The beauty sector is booming and to just give an inkling into how big an impact it has globally, consider the recent Cannes film festival and the number of Indian beauties representing beauty brands. There is big business in beauty if the current trends are anything to go by. However, in order to stay with the times and gain an upper hand against the competition, the beauty business needs to constantly innovate and embrace the latest trends and fads.
While planning to make a start with a business in this domain, a beauty salon and the beauty services at large is a profitable business venture. However, you can further innovate in this domain by exploring the niche sector of beauty oils and handmade soaps.
Handmade soaps like aloe extract soaps, activated charcoal soaps, Chandan-Multani mitti soaps, etc. are unique formulations not readily found in the market and are made with natural ingredients thus having the desired positive effect on the skin. Similarly, handmade and indigenously formulated hair oils are gaining popularity as they address specific issues such as hair loss, dandruff, brittleness.
Therefore, handmade soaps and oils formulated for specific needs are a new segment in the beauty that is fast gaining popularity.
A few pointers can help you explore this sector and gain from it owing to its uniqueness and booming popularity.
Ways To Inculcate The Next Step In The Beauty Sector
In order to cash in on and benefit from these products and services in the beauty sector, a few pointers are to be kept in mind.
- Gain Knowledge
It is imperative to gain requisite knowledge about the process of making soaps and oils. There are several short duration courses that provide the training and skills required to make soaps and oils. These courses do not cost much either and can give you insight into how to set-up the business, do you require a separate space for it or you can carry out the production at home itself, the equipment and raw material required, where to get them from and the investment required for the entire production process.
- Study The Market
It is equally important to carry out a market study to analyse what works and what are the customers looking for. Things that can be studied and analysed include types of products that are popular and the reason for it, the products that are missing in the market but customers are asking for it, the target audience such as the gender, age group, economic background, etc. This can help in the production process, as to what products to concentrate on, how to packet them to drive attention towards them, how to price them, etc.
- Create Your Niche
It helps to have your own USP (Unique Selling Proposition) in terms of developing and marketing specialized products, such as hair oil for adding lustre to the hair, or targeting hair fall, or for hair growth using unique and natural ingredients such as hibiscus, onion extract, fenugreek and neem leaf powder, etc. (after carrying out necessary research and obtaining training). Similarly, niche soaps can be manufactured such as in varied shapes and textures, or soaps with a built-in scrub or soaps like watermelon soaps, charcoal soaps, etc. Additionally, you can even experiment with soap shapes and form such as soap jars or bath bombs or bath salts or mini soaps or unicorn (pastel coloured) soaps or candy-pop soaps, etc. Choose a niche and make it the domain that you excel in.
- Consider patenting
An ingredient in its natural form cannot be patented but any of its uses or a particular formulation can be patented. Patenting applies to any unique formulation protecting it from being replicated or being sold for a limited period of time. You can thus aim to formulate oils with unique compositions for specific purposes and after testing and checking results ( probably with the aid of an expert) you can opt for patent registration of the formulation to market it as your own, uniquely formulated product.
- Market Your Products Smartly
You can employ various marketing schemes and techniques to market your products. You can consider creating attractive gift hampers and baskets which have all or a few products packed creatively. These can make great gifting options and the attractive packaging can win favor with the younger audience too. You can even offer combination packs and attractive deals on the products. You can even consider collaborating with beauty salons to advertise and use your products.
Make use of various social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, etc. to market the products, thus reaching out to a larger audience instead of being restricted to your locality. Also, you can create video blogs or vlogs of your products along with their use and also provide useful beauty tips and remedies. Additionally, you can even grow your business by approaching and delivering to customers on a national level.
These tips will definitely help you succeed with unique products in the beauty products domain.
