Men's Grooming in Saudi Arabia

PRE-COVID-19 PERFORMANCE

The dominance of professional men’s grooming services undermines sales potential

Men’s grooming is one beauty and personal care category which has so far struggled to fulfil its full potential in Saudi Arabia. One of the major reasons for this is that the majority of Saudi men prefer to visit a barber or spa on a regular basis for their personal grooming needs, to have their hair cut, to have a professional shave and to trim their beards, and to have facial cleansing treatments, including masks and scrubs.

The exodus of expatriates places serious pressure on sales in men’s grooming

Men’s grooming registered negative sales growth in 2019 as the category came under serious pressure due to the significant numbers of expatriates leading the Kingdom over the course of the year. The ongoing Saudisation campaign being vigorously pursued by the government has seen steep fees being levied on all foreign residents of the Kingdom, with women and children especially hard hit by particularly high fees.

Dominance of system razors and blades supports Gillette’s leadership of men’s grooming

2019 saw system razors and blades continue to dominate sales of men’s razors and blades. In general, Saudi men prefer the comfortable grips of system razors and the various added benefits that come with the use of system razors and blades.

2020 AND BEYOND

COVID-19 impact

Sales of men’s grooming are now expected to decrease by 5% in 2020 in 2019 constant value terms in light of the impact of COVID-19. This compares unfavourably with the expected marginally negative growth forecast for 2020 during research conducted at the end of 2019 before the spread of COVID-19.

Affected products within men’s grooming

The overall negative growth expected in sales of men’s grooming over the course of 2020 as a result of COVID-19 is mainly due to the very strong decline seen in demand for men’s fragrances during the first half of the year. With incomes under pressure, spending on non-essential products has slowed dramatically, affecting sales of fragrances in addition, with social distancing keeping people at home from work and discouraging socialising, there is a lower demand for fragrances.

Recovery and opportunities

Demand for men’s grooming is likely to be under pressure during the forecast period for several reasons. The first is that many expatriates have left or are expected to leave the country as the Kingdom becomes a less attractive place for foreign people to live and work due to the rising cost of living and the effects of the government’s Saudisation programme.

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