Beauty Diary: Huge rise in demand for supermarket beauty products

The retailers are beefing up an aisle in response to an increased demand for a product Aussies previously wouldn’t buy at the supermarket.

Supermarkets were once just a place to pick up groceries, but now shoppers are flocking to the aisles to pick up a very different kind of product.

The beauty offerings at retailers such as Coles and Woolworths has been rapidly expanding in recent years, with consumers now given more options than ever when it comes to skin, hair and body care.

And data shows the beefed-up range is a huge success with shoppers, with Woolies revealing it has seen a “double-digit growth in skin care in the past quarter alone”.

“We’re focused on bringing the latest on-trend beauty brands and skincare products to our stores so that our customers can enjoy affordable luxuries at home,” a spokesperson for the supermarket giant told news.com.au’s The Beauty Diary.

“As well as being affordable, we find that customers enjoy the convenience of picking up all their beauty and skincare needs in one shop.”

The growing interest in the beauty aisle has seen Woolworths secure deals to be the first Australian retailer stocking several international brands, including Tree Hut, Daise and Billie, which the supermarket said has been driving new customers through its doors.

It’s not just skincare that is getting snapped up, with “the fresh food people” selling around 8000 mascaras every day – that’s three million mascaras a year.

“Customers love that they can also take advantage of our Everyday Rewards program to earn points to spend back in store, as well as keeping an eye out for our weekly catalogue for specials,” the spokesperson said.

“On top of our supermarkets, Big W also sells a huge range of beauty products, making it easier for customers to get their hands on these popular brands.”

Australian supermarkets are beefing up their beauty aisle offerings. Picture: news.com.au

Woolies said sales on skincare alone is experiencing a ‘double-digit growth’ as the category explodes. Picture: news.com.au

Coles is experiencing a similar surge in customer demand for beauty products, with the retailer stating that economic strain on Aussie households is a key part of the change to shopping habits.

“At a time when cost of living pressures remain a challenge for many people, Coles is committed to helping with a range of great value products across the supermarket and that includes in the beauty aisle,” a spokesperson told The Beauty Diary.

“Supermarket beauty brands are a great alternative for customers wanting to still indulge and experience high-quality beauty products, but at an affordable price.”

But it’s not just the selection of products that is on the up, but the quality too, with Aussies regularly raving about supermarket beauty buys that exceed expectation.

One brand that is regularly praised for being “insanely effective” is Dermal Therapy, an affordable Australian skincare brand with an extensive range, much of which is sold in Coles and Woolies.

Coles is also growing its beauty offering as Aussie shopping habits change amid cost of living pressures. Picture: news.com.au

Founded by Steven and Shelley Sher, Dermal Therapy has been steadily increasing its own product range recently, with the launch of its Overnight Face Mask and a line of Tinted Lip Balms.

“Whilst our brand was and still is predominantly pharmacy focused, we understand that our customers don’t always have time to go to multiple stores and being able to add your favourite skincare line to your grocery trolley is an option people would like to have,” Mrs Sher told The Beauty Diary.

“We pride ourselves on our accessibility across multiple retailers instore and online.”

The brand’s ethos of “being affordable and highly effective” stems from a “very personal experience of struggling to keep our son’s eczema under control when he was a toddler”, Mrs Sher explained, stating it caused a financial and emotional toll that she and her husband used to create the Dermal Therapy range.

“We used the pain of our experience and turned it into our passion to make a real positive change in the therapeutic skincare space, which we are proud to say with almost 100 products now in our range, and many thousands of happy customers – we really do deliver on our ‘Dermal Therapy Promise’, which is developing seriously good skincare, that actually works.”

It appears to be paying off for the brand, with customers regularly raving about its line on social media.

Several of its products have gone viral on TikTok in the last year, including the Crystal Deodorant roll-on and its Original Lip Balm.

“It’s the absolute best,” wrote one delighted customer.

“This brand is so unsexy but it doesn’t matter because it works,” claimed another.

Shoppers want products that are effective at an affordable price point. Picture: TikTok/@ccourtneyjayne

Dermal Therapy, sold in Coles and Woolies, is beloved by Aussies on a budget. Picture: news.com.au

Mrs Sher said it always makes her day when she sees a positive review, adding feedback can often help them decide what new product to bring out next.

“Following on from our hugely successful overnight lip mask, we saw the potential in an overnight face mask,” she said, explaining the story behind the brand’s newest product.

“We had already made inroads into face care both through our lip balms and with our very dry face cream so knew that this was something that would be welcomed by consumers.

“The overnight face mask contains Hyalaronic Acid, Ceramides, Peptides, Collagen & Urea plus much more. In total there are over 30 skin loving ingredients packed into that little tube.”

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Originally published as Beauty Diary: Huge rise in demand for supermarket beauty products