By Franklin Alli
Do you own barber shops or saloons? If so, you are sitting on billions of dollar global business.
Barbing shop But, how much money you are making from the business depends on professionalism, location and innovation/ technology you bring into the operation. According to a report by Alliance Market Research (AMR) titled ‘Men’s Personal Care Market: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast: 2014-2022, market is expected to stand at $166 billion by 2022, growing at a cumulative average growth rate of 5.4 per cent from 2016 to 2022.
In African, the market is expected to hit $13.2 billion in 2017 and stand at one-quarter of the global market figure by 2022. Of course, a large chunk of the African figure is predictably expected from Nigeria.
Also, according to renowned market researcher, Cosmetics Design, although, many segments of the cosmetics industry are slowing down, the area of men’s grooming has continued to report strong sales growth. “Increasingly, the male grooming business in Africa is booming. Just the clipper segment of the market alone is currently valued at about 200 million with Nigeria accounting for a major share of it, selling 3.5 million units,” said the report.
Also, Phillips, one of the manufacturers of clipper products, said that it recently conducted a study of 20 barber interviews, 20 consumer focus groups with 8 participants per group and 40 in-home interviews in SA, Nigeria and Ghana. According to the company, findings showed that majority of men develop bumps on their skin after a very close shave (e.g. using a blade) on their face.
The report added “When getting a haircut, most men cringe at the thought of getting cuts and scratching discomfort to be a necessary evil in order to get a sharp, fresh look with nicely trimmed edges. More and more men worry about hygiene when sharing a hair clipper tool with other people at the barbing saloon.”
Ms. Chioma Iwuchukwu-Nweke, General Manager, Philips Personal Health – West Africa, said “All these concerns have been taken note and taken care of by the company. According to her, following the extensive research across a cross-section of men in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa; the company has developed and introduced the new Phillips clippers into the market.
Iwuchukwu-Nweke said that the new product has taken into account the core concerns that came out in the research – mainly the need to get that clean shaven feeling but to avoid the scratches, cuts and bumps that sometimes develop on the skin.
“The new Philips Clippers’ robust design promises to become a hair-loom for generations to come. Its strong steel blades are manufactured to withstand chips and cracks lasting up to four times longer than other brands in the market.
She explained that the two clippers in the range (the Philips Clipper Pro (ideal for professional barber styling) and Philips Clipper Home (for personal use) are the first clippers the company is introducing into the African market. This is to underscore our commitment to delivering innovation based on the need of the consumers,” she said.