The male gender is finally realizing what females have known for a long time: looking good makes you feel good. According to NPD Group, a market research firm, the U.S. experienced a 13 percent increase in department store sales for male skin care products between 2010 and 2011. Males pumped $81.7 million into the skin care industry last year to make themselves look and smell more attractive.
This year is expected to be another banner one for the male skin care product sector. Though men like country singer Braid Paisley reject the concept of the metrosexual man, the new documentary Mansome illustrates that more men care about their appearance and do not believe that being pampered threatens their masculinity. The documentary follows several very different men in their quest to define what it really means to be a man.
Cameras follow actors Will Arnett and Jason Bateman while they enjoy luxurious spa treatments and other services catering to men. These two are on a mission to discover why men are so vain. Clinical psychologist Tyger Latham attributes it to the ways that contemporary men understand and express masculinity. In a 2011 article in Psychology Today, Dr. Latham wrote that many men are discarding the traditional definition of masculinity.
According to the psychologist, an increasing amount of research reveals that men are rejecting such a narrow gender stereotype. Focusing on their personal appearance is one way that men are exploring different ways of expressing their masculinity. The metrosexual revolution is back, he said, and skin care product manufacturers are welcoming it with open arms. Many are developing more fragrances and skin treatment products for the male gender.
Male-only grooming establishments report that hair coloring and massages are popular services for clients ranging from construction workers to executives. Many men have become loyal customers, shelling out money for everything from manicures to highlights. According to one proprietor, regardless of where a man falls on the spectrum of traditional masculinity, he enjoys some high-quality pampering.
The skin care industry will only benefit from additional male customers. This trend expands the opportunities for skin care companies that have traditionally catered to females. Men are realizing that there is no shame in looking great and healthy skin is an important part of the process. We may soon be seeing more advertisements and commercials for male skin care products, causing even more men to join the metrosexual revolution.
