There is a new term on the Internet, and "explosive reform" has recently bombarded the screen of every netizen.
Everything can be changed, this is no longer makeup, this is really a naked hair change.
The strong sense of contrast in the early days made a lot of money from the traffic, and the homogenized template makeup lost its freshness and excitement, but became a new issue of current aesthetics.
The Internet is so ruthless, it doesn't take much time to go from "praising God" to "stepping on God".
But the focus of today's discussion is not about the controversy over the explosion, but what are the fits between the explosion-style makeup and the current aesthetics? What is the indispensable killer feature of the explosion?
The killer must be a pair of new color contacts.
Brightly colored contact lenses can be used to match a variety of makeup styles, and picking the eye shade is gradually becoming the finishing touch to your makeup.
Contact lenses are also functionally open, and anti-blue light and anti-ultraviolet functions are coming one after another.
So what is the online basic plate of contact lenses? What are the new opportunities under the sub-categories? What is the brand landscape of the contact lens market?
In order to answer the above questions, Leadjin conducted an in-depth analysis and research on the contact lens market of Taobao and Tmall, and the following is an overview of the conclusions:
1. Basic market: From March 2023 to February 2024, the online sales of contact lenses reached 13.95 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.5%, and the average market price was basically flat, stable at about 82 yuan.
2. Category pattern: The color contact lens category is dominant, with a market share of 49.7% and a year-on-year increase of 18.7%. The growth rate of eye care products is as high as 89.9%, which has gradually become a new path for brands to explore the second growth curve.
3. Brand structure: The traditional brand that focuses on transparent contact lenses is at the top, and Labes, which focuses on the category of color contact lenses, has grown rapidly, with sales increasing by 75.8% year-on-year.
4. Product opportunities: The volume of silicon hydrogel material is small, and the market status quo of this material is high cost, high threshold and low recognition, but high comfort is the core demand of current consumers, and it is expected that the silicon hydrogel market has high development potential.
01 Basic disk: The market is large and growing steadily, and the Tmall platform dominates
Let's take a look at the basics of online contact lenses first.
From March 23 to February 24, the overall sales trend of the contact lens market on Taobao, Tmall, Douyin and Jingdong platforms
From March 2023 to February 2024, the online sales of contact lenses reached 13.95 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.5%, and the average market price was basically flat, stable at about 82 yuan.
From March 23 to February 24, the sales and year-on-year growth rate of contact lenses in Taobao, Tmall, Douyin, and JD.com
From the perspective of online platforms, Tmall and Jingdong platforms, which are dominated by official flags, account for 82.6% and 14.7% of the market respectively. Douyin and Taobao are dominated by white labels and personal C stores, and the market volume is relatively small.
From March 21 to February 24, the sales and sales volume of contact lenses on Taobao Tmall platform increased year-on-year
From the perspective of Tmall and Taobao platforms, which are the largest in volume, the contact lens market from March 2023 to February 2024 shows a positive growth trend. Against the backdrop of flat average product prices, consumer demand ushered in growth, with sales volume increasing by 17.1% year-on-year, driving the overall sales performance of the category.
02Brand pattern: Colored lenses dominate the market, and eye care is growing rapidly
Next, let's look at the sales performance of each sub-category of the contact lens market.
The contact lens market can be broadly segmented into clear contact lenses, colored contact lenses, and contact lens care and accessories.
The contact lens market is dominated by the color contact lens category, accounting for 49.7% of the market, and sales increased by 18.7% year-on-year. The current aesthetic trend and the continuous innovation of product colors have led to the continuous growth of demand for color contact lenses, which has become the main force in this market.
From March 23 to February 24, the sales and year-on-year growth rate of contact lens segments on Taobao Tmall platform
From the perspective of sub-categories, the eye care category grew rapidly, with a year-on-year sales growth rate of 89.9%, mainly for eye washes, eye hot compresses and other products.
Under the pursuit of beauty, consumers' attention to eye health has also increased, and there is still some growth potential in consumer demand for eye care. In addition, for contact lens brands, eye care products have also become a new path for brands to explore the second growth curve, enriching brand categories and broadening brand audiences.
— Color Contact Lenses —
The average market price of colored contact lenses is relatively stable, fluctuating in the range of 70-75 yuan. The number of brands continued to grow, from 379 to 487, but the number of products declined.
The growth prospects of the market have attracted more new brands to enter the market, but the fierce competition in the market has prompted some brands to optimize their product lines.
