Cosmetics for Christmas: packaging prompts shoppers to purchase

It is easy to fall in love with all the gorgeous packaging filling department store shelves for the Holiday Season. Many boxes can go straight under the Christmas Tree without the need for any additional gift wrapping. Shoppers appreciate this and are even prepared to dig deeper into their pockets for it. After all, it saves all that elaborate wrapping with gold and glitter.

Christmas motifs on packaging are familiar in the confectionery segment but packaging also comes in striking designs for Xmas in other industries. Many examples can be found in the cosmetics industry where packaging generally plays a prominent role. Aren’t all creams the same? What’s the difference between the red lipstick from brand A and the red lipstick from brand B? Precisely – the brand. This is what builds trust in a product and what provides the key reason for purchasing products. And the brand (message) is conveyed by product packaging.   

For Christmas, brand owners in the cosmetics industry often “treat themselves” to proprietary seasonal packaging design. After all, beauty products clearly rank among the most popular Christmas presents given. According to current figures surveyed by Kantar TNS and the VKE Cosmetics Association in November, roughly one in two citizens in Germany plans to give bodycare products or perfumes to their loved ones. 60% are prepared to spend up to EUR 100 on these aromatic bodycare items. 25% plan to spend even up to EUR 200 on cosmetic gifts. But this is nothing compared to the Brits who spend an average of EUR 2,344 on presents. In Germany, fragrances are the most popular presents (63%), followed by cosmetic sets in limited-edition design packaging (45%) and individual bodycare products (33%).

In Germany cosmetic products are bought offline – some 70% of buyers opt in favour of physical stores. There are many varied reasons for this. To many shoppers, advice and immediate availability as well as the chance to try out products are important; furthermore, a key trigger for making a purchase is the packaging seen while window shopping. And even up to 45% of online shoppers are persuaded by nicely packaged products in stores.