Jean-Philippe Charrier, managing director of L'Oreal (Thailand), yesterday said men and women always wanted to look good regardless of political and economic uncertainty.

The Thai unit did even better this year than the 13-per-cent growth enjoyed in last year's first half.

Strong brands and marketing channels, consistency in launching innovative products and using famous actresses and actors as brand ambassadors were cited as major factors for the success.

L'Oreal's head office still sees Thailand as a high-potential market for hair and beauty products and insists on bigger marketing budgets each year.

This year, the marketing budget was hiked by two digits.

Women here have moved from using only one product to three products on average, but that is still lower than the five to six used by women in developed countries.

Continuing consumer education regarding which products to use and rising personal income will help increase consumption of hair and beauty products.

Thailand's beauty market is worth Bt4.6 billion and is expected to grow 4-5 per cent this year, Charrier said. The men's segment will show the fastest growth at 50 per cent, followed by skincare and hair-colouring products at 12 per cent, cosmetics at 8 per cent and haircare products at 7 per cent.

L'Oreal will launch haircare brand Matrix next month, targeting professional hairdressers, following the release of Elsave three months ago.

Nitida Asawanipont

The Nation