Why Harry Styles is 'Pleasing' the beauty space

Harry Styles’ new beauty brand, Pleasing, is shaking up the internet.

While he’s no stranger to the pop culture world, having already established a successful and lengthy music career - Harry has more recently extended his influence towards the men’s beauty and fashion space.

Taking advantage of the buzz within men’s cosmetics – with more and more beauty brands embracing this audience segment and creating lines specifically for men – Harry (and his consistent manicure) is perfectly suited to reign over this category.

He’s noticed a clear gap in the market (unisex beauty products) and is taking full advantage of this opportunity. The new beauty range boasts a variety of products, from nail polish to skincare.

In this blog, we’ll be looking into the men’s cosmetics category and the marketing strategies behind Pleasing’s success, exploring:

• How the men’s cosmetics market is opening up
• Why Pleasing’s latest ‘Shroom Bloom’ campaign was so successful
• What brands can expect from this category in the future

The market opportunity within men’s cosmetics

Traditionally, the cosmetics industry has been hyper focused on producing beauty products for women. And with women in the US spending up to $3,756 on beauty products every year, this isn’t surprising.

Some brands are making the move towards men. Take, Boy De Chanel - just one example of a brand that’s focusing on producing makeup ranges for the ‘modern man’.

With all this movement, it feels like the perfect time for Harry Styles to jump onboard and launch his gender-neutral makeup brand, Pleasing.

According to Statista, the global men’s grooming market in 2021 reached $70.15 billion and is projected to reach $81.2 billion by 2024.

Even though there’s a multitude of innovation happening within the space, the sector is still nascent and there’s a lot of learning for these brands to do before they can truly get into the mindset of this new audience. It’s time for creativity and bold thinking as we begin to reimagine and re-conceptualize what it is that men want from these brands and products.

While traditionally, male grooming has mainly consisted of bath products like shampoo & body wash, we’re starting to see product ranges expand. Brands like Stryx & Disco are making their mark with makeup that’s marketed specifically at men.

With new brands emerging and men’s expectations shifting, there could be a huge market opportunity here. And while Styles’ brand is unisex, men are at the forefront of the communications, partnerships, and marketing activations.

Why Pleasing’s latest campaign was so successful

Harry leveraged several tactics to engage with a completely new audience segment in his latest campaign, ‘Shroom Bloom’. We’ll be looking into his use of partnerships, packaging and communication.

Partnerships

The Shroom Bloom campaign was centered around nature and psychedelia - making use of motifs from the 70’s and featuring bright, bold colors. The face of the campaign was none other than Mick Fleetwood from Fleetwood Mac. This partnership was a huge surprise but somehow made complete sense. Using a rock legend like Mick Fleetwood and having him sit in a field with a perfect red manicure no doubt created the buzz Harry was looking for.

Partnering with Mick Fleetwood helped Harry to tap into Mick’s extensive fanbase, extending the appeal of Pleasing beyond Harry’s existing community. This move would have undoubtedly boosted Harry’s credibility, helping him to engage with an older audience beyond his own.

While this may not be the target audience for these products, this collection definitely succeeded in getting people from all generations to turn their heads.

Pleasing is also committed to prioritizing the well-being of people and the planet. They have partnered with Nest (a non-profit that works with artisans to build a world of greater gender equity and economic inclusion), and Cool Earth (a charity that focuses on protecting rainforests and aiding the climate crisis). These partnerships have elevated Pleasing’s status, showing it’s not just a beautiful brand but also a business with strong values, morals, and ideals.

Packaging

When it comes to encompassing a brand’s identity – packaging is crucial. It’s the first impression consumers have when learning about a new brand or product. Brands must nail it if they want to capture the interest of their audience.

To get noticed, Pleasing had to be sure to do something to stand out from the crowd. And the Shroom Bloom collection didn’t disappoint. These items are attractively packaged in brightly colored, psychedelically patterned boxes, with products cased in sophisticated bottles.

The images accompanying the launch were also beautifully designed with illustrations of flowers, mushrooms, and frogs.

It’s quite literally ‘Pleasing’ to look at.

Communication

It's no secret that Styles has a dedicated fanbase as everything he releases becomes an instant success. The launch of this collection was no different. Within the first few minutes of the launch, the Shroom Bloom collection went viral.

Within the first few weeks of the launch, fans saw the brand come to life with pop up shops opening across New York, London, and Los Angeles. Enabling fans to experience Pleasing in person and physically see the products helped them to establish a connection with the brand.

The messaging on Pleasing’s social platforms also encompasses the brand’s message. It’s a completely inclusive brand – whether that’s regarding age, gender, or race. Take a few scrolls through their campaign images and you’ll see the choice of models matches up with this ideal.

This inclusive representation helps audiences to connect with the brand on a deeper level, as they’re able to relate to those that are advertising the products.

What’s next for men’s cosmetics?

There’s a huge opportunity within cosmetics, as men begin to embrace new products and brands. Seeing Pleasing launch a hugely successful campaign with Mick Fleetwood is a definite indication that the cosmetics industry is starting to shift.

Tapping into the mindset of this audience and understanding their likes, dislikes, and pain-points is the key to engagement in the future.

If you want to find out more about the booming men’s cosmetics market, you can download our latest category report.

The report explores:

• The differences between the male and female mindset within the cosmetics category to understand what motivates buying behavior
• Which brands are performing the best with men and women, and what they’re doing to attract attention
• Strategies to position your brand in the best place to win within this space

Download here.