Granny Trend, Co-Washing Big in 2014

The “granny trend” of women of all ages coloring their hair shades of silver and gray is more than a media craze. According to Kline Pro, the company’s product-level database, hair colorant sales within the brights and silver shade groups are up 46% and 14%, respectively, in 2014.

“It's exciting to see current market trends reflected in our data,” remarks Paula Gottdiner, Kline's manager of the program. “We've been busy building our panel and are currently reporting on about 1,000 independent salons and 8,500 chain salons. We are planning to double the number of independent salons by the end of 2015, with our eventual goal being 3,000 independent salons and a panel that is representative of the total U.S. professional salon industry.” The data on independent salons is of particular interest to the industry's players, as this segment is harder to track and get a read on, yet is often the place where new brands and product trends appear first.

“Already it's clear that this objective tool measures what is really happening in the marketplace,” adds Gottdiner.

Another trend validated by this revolutionary data set is co-washing, which is the practice of cleansing one's hair with conditioner instead of shampoo. The clarifying segment of conditioners has been growing exponentially. While still nascent and accounting for less than 1% of total conditioner sales in 2014, the clarifying segment posts the highest growth of all conditioner types in independent salons. Ouidad's Curl Co-Wash is among the leading items in the segment.

Functional hair care, or products that provide specific performance-oriented benefits like restoring hair or imparting shine, is another area where Kline PRO is reporting significant growth.

In independent salons, products that address thinning hair increase by 22% in shampoos and 12% in conditioners in 2014. Nioxin, the undisputed leader within the thinning segment, jumps 22% in shampoo sales. Sizable gains are likewise recorded by the Kevin Murphy Plumping line, ranking it third in dollar share in the thinning segment of both shampoos and conditioners. Other products contributing to growth in the functional hair care space include Pureology's Strengthcure in the repair/condition segment, the launch of Oribe Gold Lust Repair & Restore collection, and Redken's Blonde Idol and Color Extend lines in the color care segment.

Meanwhile, hair oils is an area that is losing some steam, with sales down 6% in chains and 5% in independents in 2014. Although the segment, which was pioneered by Moroccanoil, has reached maturity, some items experience rapid sales growth in 2014, including Bumble and bumble Hairdresser's Invisible Oil, which triples in dollar volume.