The growing influence of hair color and hair styling products in India's hair care market is anticipated to boost the growth during the upcoming timeframe with more than 8% CAGR. : - Bonafide Research

With the common desire to look fabulous, all human beings have an endless wish to have smooth, silky, and shiny hair, which enhances their looks and makes them different from others. These wishes create good opportunities for the hair care market to have products for hair care such as hair oil, shampoo, hair colour, and hair styling products with a wide range of differentiating products as per an individual’s needs. Furthermore, the never-ending obsession among the youth to look stylish and beautiful is impacting the demand for hair care products, and this demand is expected to increase in the future. In terms of hair, the artistic of this particular asset has mainly been achieved through functional hair care, which includes maintaining a healthy appearance with products targeted for this outcome or through hair colorants using traditional occurring colour variations.

According to the report, 'India Hair Care Market Outlook, 2027-28' published by Bonafide research, the market is anticipated to grow with a CAGR of more than 8% in value terms during the forecast period starting from 2022-23 to 2027-28, and the market is anticipated to reach more than Rs. 44800 crores at the end of the forecast period year 2027-28. A wide range of varieties for various hair care products is available on the market with diverse well-known brands. For instance, taking one brand such as L’Oreal Paris, it has more than 10 variants in the shampoo segment, more than 2 in the serum segment, more than 2 in hair colour with a wide range of colour variants and so on. With a population of over 139 crores, India is seen as a large market for hair care products due to the country's emerging urbanization trend. Hair products such as hair oil and shampoo are majorly used by urban as well as rural people, but especially products such as hair colour, hair gel, serum, and other styling products have more dominance in urban areas. Furthermore, personal grooming is considered important by men, and the market for hair care is growing as hair care for men is not in the scenario previously.

The focus for many Indian haircare consumers today is centered on concerns about pollution, hair loss, and UV rays. Besides building credibility with basic benefits like nourishing and smoothing, brands are now expected to embrace advanced benefits such as revitalizing and hydrating while utilizing clever combinations of plant-based ingredients. Due to their hectic lifestyles, consumers are showing an increased interest in maintaining their hair with minimum effort. Consumers’ natural inclination towards oil and shampoo and demand for multiple benefits in a single product are causing a shift beyond basic products to more advanced haircare categories like conditioners and styling agents. Another driver is ‘sachet packaging’, where products of premium brands have also introduced their products in this form especially for lower income group.

The entry of herbal products drives the market as consumers are demanding products that are made from natural ingredients and have a less harmful effect on health. The natural trend has been popular in haircare for several years in India. Veganism is also growing in popularity and, for many consumers, vegan products are considered natural. For these consumers, interest in products that include plant and vegetable ingredients is also on the rise. This consumer perception of plant-based ingredients being healthy and natural makes it an emerging claim. Haircare brands can take advantage of the vegan trend by launching plant-based products or incorporating trusted natural ingredients like coconut and olive oil into current formulations.

In addition to that, the different brands of the same company are present targeting different segments. For example, HUL's Clinic Plus is for price-sensitive consumers with the highest market share of the shampoo market. Dove is for the premium segment, which gives some extra benefits at a high price, which is a contradiction to Clinic Plus. In hair colour, there is not much variation in products, but still existing brands adopt the product proliferation technique to gain the benefit of differentiation and put their brand on the consumer's perceptual map. The quality of products, which is most important in hair care, is fundamental to the product.
With the passage of time, sales of hair colors and hair styling products are increasing due to the growing trend of rising disposable income in the country; individuality; the availability of various domestic and international brands; innovation; and marketing strategies of companies. Hairstyling products are used to change the consistency or shape of hair, or to grip it in place in a certain hairstyle. Hair styling products remain strong in the salon hair care industry, where plenty of these styling products are used to provide services regarding hair care. Also, popular techniques such as highlights and lowlights require a stylist and specialized products to achieve and maintain the look.

As the bond between self-expression and hair care strengthens and with the majority of young consumers believing being fashionable to be important, there is a growing need for hair colour and hair styling products to facilitate the use of hair as a fashion accessory. This growing connection is most obvious within the colorant space, whereby along with bolder colour options, brands are now innovating in "super temporary" hair colorants to allow consumers to immediately change the appearance of their hair, day to day and hour by hour, depending on the occasion, their outfit, and their mood, to complement their overall appearance as they would use makeup. In the coming years as well, this trend is projected to continue, especially as millions of consumers in India are now becoming conscious about styling their hair, coloring their grey hair, and maintaining a healthy scalp.

Rapid volume and value growth will make styling products the most important market in India’s hair care sector. This sector is set to expand rapidly due to the increase in the young population, providing opportunities for brands to create new, innovative products with salon effects. 56% of hair styling products are used by consumers aged 24 and under. These younger consumers, particularly those living in urban areas, tend to lead fast-moving lifestyles strongly influenced by Western media, which impacts their aesthetic appearance. There is room here for brands to produce high-end, innovative styling products that are quick and easy-to-use to help create this western, salon look at home or on-the-go.

The future of the hair care industry lies in products that restore the hair back to its natural state with no side-effects, no harmful chemicals, and no artificial look. The market is big and supports opportunities for brands and consumers, with the latest technologies entering the market. The industry seems to be growing at an exponential rate and is set to achieve more in the years to come.