Christmas and seasonal gifting 

Back in February we introduced our quarterly innovation strategy pulling together present and future trends across the health and beauty industry. As part of this strategy, as a team we utilize the best research channels and tools to bring you an informative and educational innovation deck. (please speak to a member of our team if you wish to receive these straight to your inbox)

As part of the second quarter, the focus is on seasonal items and Christmas gifting within health and beauty. However, given the recent environmental change following the Coronavirus pandemic, we’ve also included a valuable insight into the effects on the industry and consumer behaviour. In our first blog post we’ll be focusing on Christmas gifting and seasonal opportunities, and later this month, we’ll be sharing more about how Covid-19 is affecting the industry.

Christmas Gifting

According to Mintel Christmas gifting for BPC surged by 10 percent from 2017 (57%) to 2019 (67%). But whilst gifting continues to increase, beauty gift sets saw a decline in 2019, which could be driven by consumer demand for individual gifts. In fact the same report also stated that 35% of women tend to pick and mix items across different categories to create their own gift set. As you may be able to relate to this, consumers are often looking for options to add a more personal touch to gifting. Single and multi-use sachets, including facial mask and skincare products are perfect for this personalised gifting approach.

Other things brands should consider include sustainability, as it’s a hot topic across the BPC category for 2020. Brands should think about the packaging waste, as Mintel suggest that 67% of adults think that there is too much packaging in BPC gifts. Carded sachets and peggable cartons are ideal solutions for affordable gifting, providing minimal waste and sample sizes of best-selling products.

At Design Plus we make over 1 million sachets a year including bespoke and shaped sachets. One of our most recent projects includes the creation of bauble shaped sachets, for a series of festive themed facial masks. As an example, our expert lab team developed a Christmas, sweet candy cane mud mask.

Some of our other festive formula ideas include; a Christmas cookies & cream mask, a pumpkin pie cream mask, and even a shimmering snowflake gel mask.

If you wish to speak to your account manager or our sales team in regards to potential seasonal opportunities, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

The Effects of Covid-19 on Seasonal Gifting

It’s expected that in the short term across beauty and personal care, gifting will be a low priority, as instead consumers will spend in high priority categories. That said, gifting will provide opportunities to show loved ones, that they are thinking of one another.

It’s forecast that spend on gifting will unfortunately decline as budgets and households are short on disposable income. Depending on how long furlough and unemployment’s last, depends on how much seasonal gifting is affected by the pandemic. Long term 12 months + it is expected that budgeting for gifting will return to normal.

If you would like to know more on any of the above, or need our help on any future seasonal and gifting projects, then please get in touch via the form on our website, or contact us directly sales@Designplusuk.com