who needs a hairdresser?

Cheap and chic have been the year's watchwords nowhere more so than in the haircare category.

The market has grown 3.4% in value and 3.2% in volume [KantarWorldpanel 52w/e 16 May]. Essentials such as shampoo have been heavily promoted.

But it hasn't just been about cost cutting. There have been innovations driving incremental sales, as well as a very successful ad campaign for L'Oréal Elvive while a change in fashions has made hairspray a surprise success story. The challenge for manufacturers and retailers is to harness current growth and turn it into long-term sales rather than a short-lived fad.

Hair colourants proved to be the category's crowning glory, growing 5.6% and now accounting for 22% of the overall haircare market, valued at £246.3m [Kantar].

Sales were helped in part by consumers ditching expensive salon treatments for home hair colouring. But innovations to protect hair from damage have made the transition from salon to shop easier.

Clairol Nice 'n Easy remains by far the biggest brand in home hair dye and in the haircare category as a whole (see left) with value sales up 11.9% to £61.9m [SymphonyIRI 52w/e 12 June]. The P&G brand has built on the success of its aminoglycine lightening technology, which is less damaging to hair, launching five new shades in its Perfect 10 range in December.

Perfect 10 was launched to compete with L'Oréal's Excell 10, sales of which have soared 30.4% to £9.3m in the past year [SymphonyIRI]. Following the lead of professional hair salons, L'Oréal had responded to consumer concerns about the long-term effect of chemicals by relaunching its colourants without ammonia, starting with Casting Crème in 2006 and gradually removing ammonia from its other SKUs. "These brands and their big launches have added value to the market," says SymphonyIRI insights director Florence Langely. "We've seen line extensions, but the category needed innovations."

Shampoo, as a necessity product, has relied on in-store promotions to drive up volume 3.8% and value sales 1.4% [Kantar]. "There is ongoing product development in the subcategory, but the main sales driver has been a greater depth of promotion, often with several products on different promotions," says a Boots spokesman.

Promotions show no sign of abating, and include premium brands. With consumers concerned about looking good in the summer, instead of flocking to buy cheaper own labels and compromising on quality, consumers have been waiting until their favourite brand is on promotion and then buy in bulk, says Langely. As a result, sales of own-label shampoos fell 8.5% to £15.8m [SymphonyIRI]. Own-label conditioners were even worse hit, falling 15.1% to £8.1m as consumers sought out more effective products to counter less frequent trips to the hairdresser.

P&G continues to lead the shampoo and conditioner categories with Pantene Pro-V sales of the shampoo have grown 2.9% to £41m and the conditioner 1% to £28.1m [SymphonyIRI]. It also owns newer shampoo brand Aussie, which has grown value 27% to £15.8 on volume up 34.6% [SymphonyIRI]. Originally seen as a niche brand, distribution has increased and new lines have been introduced. It is also one of the few big brands where the conditioner is worth more than the shampoo, up 19% to £21m [SymphonyIRI].

The conditioner category is worth significantly less than shampoo, however, at £255.2m [Kantar], as many consumers do not buy it. Pantene's launch of Aqua Light is designed to encourage these consumers to change their mind (see right).

The Cheryl effect

But the bigger waves have been made by L'Oréal Elvive, the second-largest conditioner brand and fourth-biggest shampoo brand, whose ad campaign featuring Cheryl Cole helped drive value sales of the shampoo up 10.5% to £31.2m and the conditioner up 18% to £27.4m, and also bolstered the launch of the brand's latest product, Full Restore Five.

Some smaller brands have also been forging ahead without the help of celebrity endorsements, however. Sales of Batiste dry shampoo shot up by 100.4% [SymphonyIRI]. Its traditionally low shelf position in Boots or Superdrug had made it difficult for consumers to spot the single green can, says Angela Kokshoorn, marketing director at Vivalis, which acquired the brand in 2001. But in 2008 a number of fragrance variants were created that were bright, appealing to the eye and enabled Batiste to 'brand block'. The move has driven sales and created a halo effect on Original.

"NPD has been incremental to our sales figures, which have doubled year-on-year since 2008," adds Kokshoorn. "Haircare is a loyal sector strongly linked to product performance. If your shampoo works well you are unlikely to stray to another brand."

A move to re-engage lapsed users and reinforce loyalty also saw the relaunch of Unilever's reformulated Timotei range in May. With increased consumer affinity for natural ingredients, "this seemed a perfect fit for Timotei as the brand's heritage lies in the naturals market", says Grant Yates, senior category manager at Unilever UK. "Many women are concerned about the effects that chemicals can have on their hair and on the environment."

The biggest haircare casualty over the past year is hair-styling products such as gels and waxes, down 4.5% in volume, though up 1.4% in value [Kantar]. Sales suffered because there has been a shift in fashion away from gelled, spiky hair to a longer, looser style, says Langely, with a return to the looks of turn-of-the-century schoolboys and grunge rockers.

L'Oréal is hoping to revive sales in the styling subcategory with the launch of Fructis Style Survivor gel, which promises to 'create invincible styles'.

The surprise winner of the move away from spiky styles has been hairspray. After years of decline, it has picked up in the past six months, achieving year-0n-year growth of 5.8% to £97.8m [Kantar]. Once again the Cheryl Cole effect could be seen. Leading brand Elnett, which has grown 14% year-on-year [SymphonyIRI] launched a limited-edition Cheryl Cole can in June to capitalise on the celebrity's popularity.

With the inclusion of Cheryl a seemingly sure-fire root to success for haircare, manufacturers will be frantically searching for the next big celeb to make hair grow.