Brazilian Beauty Market Posts 27.5% Growth

According to report released by the Brazilian Association of the Cosmetic, Toiletry & Fragrance Industry (ABIHPEC) and compiled by Euromonitor International, the growth rate of the Brazilian cosmetic, toiletry and fragrance market in 2008 was 27.5% (to a value of $28.77 billion), the highest rate recorded among the 10 largest markets in the world.

With an 8.6% share of the global beauty market, Brazil holds the third position in the 2008 ranking announced by Euromonitor, behind only the U.S. and Japan—with market shares of 15.6% and 10.1%, respectively.

“Achieving such a growth rate is especially meaningful in a year like 2008, when important markets like the United States and the United Kingdom experienced a substantial slowdown resulting from the global financial crisis,” said João Carlos Basilio, president, ABIHPEC. “Even among emerging markets, where the rolling waves of the crisis took longer to hit, Brazil had a relevant performance; we even out shined China, the second largest growing market, with a 22.1% growth rate.”

This leading position can also be observed in the consumer rankings by category. According to Euromonitor, in 2008, Brazil was the top ranking country worldwide in deodorant consumption, and ranked second in the categories of hair care, kids products, men’s products, oral care, sun protection, fragrances and bath care. It ranked fourth in color cosmetics, sixth in skin care and eighth in depilatories.

In industrial sales (ex-factory prices) growth terms, the Brazil's beauty industry grew 10.6% in 2008 in comparison with 2007, and completed its 13th consecutive year of double growth. Between 1996 and 2008, the industry grew 270%, whereas the Brazilian gross domestic product grew 47.3%, and industry overall in Brazil grew 45.7%. “[The beauty industry is] growing about six times more quickly than the average rate for Brazilian industry,” said Basilio.

The beauty industry’s performance in foreign trade was also positive. In 2008, for example, Brazilian beauty exports grew by 20.5%, for a total of $647.8 million. Brazil currently exports beauty products to 140 countries. In 1998, the number was only 90. These results become even more relevant, according to ABIHPEC, when noting that the Brazilian beauty industry recorded a trade deficit of $163.1 million in 1997. Driven by its positive production performance in 2002, the industry results bounced above the line into surplus territory. In 2008, the surplus totaled $182 million for an 11% growth in relation to 2007.

In the last 10 years, Brazil has recorded a cumulative growth of 357.6% in exports, while imports have grown only 65.6%. “But gaining more ground in the international market continues to be a challenge,” said Basilio, who sees products containing active principles from Brazil’s biodiversity an important distinguishing feature in reaching global consumers.

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