Women's Health (Part A) - Nutraceutical Trend #2

UMMARY

1.??????Introduction

2.??????The market of Women’s Health

3.??????Women – A perfect audience for the Nutraceutical Industry

4.??????Supplements & Women’s Empowerment

5.??????Living longer healthier lives

6.??????Conclusion

7.??????References

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1.?????INTRODUCTION

The Women's Health market has experienced phenomenal development in recent years and for a good reason: nutraceutical brands are finally listening to women’s needs and bringing adequate solutions to the table – after decades of underserving this key portion of their consumer base.

The Nutraceutical sector has finally started showing responsiveness to the fast evolution of modern women’s expectations, brought about by significant shifts in societal and cultural paradigms as well as recent scientific progress.

As a consequence, numerous brands are now developing entire nutraceutical product ranges geared towards women’s ever evolving needs – from urinary comfort to perinatal support, including the alleviation of menopausal or PMS – and even some more medicalized applications like endometriosis and PCOS. ?

The Nutraceutical sector is riding the wave of the Feminine Health boom; and here is why your brand should too.

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2.?????THE MARKET OF WOMEN'S HEALTH

First of all, Feminine Health has great market potential in terms of size and growth.

In 2021, the global market value of?Beauty and Health Dietary Supplements?for women was valued at nearly €50 billion. By 2028, this category is expected to reach €68,5 billion, with an expected annual growth rate of 4,7%?[1].

In 2019 alone, the?Global Women’s Health Market?accounted for an outstanding 26% (€28,8 billion) of the global Dietary Supplements sector revenue?– worth €111 billion?[2]. And that’s not all: the global market of Feminine Beauty and Health Supplements is expected to keep a steady progression of 4,3% in value between 2021 and 2028 [3].

In France alone, Women’s Health created an annual turnover of over € 51 million in 2020. That represents 3,27% of the national nutraceutical market share and a growth of 7,9% compared to the previous year?[4] – not bad for the maturing market it is in Europe.

Needless to say – Feminine Health holds great potential for revenue and growth. It is, in our opinion, one of the main segments to keep an eye on (and possibly invest in) in the Nutraceutical industry in the near future. But most of all – it is an opportunity for brands to take the lead on responsive and innovative value proposition to participate in the transformational (r-)evolution of the dynamic and fascinating sector of Women’s Health.

3.?????WOMEN – A PERFECT AUDIENCE FOR THE NUTRACEUTICAL INDUSTRY?

(Working) women are a great consumer base for nutraceutical brands – and one that has been underserved for way too long.

Studies and surveys not only show that women are more likely to adopt a preventive health approach; they are also more inclined to include supplements as part of their health and wellbeing routine. In the US alone, the 2019 CRN USA Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplements found that 79% of adult women take supplements – against 74% of their male counterparts. And the numbers are likely to be even more significant in Europe.

Because they are more invested in preserving their present and future health, women also buy and are willing to spend more of their rising disposable income on these categories of products.

In addition, as primary consumer of supplements, women also play a key role in the decision-making and purchase of health products for their household. ?For this reason, they also tend to be scrupulous readers of labels and ingredient lists which makes them all the more demanding in terms of product quality; developing formulas focused on safety, efficacy and naturalness can make all the difference.

This is particularly true during the delicate periods of conception, pregnancy and early motherhood – which come with particularly challenging nutritional stakes. According to the Nutraceutical Business Journal, prenatal and postnatal dietary supplements generated € 652 million in 2019, accounting for 39% of the women’s health sector sales?[3]. Offering women adequate support through safer more natural solutions is particularly crucial in this step, not only to ensure their health and well-being but that of their child as well.

Having a qualitative value proposition addressed to women in your product portfolio can therefore be an important hook to reach the family as a whole, to whom the supplement savvy feminine consumers will recommend the brands they know and trust. Satisfied female customers can be a major asset for supplement brands.

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4.?????SUPPLEMENTS & WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT

?Recent societal shifts in gender roles and equality have also brought about important changes in the needs of modern-day women. In the health and nutrition area in particular, dietary supplements have emerged as a natural healthy solution to help active women navigate through the challenges of their busy – if not hectic – lifestyles. Supplements empower women to take their health and well-being back into their own hands.

