Beauty manufacturers cashing in on tween demand for make up

According to new research from Mintel in the US, a substantial 61 percent of girls aged 9-11 would like to wear more make up than their parents allow.

When it comes to regular usage, the report shows that 37 percent of girls aged 9-17 say they use lip gloss or lipstick every day, while a third report applying mascara on a daily basis. One in four girls cited stencil on eyeliner seven days a week and 16 percent use foundation every day.

"It appears that the use of foundation, eye liner and eye shadow increases sharply from age 12 to 13,"​ adds Kat Fay senior beauty analyst at Mintel. "This suggests that the first of the actual 'teen' years and the beginning of junior high school marks the expansion into more adult cosmetic products."​

Character merchandising​

And Fay adds that celebrity endorsement of cosmetic products can further appeal to the younger generation, making it far more difficult for parents to steer attention away.

"Character merchandising plays a large role in how manufacturers are marketing makeup and accessories to the tween and teen crowd and parents might struggle to keep their children from wanting a part of it,"​ she says.

"In order to attract this group and get support from parents, products must be subtle in appearance and emphasize that ingredients are safe for young skin, while still playing on the books and TV shows that tweens and teens find appealing."​

Spending habits​

According to the market researcher, more than half of all teens indicate that their moms help them make cosmetic choices, but this varies greatly by age.

Tweens are most likely to rely on their mothers to help with purchasing decisions (73 percent) while only four in ten girls aged 15-17 say they need or want mom's help.

Mintel also claims that it is not just adults that are affected by financial decisions when it comes to their beauty basics.

A quarter of tweens and teens say they buy whatever is on sale or cheapest at the time of purchase.