With aging, the skin becomes thinner and drier. The skin increasingly loses its firmness and elasticity, and wrinkles start to appear. Added to dryness, wrinkles, the complexion of skin also plays an important role in our appearance. In addition, the immune capacity of the skin is increasingly being lost. This has very important implications for skin complexion. Skin damage is repaired more slowly, the skin is also irritated more quickly – it becomes more sensitive. Skin redness can occur. Due to the thinning skin, the blood vessels especially under the eyes also shine through more strongly, which can lead to greater visibility of dark circles. Also, age spots can become visible. All in all, the complexion becomes more uneven and also paler, which is not least due to the slowed down skin renewal. This makes people look tired and unhealthy.

As for Silver Agers, results are important. A perfect skin care routine has to address all their needs. Ideally, skincare products for Silver Agers should focus on supporting the skin renewal processes and immune capacity of the skin. With these approaches the overall quality and complexion of the skin will be improved. In addition, it is extremely helpful to provide intensive moisture and reduce wrinkles. In order to achieve this, skin irritation must be reduced on the one hand, but also the visibility of dark circles and age spots on the other.

So far, the scientific approach of skincare products for Silver Agers. Silver Agers are difficult to convince, though. What makes them special as a consumer of cosmetic products? How do products have to be positioned from a marketing point of view in order to convince Silver Agers?

First of all, they don’t necessarily want to look younger and they certainly don’t believe in miracles. According to Mintel, 68% of Silver Agers (65+) are embracing the aging process. They have a large focus on their physical health. This is not surprising, as health is increasingly a precious commodity in their age and is also perceived as such. This effect has increased even more due to the corona pandemic. More than any other generation, they also have a keen awareness of how physical health affects appearance. As a result, older adults seek products that offer both appearance- and health-related benefits, with that supporting their overall well-being.

According to Mintel, a full 76% of Silver Agers (65+) even state that health is more important to them than their appearance. In addition, 45% (75+) state that their beauty routine is simplified. This means that products should be as easy to use as possible and be multifunctional so that their care routine can be shortened and simplified. This does not mean that the care routine only consists of cleaning products, however. Only 18% (75+) state that they use care products for purely hygienic reasons.

So the interest in cosmetic products is definitely there. But do they feel well-catered to by the cosmetics industry?

As already mentioned, younger Silver Agers, namely menopausal women are currently receiving quite a lot of attention by the cosmetics industry. Many companies, especially the global big players, are now working with brand ambassadors from the generation of Silver Agers and there has been a slow but steady shift from anti-aging to healthy aging messages in marketing for several years. Nevertheless, the older Silver Agers over 65 remain a target group that is often overlooked. And this is particularly reflected in the emotional components of cosmetics.

According to Mintel 48% of Silver Agers (65+) think that beauty products make them feel good about themselves and only 25% have fun using beauty products. There is great potential here for cosmetics manufacturers, because older people in particular are often restricted in their everyday lives and are more often alone. They suffer particularly from the many contact restrictions during the pandemic and feel lonely.

What could be better than if a cosmetic product could also bring a little joy into their everyday life?

Ideally, cosmetic products for the older Silver Agers are specially tailored to the needs of their skin and should be highly effective. Other important needs are multifunctionality and ease of use, with benefits which are clearly communicated and a focus on healthy appearance. This requires active ingredients with proven efficacy that support the skin in regaining its immune capacity, such as our ProRenew Complex CLR™, or in improving the overall structure of the skin, such as our MPC™ – Milk Peptide Complex.

But above all we should take a look, put people and their needs in the foreground and give them back the joy of cosmetics.