On the one hand, this translates to an increase in gender-specific product applications against stress, anxiety and fatigue, that can help manage the heavy mental load resulting from highly demanding job positions and the all-too-common “double day”. But not only: galenic forms also adapt to these new needs, with more and more convenient and on-the-go formats, as well as tasty / pleasurable formulas to help women feel good and create healthy habits.

In terms of benefits, studies show women’s needs revolve around 3 major challenges: having their nutritional needs met, maintaining hormonal balance and supporting healthy mood and energy levels. These 3 therapeutic targets clearly echo modern women’s challenges, but many other segments are addressing their consequent conditions of particularly high prevalence in women – like osteoarthritis (linked to menopause), infertility, or chronic stress.

On the other hand, women empowerment is also about breaking taboos and starting a conversation on long overlooked Women's Health topics like endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or infertility.

Scientific research plays a key role in this: recent data has brought tremendous progress in the understanding of female-specific medical conditions. Not only is this contributing to increasing awareness and knowledge of these conditions, but it is also encouraging further research and bringing new “therapeutic” answers to the table, especially through preventive dietary supplements solutions.

This results in new product launches are gradually diversifying from the mature segments of menopause and pregnancy multivitamins to innovative solutions for largely un(der)-addressed segments like feminine libido, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), vaginal health, or even female incontinence. Although the proof of efficacy of nutritional supplements in these areas is still in its infancy, the promising potential of certain bioactive botanicals is paving the way for the development of more science-backed natural-based solutions to support women’s health.

In this regard, French Laboratory Equilibrist is worthy of mention; this ambitious start-up is building a unique supplement range to (finally) offer women with PMS, endometriosis and PCOS an innovative solution to alleviate their symptoms.

Finally, another significant societal shift is contributing to reshape the Women’s Health market : the evolution of perceived body type ideals. The skinny physique diktat is gradually fading away in favor of the acceptance and embrace of women’s diversity of bodies – therefore creating a broader perception of what healthy, active and strong bodies can look like.

As a consequence, the traditionally (and unscientific) ?feminine categories of weight loss like fat-burners, laxatives and detox, are giving way to a female optimized nutrition approach for active lifestyles, sports practice, and muscle mass gain – the latter being driven by a massive increase in protein supplements consumption.

Also, education is empowering. Leveraging expertise to inform and allow consumers to make informed decisions about their health can be a powerful tool for building trust and brand credibility / legitimacy; especially when it comes to a topic that has been as poorly understood in the past as women’s health has.

This is why an increasing number of women healthcare brands are going far beyond their role in supplying dietary supplements; they strive to raise awareness and educate their consumers on important topics of feminine health. How ? By building entire support networks / communities and creating abundant educational contents to encourage exchange and demystify certain aspects of women’s health.

Indeed, platforms like?Le Lab de L’Endo, a French online digital community & shop dedicated to supporting and educating women about endometriosis or Womaness, an American brand specialized in menopause support who has made it its mission to promote / embrace “Menopositivity” among perimenopausal women.

Same goes for American brand?Natalist, which on top of providing its feminine customers with all kinds of self-care and diagnostic products also provides educational support through every stage of conception, tackling the hard topics of infertility, miscarriage and post-partum depression in the process.

5.?????LIVING LONGER HEALTHIER LIVES

?Healthy aging is a particularly important topic for women these days, and it most definitely should be for Nutraceutical brands too. As previously mentioned, female consumers are more prone to actively invest in their future health, appearance, and well-being and they do so from a younger age.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the global life expectancy of women at birth has progressed from 69 years old in 2000 to 75 in 2015. This drastic increase in life expectancy has led women to live well beyond their fertile period; and unsurprisingly, to seek solutions to help them stay as active, young and healthy as they possibly can.

As it turns out, the global Women’s Health and Beauty Supplements Market is dominated by the 31–50 years age group segment, accounting for 41,5% of the revenue [4]. Consistent with the preventive health approach of adult women, this data is also an indicator that the higher (and increasing) purchasing power of adult women is likely to benefit the sector in the long run.

