In 2021, demand for fragrances in Malaysia demonstrated stronger volume and value growth driven by the mass segment as COVID-19 related restrictions were gradually relaxed and Malaysians gradually returned to the workplace and socialising. Increasing price sensitivity amongst Malaysians as a result of decreasing disposable incomes linked to rising unemployment levels and high inflation, forced them to prioritise their expenditure; premium fragrances was therefore significantly impacted by trading down to mass fragrances which offered greater affordability.
Watsons is particularly known for importing smaller international brands across beauty and personal care to Malaysia to attract consumers who are looking for something different from what they would normally find in mainstream outlets. This strategy is also present within fragrances where the retailer continues to find niche brands including La Rive and Emper Perfumes.
Fragrances remained a fairly fragmented competitive landscape in 2021, led by L’Oréal (M) Sdn Bhd in value share terms due to its strength in the premium segment ahead of Estée Lauder Cos Inc (Aramis) and Coty Prestige Southeast Asia (M) Sdn Bhd. The three leaders are followed by Wipro Unza (M) Sdn Bhd which retained its leadership of mass fragrances, a category that continued to gain ground from premium fragrances during the year due to rising price sensitivity.
Fragrances is set to record stronger demand over the forecast period. Value growth will be largely driven by the premium segment.
While department stores, beauty specialist retailers, fragrance specialists and direct selling are likely to remain the major distribution channels for fragrances in Malaysia over the forecast period, e-commerce has the potential to further penetrate the category after it recorded double-digit current value growth during the pandemic, due to the closure of specialist offline stores. In addition to offering convenience due to home delivery options, the channel is likely to increasingly attract local price-sensitive consumers with a wide selection of products at competitive prices.
Personalised fragrances are gaining in popularity in Malaysia. One such example is Bulgari’s new Allegra perfume collection which consists of five core perfumes and five essences to layer on top, allowing consumers to customise their scent.
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Understand the latest market trends and future growth opportunities for the Fragrances industry in Malaysia with research from Euromonitor International's team of in-country analysts – experts by industry and geographic specialisation.
Key trends are clearly and succinctly summarised alongside the most current research data available. Understand and assess competitive threats and plan corporate strategy with our qualitative analysis, insight and confident growth projections.
If you're in the Fragrances industry in Malaysia, our research will help you to make informed, intelligent decisions; to recognise and profit from opportunity, or to offer resilience amidst market uncertainty.
Fragrances
This is the aggregation of men's, women's and unisex mass and premium fragrances as well as fragrances sets/kits. The distinction between mass market and premium is normally price and label/positioning (mass fragrances rarely carry a designer label) and distribution. Also includes hair fragrances with a primary function of making hair smell good and not to be confused with hair oil and other styling/conditioning products with hair fragrances, whose primary function is to either condition or style over fragrance.
See All of Our DefinitionsThis report originates from Passport, our Fragrances research and analysis database.
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