Rissa Mananquil Trillo, founder of Happy Skin And Jackie Avecilla, marketing manager of Rustan's The Beauty Source share their perspectives.
The past year has been tumultuous for most industries, as we all know. This got me thinking about the beauty and make-up industry specifically seeing as the new normal has us totally masked up. With masks covering half of our faces, the need for lipsticks, foundation, blush, and more has become much less essential. Eye makeup on the other hand seems to have become a go-to for many these days. To get a better grasp of what is actually going we spoke to Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, founder of Happy Skin and Jackie Avecilla, Marketing Communications Manager of Rustans The Beauty Source.
“Being in the business of beauty and the use of face masks has been mandated, they say the theory of the "lipstick effect" (where women historically buy lipstick to feel better during hard times) will give way to the "eyeliner effect" as the barometer of the economy during this pandemic. Women now care about eye makeup more because that's what's visible,” Rissa says.
Jackie shares, in agreement: “People focus more on eye make-up since it’s the only part of our face that’s seen, plus we even use our eyes now, more than ever, to communicate”. However, Rissa notes that “with the work from home situation, it's about "above the keyboard” dressing. We can't deny that lipsticks still get the most airtime in a Zoom call”.
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Interestingly, Rissa shares that “consumers still look for complexion products like foundation, powder, and concealer,” but that they have been on the hunt for “a different kind of protection while indoors—SPF and blue light”. With a range of economic concerns that many are facing, Rissa feels that “consumers want hardworking items that provide good value”. She reminds us that “good value doesn’t mean low prices. Good value is about having a product made with quality ingredients, something multi-use, and trans-seasonal. Comfort at home and self-care are more important than ever; that's why skincare is also big”.
Jackie has noticed the same upward trend in the skincare market. Especially with maskne on the rise, many are working hard to keep their skin clear and looking youthful. “Rustan’s The Beauty Source focused our efforts on other products, mainly skincare. We put the spotlight on products that can help our customers maintain that healthy glow, such as cleansers, toners, scrubs, essences, serums, moisturisers, eye creams and let’s not forget sunblock,” Jackie explains.
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