The beauty market is evolving not only through new active ingredients, technologies and product formats. Another element, traditionally associated with one specific category, is becoming increasingly important across the industry: scent.
According to McKinsey, fragrance has overtaken color cosmetics to become the third-largest of the four major global beauty categories. Looking ahead to 2030, it is also expected to deliver some of the most consistent growth across different price segments.
From a product development perspective, however, the growth of the fragrance category itself is only part of the story. What is particularly interesting is how scent is expanding into other areas of beauty.
Scent Is No Longer Limited to Perfume
Body mists, hair fragrances, scented oils, body creams, lotions and hand care products demonstrate how the boundaries between traditional fragrance and other beauty categories are becoming increasingly blurred.
The US market provides a clear indication of this shift. According to Circana, sales of body sprays increased by 94% in 2024, while hair fragrances grew by 32%.
This is a meaningful signal from a product development perspective. Consumers no longer experience fragrance exclusively through traditional perfume. Scent can now accompany different stages of the daily routine – during bathing, body care, hair care or hand care.
As a result, fragrance is taking on a broader role: it is becoming part of the product experience.
Scent Layering Is Changing the Way Product Portfolios Are Designed
One trend that clearly illustrates this shift is scent layering – building a fragrance experience through several complementary products.
A body wash can provide the first layer, followed by a body lotion or butter, an oil, a body mist and even a hair fragrance.
From a portfolio development perspective, this creates a significant opportunity.
Instead of developing a single product, it becomes possible to design an entire product ecosystem connected by a consistent fragrance profile:
• body wash
• body lotion or body butter
• body oil
• hand care
• body mist
• hair mist
Each product can offer a different function, texture, application experience and fragrance intensity while remaining part of one coherent concept.
This approach also creates opportunities to expand a product portfolio around a single sensory direction rather than relying on one hero SKU.
One Fragrance Composition Does Not Mean One Formulation
From a technical perspective, applying the same fragrance direction across multiple products is not simply a matter of adding the same fragrance composition at the same concentration to every formulation.
Each product format creates a different formulation environment.
A fragrance composition will behave differently in an emulsion, an oil-based product, a cleansing system or a water-based mist. Factors such as solubility and solubilisation of the composition, the type of base, its pH, the presence of surfactants, emulsifiers and other ingredients, as well as the target fragrance concentration all need to be considered.
A fragrance composition can also affect the properties of the finished formulation, which is why it needs to be evaluated within the complete product system.
This is where a market trend becomes a genuine R&D challenge.
Scent Needs to Work with the Formulation
In a cosmetic product, fragrance does not function independently from the rest of the formulation.
During product development, it is important to assess its compatibility with the base and its potential impact on stability, appearance, viscosity and sensory properties. Compatibility between the finished formulation and the selected packaging is another important consideration.
Fragrance intensity and release also need to be adapted to the product format. A rinse-off product requires a different sensory approach from a body lotion that remains on the skin, while a body or hair mist creates another type of fragrance experience altogether.
Developing a coherent scented range therefore requires more than selecting a fragrance composition. It requires adapting the fragrance experience to the function of each individual product.
From Fragrance Composition to a Complete Product Concept
The growing importance of fragrance also creates interesting opportunities from a portfolio and business perspective.
A single fragrance concept can provide the foundation for multiple product formats. A range may begin with a body lotion and mist and later expand into a body wash, oil, hand cream or hair product.
The same approach can be used to develop seasonal collections, limited-edition fragrance variations or sets designed around scent layering.
In this model, fragrance becomes an element that connects the entire product portfolio.
This does not mean that formulation performance becomes less important. On the contrary, the strongest product concepts emerge when the sensory experience is combined with a well-designed formulation and relevant skincare benefits.
Fragrance as Part of Product Development
The changes taking place within the fragrance market reflect a broader evolution across the beauty industry.
Cosmetic products are increasingly designed around more than their primary function. Texture, application, packaging, sensory experience and the ability to connect a product with other stages of a beauty routine are all becoming important elements of product development.
The question is therefore no longer simply: "What should this cosmetic product smell like?"
From a product development perspective, a more interesting question is:
"What role can scent play within the entire product concept?"
Fragrance can remain an additional element of a formulation, but it can also become the starting point for several complementary products, a coherent beauty ritual and an entire cosmetic range.
MG Evolution – From Concept to Production
At MG Evolution, we support cosmetic product development from the initial product concept and formulation development through ingredient, fragrance and packaging selection to testing and the production of the finished product.
Looking for a partner to develop modern cosmetic formulations or an entire product range built around the potential of fragrance? Contact us.