%. Over all sales numbers reach $26.5 billion. In terms of units sold the global perfumes business witnessed a growth of 3.5% in 2008. Over all sales numbers reach 893.8 million units.

Sales numbers in terms of dollars is project to touch $32.2 billion, which is a projected growth of 21.3% over the 2008 numbers. Similarly the number of units sold is projected to touch 1,082.6 million units by 2013. This represents an increase of 21.1% over the 2008 figure.

Interestingly personal care products like female fragrances have a larger share of the global market as compared to fragrances for males. Revenues for female fragrances shopping account for 63.8% of market share while fragrances for males account for the remaining 36.2%. Of the 26.5 billion perfumes business Europe alone accounts for 50.9% of the world market value making it the world’s largest perfumes business market. In terms of revenues the United States is the world’s largest perfumes business retail market with 36% of global revenues. Coty Inc. is the world perfumes business leader with 9.7% share of the overall value.

Of the 26.5 billion perfumes business the G8 countries (Group of 8 most industrialized nations namely US, Canada, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia and Japan) 15.6 billion sales are from these 8 countries. But between 2004 and 2007 the perfumes business in these countries grew by merely 1.1%. In the next 5 years leading up to 2013 the retail market is project to grow to $16.6 billion presenting a 1% growth over the period. Department stores are the main source of distribution and sales in the market, accounting for 37.4% of the markets value.

Clearly the potential lies in the emerging and developing markets like South East Asia, India, Russia, and Brazil etc for personal care products like perfumes, cosmetics and other beauty products. Entering the perfumes business is not an expensive proposition. With some easy formulas creating a fragrance could cost as low as $1 to $5 per unit. And you can stand to earn in excess of 1,000% in profit if you sell it for a mere $30 to $50 a pop. The average international price of perfumes is more than or equal to $150. Just imagine what kind of profits you are looking at! Admittedly there are distribution & marketing costs to take care of.

Perfume shopping in retail can be a tricky proposition especially for those who are allergic to fragrances. The best time to go perfume shopping is during the afternoon as the power of smell is stronger during that time of day. Also when you are sampling perfumes it is advised that you do not try more than two fragrances in quick succession.

People shop for perfumes also because it happens to be one of the most widely gifted things. Most women love good fragrances but not all so you need to be sure that the person you intend to gift a perfume would appreciate that gift. Perfume shopping is all about making the right choice to fragrance to suit your way of saying ‘I’m beautiful.

But also perfume shopping is a must for those who need to hide body odor and in that case a strong deodorant is the easiest option.

More related directory categories

Beauty Products
Hair
Fragrance And Deodorants
Shampoo
Skin Care
Spa