Europe Cosmetic Plastic Packaging Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Europe Cosmetic Plastic Packaging Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The European cosmetic plastic packaging market, in terms of revenue, is estimated at USD 3.52 billion in the current year. The market is expected to reach USD 4.08 billion over the forecast period, registering a CAGR of 2.96%. The market volume is estimated at 26.21 billion units in the current year. The market is expected to reach 30.58 billion units by the next five years, registering a CAGR of 3.13%.

• Due to its innovation, the European beauty sector has consistently demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt to crises. The hygienic crisis has accelerated several pre-2019 behaviors, so cosmetics companies now face a new challenge, i.e., responding to rising trends and demands. Because of the repeated lockdowns, there has never been a greater demand for high-quality goods, such as GMO-free, gluten-free, organic, clean, reef-friendly, transparent, recyclable, and vegan.
• Europe has the potential market for organic and natural cosmetic products, driven by the shifting consumer preferences toward the beauty industry. According to a poll by the Global Web Index on more than 2,300 web users from the United Kingdom who routinely purchase organic and natural cosmetics, 80% do so out of concern for their health and the environment. Europe's cosmetics market is anticipated to increase and hold onto its top spot in the next years due to its big consumer base.
• According to the statistics displayed by Cosmetics Europe, the consumption value of cosmetics and personal care products in Europe rose to EUR 80.03 billion (~USD 86.26 billion) in 2021, after a dip in the previous year. Almost one-fifth of Europe's total cosmetic market value comprises skin care products. Consumers' growing health consciousness drives the demand for natural personal care products. Consumers are gravitating toward organic personal care products due to the rising demand for organic ingredients, which is anticipated to fuel market expansion over the forecast period.
• According to the European Commission, most plastic in Europe is burned or landfilled instead of being recycled. Many packagings cannot or are difficult to recycle, such as dark food containers that are missed by sorting scans or plastic-lined paper coffee cups. Also, recycling is often a resource- and cost-intensive process that only turns a profit when there is significant demand for the finished product and plenty of waste plastic to process in extensive facilities. This factor is expected to challenge the market's growth.
• The relevance of customized beauty, which was already a trend before COVID, may further increase. Market players are expected to fully consider online counsel and artificial intelligence to accommodate a new manner of purchasing. The Z generation's views and consumption patterns are noteworthy because they were formed in an era of social media. The younger generation likes to stage the products online, a popular form of communication that has become even more crucial since the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Europe is the home of luxurious and exclusive cosmetic brands like Unilever, COTY, L'Oréal, AVON, and many others. These brands put consistent efforts into innovating the newest style of product packaging to attract customers across the world. Plastic dominates the market for product packaging. Owing to their transparency and molding capacity, plastic bottles, jars, compacts and tubes, caps, closures, and many others are highly acceptable for packaging as many cosmetic products.
• To create cosmetic tubes and caps that help the circular economy, in March 2022, L'Occitane en Provence partnered with the material manufacturer LyondellBasell, the chemical recycler Plastic Energy, and Albéa Tubes. L'Occitane's almond line products would be contained in the two redesigned packaging. The source material for LyondellBasell was recycled oils from Plastic Energy, marketed under the name TACOIL, which was then allotted to the item for tubes and caps using a mass balance method.
• As per the European Consumer Packaging Perceptions Study, over two-thirds of the customers are attracted to eco-friendly packaging. In line with the environmental wellness trend, in June 2021, L'Oréal launched the first cosmetic bottle made entirely of recycled plastic using Carbios' enzymatic technology. It plans to manufacture the bottles based on this game-changing invention in 2025. According to Brand Finance, L'Oréal Paris came out on top of the list of European cosmetic brands in 2022 with a brand worth almost USD 10291.69 million. Nivea, a brand owned by Beiersdorf, came in second with a brand worth approximately USD 6245.03 million. L'Oréal expanded its sale value on the back of regular innovation and promoting social responsibility product packaging.
• Cosmetics brands are making deliberate decisions on sourcing ingredients and manufacturing techniques in line with the sustainability trend. In May 2022, Libo launched a new collection of biodegradable and post-consumer recycled (PCR) packaging, comprising lipstick, lip gloss, and compacts in various sizes. The new eco-friendly palette from Libo Cosmetics is a traditional palette made with a significant amount of PCR (post-consumer recycled) and PET materials.
• Consumers are giving sustainability significant consideration while making purchases. For long-term consumer attraction, more brands are anticipated to develop cutting-edge plastic packaging solutions with recyclability and reusability.

• Due to the demand for organic and natural products, France's beauty and personal care products market is expanding. The cosmetic packaging market is increasing due to the rising demand for anti-aging products and cutting-edge, eco-friendly packaging designs. Online retail outlets also impact the country's sales of cosmetics and personal care items. According to the E-Commerce Federation and Distance Selling Statistics from 2022, 43% of hygiene and beauty items were bought online in France in 2021.
• In October 2022, to help the French natural beauty brand L'Occitane en Provence achieve a crucial environmental goal of using 100% recycled PET in its bottles by 2025, Loop Industries and L'Occitane en Provence announced the first results of their collaboration. The prototype shows the company's almond shower oil in a container made entirely from recycled PET resin. They provide game-changing technologies that can contribute to resolving the growing concern about plastic pollution worldwide.
• In April 2022, LVMH Beauty and Origin Materials established a strategic alliance to create packaging with a low carbon footprint for the fragrance and cosmetics industries. This relationship will be built around carbon-negative PET and bioplastic technology.
• In February 2022, Axium Packaging, a company that produces jars, bottles, and closures for the personal care industries out of PET, PP, and PCR PP, as well as recycled and biodegradable PET, relocated to new production facilities in a 22,000 sq. m industrial structure that it purchased in the first semester of 2021. The company anticipates a more than 15% increase in manufacturing capacity with the addition of this new location. In early 2022, two production workshops were integrated with new equipment focused on Industry 4.0.
• However, products for personal care and cosmetics sold in France must adhere to anti-waste regulations. Companies are now compelled to find a use for unsold non-food products, including cosmetics, as this regulation strongly forbids their disposal (landfilling and incineration) (e.g., donating them to associations or recycling). There is an exception for products where recycling would have a detrimental environmental impact, is prohibited, or has no technical possibility of reuse, recovery, or recycling.

The European cosmetic plastic packaging market is highly fragmented, with the presence of major players like Albea SA, HCP Packaging Co. Ltd, Gerresheimer AG, Berry Global Group, and Aptar Group Inc. Players in the market are adopting strategies such as partnerships and acquisitions to enhance their product offerings and gain sustainable competitive advantage.

• October 2022 - Berry Global partnered with Cosmos Corporation to introduce a new line of squeezable tubes for Cosmos’s Texture Theory, a trademarked brand launched in July in approximately 6,000 general stores.
• October 2022 - Milliken & Company, a leader in plastics additive and colorant technology, teamed up with Huhtamaki Group, a flexible packaging firm in Finland, to create a mono-material laminate for use in tubes aimed at cosmetics, toothpaste, and other personal-care applications. Milliken claimed that its UltraGuard Solutions, which inhibit the transmission of oxygen and moisture in polyethylene, allowed the company to increase the barrier qualities of HDPE film by up to 50%.

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