Magazine: Skin care and freshness when standing in the shower

After the stagnation of recent years 2015 brought a sales explosion in the shower gel market. This very positive trend was the result of the hot weather and the increased promotional activity of brands, especially in the value for money segment. Hungarian consumers are promotion-driven in their decisions and they aren’t really loyal to brands. Manufacturers put lots of work into both the women’s and men’s segments, but shower gels for women still dominate in the category. Drugstores and discount stores are the most important channels and in terms of product size 250ml shower gels are the most popular. When choosing which shower gel to buy, consumers’ No.1 decision-making factor is scent, followed by brand and price.

Réka Stefán, junior brand manager of Unilever Magyarország Kft. told our magazine that this year they put the Peony version of Dove shower gel on the market. The company’s traditional Baba brand had already been a market leader but managed to improve sales further last year. Under this brand this year’s new innovation is a shower cream that contains milk. In the men’s segment Dove Men+Care Cool Fresh is a new product, which was inspired by the most popular men’s luxury fragrance in the US market, Bleu de Chanel. Axe Black shower gel returned with a new packaging design and a sophisticated scent in 2015. In the first half of 2016 Unilever focuses on the latest member of the product range, Black Night.

Szilvia Baranyi, trade marketing & brand manager of Henkel Magyarország Kft. informed us that the Fa brand successfully improved its excellent market position last year. In the shower gel category natural product ingredients and skin-friendly formulas are increasingly popular. Shoppers want products that care for the skin and have a pleasant scent. In 2016 Fa launched a new product line with shower gels containing natural coconut extract that is rich in vitamins and minerals. Coconut oil works very well in rehydrating dry skin. The product line is available in refreshing coconut water and caring coconut milk versions and includes shower gel, bathing foam, cream soap and liquid soap. Seasonality is becoming more and more important in the shower gel market too.

Norbert Kaspár, sales manager of Caola Zrt. reported to our magazine that Refreshing and Creamy are two popular shower gel products by the company, which contain CaoNatur plant-origin ingredients. This spring three new refreshing and youthful shower gels make their debut: forest fruit-inspired Caola Wild Red, Caola Solo Grapes and Caola Jingling Peach. All three products contain caring fruit extract and natural celluloid balls and poppy seeds. The new products target the young generation of consumers.

András Szabó, managing director of Superio Kft. revealed that last year was successful for the company that distributes top-quality Polish shower gels Ziaja. These products are made using high-quality natural ingredients such as cocoa butter, goat’s milk protein and olive oil. Last year Ziaja shower creams appeared on store shelves: these are characterised by nice scent and by cleaning the skin gently. They contain natural ingredients and are made using the latest technology; a sophisticated and stylish design just puts the icing on the cake.