NEW YORK — As men become increasingly concerned about their looks, Redken is hoping to capitalize on their vanity.
Redken for Men, a 15-item hair care, professional color and styling aids range is set to launch in salons next month. “The timing is completely right in terms of the evolution of the male market,” David Craggs, president of L’Oréal USA’s Professional Products Division, said during a launch event for Redken for Men at Cutler Salon last week.
“The average guy spends 24 minutes a day on grooming and uses five to seven products,” noted David Stanko, Redken’s senior director of technical development for hair color, citing a Gallup study last year. He added that 50 percent of men think their hair is the most important aspect of their appearance.
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“The men’s grooming market is a $14 billion industry worldwide,” Stanko said, pointing to Euromonitor data. The sector, he contended, is expected to grow 27 percent during the three-year period ending next year.
While Redken does not disclose sales figures, industry sources estimated the L’Oréal-owned brand currently generates roughly $200 million in wholesale sales. Redken for Men is expected to reach as many as 15,000 salons in the U.S. by mid-May. The items are seen trickling into Redken’s international markets by yearend. Craggs projected that, “Within a year, Redken for Men will account for 15 percent of total sales.”
While men’s introductions at U.S. salons in recent years have included hair care and styling entries by American Crew and hair color by MiN Men’s Color Match, Redken executives argue that a salon line has not comprehensively addressed hair care, styling and professional hair color for men. Even Matrix, Redken’s sister brand, which is L’Oréal Professional’s biggest hair care brand, does not market a line specifically targeting men. “Currently, there’s not a lot of activity for male hair and [we want] to fill that gap,” Craggs said. “We’re in a good place at a good time.”
Redken for Men includes three shampoos, a conditioner, four styling aids and a cleansing bar for retail sale as well as a range of six professional color shades. Products are designed to replenish proteins and carbohydrates that Redken research says are lost throughout the day. The demi-permanent shades in the color range, which is called Color Camo, are designed to work in 10 minutes and gradually fade from the hair over a period of time. They’re designed to blend out gray or, as Stanko put it, add “more pepper to salt-and-pepper hair.”
Targeting urban males between the ages of 25 and 50, Redken for Men comes in gunmetal packaging. Even the products’ aroma, a blend of accords including citrus, is meant to be masculine.
An advertising campaign for Redken for Men is slated to break in July issues of Details, Cargo, GQ, Interview, Maxim, Rolling Stone and Men’s Health. “Now is the time,” said Cutler Salon owner Rodney Cutler, who is also Redken’s editorial spokesman. “It’s a huge opportunity for our business.”
— Matthew W. Evans