Eye care and face care brands can benefit from introducing products in contactless application formats such as sticks, roll-on or sprays that allow consumers to apply products without touching their face. The lesson learned from not touching the face with the hands could become an instilled behavior that consumers will keep in mind when purchasing eye and facial products post-COVID-19, creating a potential appeal for contactless applications, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Kshama Raj, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “In India, 65% of consumers completely or somewhat agree that they want to look younger than their age, much higher than the 46% global average. Due to the mandatory mask requirement in India, eye and face products could come under increased scrutiny from the consumers as they look for safe options to look less than their actual age.”

The most common formats for eye creams and facial moisturizers in India are tub, tube, pump bottles and dropper (serums or oils), which typically involve first dispensing the product on to the hands before applying to the face or eyes. The spray format is common in skin care in India but is only used in selected categories such as face mists, toners, or makeup setting sprays.

These are somewhat of a niche group in the body moisturizers or sunscreens categories and are typically designed for easy application in hard to reach areas. Apart from lip balms, stick formats are mostly restricted to makeup products and are not very common in skin care products in India.

Raj concludes: “Indulging in innovative eye makeup and moisturizers could be particularly appealing to women as the eyes are the main facial feature in view when wearing a mask. During the COVID-19 outbreak, 41% of people in India spent significantly more/slightly more time/all day, every day on actively posting on social media when compared to before and contactless facial and skin care products could especially interest image-conscious consumers.

“Makeup usage is also likely to result in people wanting to spend in skin and eye care, and invest in hygienic contactless application formats that can be used both at-home and on-the-go. In India, skin care products appear to remain a priority as 56% of consumers in India are buying the skin care products in same quantities as before/buying more/significantly more/stockpiling than before as against 33% noting the same for makeup. This suggests a feel-good factor associated with skin care products.”