Add to that the particularly tricky period of perimenopause. In 2019, the alleviation of menopausal symptoms alone was already estimated to have earned the Supplement industry an estimated € 521 million, with a growth of 6,2% compared to the previous year?[5]. But as life expectancy rises, menopausal symptoms will affect modern women for a 1/3 of their lives, certainly making it one of the key issues to address in future women-targeted supplements.

The transition into infertility is a delicate stage in a woman’s life; developing innovative adapted solutions to mitigate its discomforts could be an important lever to offer women the longer and higher quality of life they seek. And not just that: it would also possibly reduce the risk of hormone-dependent pathologies (osteoporosis, ovarian cancer).

Finally, the Beauty from Within segment is also gaining significant traction among aging women as they wish to preserve their youthful complexion. Particularly popular in Asia, nutricosmetics is one of the fastest growing product categories in the Nutraceutical sector,?whose higher prices range (comparable to those of the luxurious cosmetic industry) offer greater opportunities for high quality efficacious products. But more on that in a future in-depth article about nutricosmetics.

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6.?????CONCLUSION

The numbers speak for themselves?– Women’s Health is a prominent and dynamic segment of the Nutraceutical market, and one likely to continue prospering in the future. The sector’s responsiveness, fractionation and diversification clearly echoes the important societal changes modern women are going through – just as much as they take their particularly variable physiological needs into account (throughout their cycle, life stages and aging).

Although relatively mature, the market of Women’s Health is showing more dynamism than ever before, and it draws a lot of inspiration from key / background nutraceuticals trends like personalization, holistic health or probiotics – all of which will be discussed in a second article on Women’s Health in the future.

Healthy Aging is a particularly important topic for women these days, and it most definitely should be for Nutraceutical brands too,as women are more prone to actively invest in their future health, appearance, and well-being from a younger age.

New product developments in this sphere are multiplying at great speed, covering both traditional applications and holistic wellness solutions as well as emerging more medicalized segments; and scientific research on female-specific conditions – and related treatment solutions – will likely be a key driver of this. Indeed, novel health topics like endometriosis, infertility and PCOS could give innovative brands an edge.

Moreover, women do not just buy health products for themselves: they are also more likely to thoroughly analyze, choose and recommend products to their loved ones. So if you want to convince tough consumers, you better convince your feminine consumer base first. Which is why developing a solid Women's Health value proposition as part of your brands range strategy can go a long way to capture supplement savvy female consumers and retain the entire household. In addition, having a range that supports women at all stages of life is a powerful loyalty tool; today’s active young women looking for a solution for stress or fatigue will one day become the mothers and mature women you could serve tomorrow.

With this in mind, developing thorough health and well-being solutions that tick the boxes of women’s major concerns – that is, safety, naturalness, scientifically backed efficacy or even sustainability – could also turn out to be a considerable differentiating argument.

At BOTALYS, we believe current times call for a new era of women centered nutraceuticals, aimed at reflecting the great diversity in women’s needs and supporting them throughout every challenge and every stage of their lives.

The nutraceutical sector can empower women to reclaim control of their health and support them in living long, active and healthy lives. How ? By providing them with an ever-increasing diversity of natural, effective and science-backed solutions specifically tailored to their needs. And we want to be a part of this. Do you ?

Stay tuned for the second article about the market of Women’s Health, where we will offer a more in depth analysis of current product trends and applications.

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7.?????REFERENCES

[1] Capstone Partners?– Women’s Health and Beauty Supplements Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report, Dec 14 2021.

[2] Nutrition Insight?– Beyond fertility: Women’s health market broadens as industry flags major potential, Nov 9 2020.

[3] Grand View Research?– Women’s Health and Beauty Supplements Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report, Oct 2021.

[4] Actif’s Mag n°75, Printemps 2021 (p.20-21).

[5] Natural Products Insider?– Product Development Guide in Nutrition for Women – How personalized formulations can be a major win with women, October 2020.