From March 21 to February 24, the number of color contact lens products and brands on Taobao Tmall platform changed
Due to the difference in categories, color contact lens consumers will pay more attention to the product color and have relatively low requirements for brand awareness, which also gives some emerging brands the opportunity to enter the game, but consumers' high requirements for product color and wearing sense have become a new test for many brands.
— Clear Contact Lenses —
The average market price of transparent glasses continued to rise, from 92.1 yuan to 102.1 yuan, and long-term comfort is the core demand of transparent contact lens consumers, which also means that they are more willing to pay for high-priced and high-quality products.
Compared with colored contact lenses, the number of brands and products in the transparent contact lens market is relatively low, but it also maintains a good growth momentum.
From March 21 to February 24, the number of transparent contact lens products and brands on Taobao Tmall platform changed
High willingness to pay also indicates the high growth potential of the market, but high entry threshold and high brand loyalty are not friendly to emerging brands.
03 Brand pattern: The positioning of the head brand is quite different, and Labis is growing rapidly
Next, let's look at the brand landscape of the contact lens market.
In the contact lens market, the traditional brand that focuses on transparent contact lenses is at the top, and Labis, which focuses on color contact lenses, is growing rapidly, with sales increasing by 75.8% year-on-year.
The co-branding with popular IPs, the high frequency of new products, and the following fashion trends have become the main drivers of Labis's rapid growth.
From March 23 to February 24, the sales and year-on-year growth rate of the top 10 brands in the contact lens market on Taobao and Tmall platforms
The positioning of the head brands is different, and the positioning of Anshiyou and Johnson & Johnson is relatively high-end, with sales of more than 300 yuan accounting for 59.6% and 40.6% respectively.
As a brand of color contact lenses, Moody, Labes, and Hailien have their core price range below 100 yuan, and 10 pieces in a single box are their main product specifications, which meet the purchase needs of color pupil consumers to try a variety of colors.
From March 23 to February 24, the sales distribution and average price of the top 10 brands of contact lenses on Taobao Tmall platform
04Product opportunity: Silicone hydrogel has great potential and can be cut from subdivided scenarios
Next, let's focus on the product dimension.
From the perspective of contact lens materials, hydrogel and silicone hydrogel are the mainstream materials at present, accounting for 85.1% and 13.1% of sales respectively.
The volume of silicon hydrogel material is small, and the market status quo of this material is high cost, high threshold and low recognition, but high comfort is the core demand of current consumers, and it is expected that the silicon hydrogel market has high development potential.
From March 1 to February 24, 23, the sales proportion of contact lens materials on Taobao Tmall platform
As one of the few brands focusing on silicone hydrogel materials, Merokang has a market share of only 1.8%, and its sales increased by 22.4% year-on-year, with a good growth trend. The popularity of this material still requires the concerted efforts of many brands, such as the launch of 9.9 trial packs by Kelala, which lowers the price threshold and expands the material audience.
Let's take a look at the public's feedback on the use of contact lenses and product demand from social media.
From March 2023 to February 2024, the volume of contact lens topics on Douyin, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu platforms will reach 80w+, and crowds, sizes, and scenes are the main dimensions of public discussion. The sound volume of scene and size specifications showed a high growth rate, which was 119.6% and 284.2%, respectively.
From March 2023 to February 2024, the topic of contact lenses on social media platforms will be discussed in a dimensional volume
The size specifications are mainly the diameter of the lens and the number of boxed pieces, which are the main topics for consumers to buy and share out of the box, and the volume has increased significantly.
In the scene dimension, New Year's Eve, commuting to work, going out to play, and traveling and vacationing are the most mentioned wearing scenes, and the scene is often related to the makeup style and color of the color pupils.
From March 2023 to February 2024, the discussion of contact lens topics on social media platforms in the scene dimension
05 Summary
Compared with overseas countries, the penetration rate of contact lenses in mainland China is still at a low level, and the continuous iteration of trend styles promotes continuous innovation in colors, and the popularization and promotion of comfortable materials will also further expand the category audience.
Social media and e-commerce platforms are one of the ways for brands to compete, and with the increase in customer acquisition costs, offline will also become an important way to reach multi-circle groups, and offline layout is also worthy of brand attention.
Judging from the online data, contact lenses still have good room for growth, and brands can start from the aspects of material comfort and color novelty, and combine them with subdivided scenarios to create differentiation.