Men’s grooming to see boost in popularity this Father’s Day

By

Robin Driver

Published
Jun 2, 2020

With 75% of Americans planning to celebrate Father’s Day in 2020, the number of consumers intending to purchase personal care products as gifts has shot up 21% compared to last year, according to a new study from the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Prosper Insight & Analytics.

25% of those surveyed this year said that they intended to buy personal care gifts for their fathers, up from 21% in 2019. Other fast-growing gift categories include home and gardening, and tools and appliances, both of which featured on 21% of consumers’ gift lists.
 
The number of Father’s Day shoppers planning to buy home or gardening equipment rose 29% compared to the previous year, while tools and appliances saw a 20% rise in popularity, along with sports and leisure gear.

NRF attributes the rise in demand for home and gardening gifts to shelter-in-place measures implemented due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, which have meant that many dads have had more time to dedicate to projects around the house.

The study puts the rise in the popularity of personal care gifts down to the health crisis as well, pointing out that, with the temporary closure of barbershops and salons, fathers have been left to take their grooming routines into their own hands.
 
NRF and Prosper highlighted that, according to Google Trends, searches for home haircuts and men's hair clippers have soared in the past few weeks.
 
The increase in popularity of these kinds of gifts also reflects wider growth in the men's beauty industry, which has led to expected to be worth $166 billion by 2022 according to a 2019 study from Allied Market Research. 

In any case, the health crisis appears to have had an effect on consumers’ wider attitudes towards Father’s Day, with 77% saying that the event is important to them this year, “given the state of the coronavirus pandemic.”
 
“A lot of the everyday activities that consumers may have taken for granted like a family cookout or simply being able to give their dads a hug were put on pause with Covid-19,” said Prosper Insights EVP of strategy Phil Rist in a release. “As a result, many people want to make this Father's Day stand out.”
 
Overall, consumers are intending to spend an average of $149 on gifts for their fathers, an increase of around $10 from 2019.
 
NRF’s Father’s Day study 2020 is based on a survey of 8,209 U.S. adults, aged 18 and older, conducted May 1 through 8, 2020.