Beauty appliances have the potential to boost the slowing down electronics market by attracting more female customers.
The rising quest of people to fulfil their beauty needs is leading to the development and popularity of fabulous electronic grooming tools. Electronics manufacturers see promise in a range of beauty gadgets targeting women in particular, from high-tech hair dryers to steam skin moisturisers.
Convergence of beauty with electronics
Originally, beauty-related electronic gadgets were mainly produced for and used by beauty professionals in hair salons and esthetic clinics. These began filtering into the consumer market about a decade ago and have picked up steam in the last few years. Lifestyle changes have provided a tailwind and consumers are increasingly becoming health- and beauty-conscious. Electronic beauty products have become a must for busy people who want to maintain their appearance. Beauty appliances have the potential to boost the slowing down electronics market by attracting more female customers.
Personal grooming equipment like shavers, trimmers, nose hair trimmers, ear hair trimmers, hair straightening irons and beauty curlers have long been available in the market. Mainstays in the beauty electronics market include skin steamers, hair dryers and curling irons. The trend nowadays is to have these emit negative ions, which help keep skin and hair healthy. In fact, even skin moisturising gadgets based on this principle are now available. For instance, Sharp Corp. has developed a portable appliance that uses ions to keep skin moist. It weighs only 30 grams, and can be clipped to a jacket and taken anywhere.
Broadly, beauty appliances can be categorised based on following applications:
- Facial and body massage
- Eye fatigue relief
- Hair treatment
- Skin care
Market status
Japanese electronics industry is well known for its innovative products, but with the slowing down of electronics industry in terms of the demand for entertainment and communication electronic devices, industrialists are turning their attention towards health and beauty electronics. Japanese beauty industry isn’t far behind in terms of innovativeness. Face razors, eyelash curlers, heating and cooling pads, and the infamous face rollers—all of these are beauty electronics that we can only find in Japan.
Inspired by growth in the domestic market, Japanese makers are looking to cultivate the overseas market for health and beauty products. Many makers are considering taking their products overseas as foreign competitors are yet to enter this category in a big way. Panasonic is among the front runners, which has already started selling its beauty electronics products in India and Europe. Rivals including South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. are yet to enter the offshore competition in beauty appliance field.
Devices at a glance
Beauty electronics can be defined as electronics that not only serves a function but also adds to the user’s overall beauty in the process. These are a special type of home electronics devices that are meant for facial, hair and body care. Looking fabulous is easy with electrical beauty products, and you will find everything you need to create a stylish new look. Whether you are looking to reduce fine lines or wrinkles, treat spot-prone skin or just want your face to look softer and brighter, there are a host of skincare tools out there which claim to fulfil your requirements.
Some of the beauty electronics appliances available in the market are:
Face roller
This device creates a weak electric impulse when you roll it on your face and skin, helping to keep your skin young and firm. It also comes with a stand that you can use to warm up the roller and make the experience even more pleasant.
Micro-foaming facial cleanser
Equipped with soft bristles and a vibrating mechanism, this device works up lather and gives your face a much-needed massage after a long day. Some of these facial cleansers also come with interchangeable brushes, which are great for exfoliating or removing dead skin cells.
Exideal EX-280
This is yet another treat for skin that you don’t even have to touch on your face in order to release its magical powers. It resembles a hand mirror, but instead of a reflective surface, it has LED lights. These lights emit different wavelengths, which, when combined, have a beneficial effect on your skin, helping it preserve a youthful appearance.
Eyelash curler
These devices are pretty much tiny versions of your hair curling wand—they do actually heat up and are supposed to give your lashes a complete makeover.
Dreamin head
Looking like a futuristic biker helmet, this device has a massaging mechanism that fits along your neck and scalp, a heating pad at the back of head, and pulsating airbags across forehead. Aside from helping with headaches and stress, it does wonders for hair.
Meme steamer
Spending too much time in front of screens can cause serious damage to your eyes—mainly due to loss of moisture. Meme steamer helps your eyes relax and rehydrate after a long day.
Hot and cold face plates
This device is a small double-sided plate meant to rejuvenate the skin of your face. One side of the plate heats up to 42 degrees Celsius, while the other side goes down to approximately 12 degrees Celsius. Thus the device gives your skin a bit of a shock by alternating between cold and hot plates, keeping the skin healthy and firm.
Nano-care hair dryer
This device doesn’t just dry your hair by blowing wind about but creates a nano-ionic wind that restores the moisture balance in the hair and scalp, making your hair stronger and resistant to damage from brushing.
Dr S.S. Verma is a professor at Department of Physics, Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Sangrur, Punjab
