L’Oréal, Godrej, Solpia, NN Fems and other deep-pocket firms are outdoing each other to get a slice of Nigeria’s fast-growing hair care market, which is estimated at N457 billion.
Local carpet maker Lucky Fibres has joined the scramble, as it tests the waters and invests in research and development to gauge the preferences of consumers. The firm manufacturers Noble Carpet and is one of the leaders in the textile industry.
“We are collating data from the consumers to find out their reactions about our products,” Kemi Ajibade, head of human resources at Lucky Fibres, told BusinessDay in a telephone interview.
“We are looking at the first quarter of 2020 to launch fully into the market. At this stage, we are getting feedback,” she said.
At least 26 million Nigerian women use attachment, wigs and weavons ranging from N1,000 on the average to N250,000, BusinessDay calculations show. They are popular among the youthful Nigerian population who prefer hair extensions to natural hair.
Chinese wigmakers are turning to Africa, which is the fastest-growing market for artificial hair, with West Africa, especially Nigeria, making a big showcase due to blossoming e-commerce and Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
China firm Xuchang, whose export of wigs hit $1 billion in 2016, has broken into the Nigerian market, with Africa’s biggest economy and South Africa making up its largest market.
Data show that South Africa, Benin and Nigeria constitute more than 80 percent of China’s total wig exports to Africa.
“For most women, hair maintenance is essential in order to maintain an attractive appearance. Therefore, the growing female population, particularly in major urban areas, and growth in the numbers of young women among Generation Z are set to boost sales growth and strengthen hair care over the forecast period,” Euromonitor International’s latest report on Nigerian hair industry said.
Nigerian women make up 49.34 percent of the total population. The World Factbook estimates the population of women between 15 and 24 at 19.86 million while those in the ages 0 and 14 are 42.28 million. The population of those above 65 is about 3.26 percent, the data show.
A number of women in Nigeria prefer Chinese hair, but the upper middle class and the super-rich population are addicted to the more expensive Brazilian hair products, especially human hair.
L’Oréal Nigeria’s Dark & Lovely is the leading hair care brand due to high levels of consumer loyalty, but Godrej Nigeria is among the fastest growth among all of the competitors in hair care in 2018, Euromonitor said.
“Competition is a good ground for business to thrive,” Temitope Mayegun, CEO of Avila Natural Products, one of the largest natural skin and hair care brands in Africa, told BusinessDay.
Local manufacturers also export hair products to several countries, earning FX.
Data by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that the value of false beard and eyelashes exported to the United States in the second quarter of 2019 was N649 million, more than fermented cocoa beans’ N250.7 million and raw cocoa beans value of N217.2 million.
Local firms have, however, faced intense competition from foreign brands. Chinese products are particularly cheaper than peers, but many of the firms admit the sophistication of Nigerian consumers who prefer quality to cheap price.
Like manufacturers in other sub-sectors, hair makers face high production costs, exposure to the foreign exchange as inputs of hair care industry are mostly imported, and are hard hit by delays in ports. Faking is also a key challenge in the market.
Solpia Nigeria, producer of Xpression, was reported to have sacked over 1,000 workers last month owing to economic woes in Nigeria.
“Due to the activities of unscrupulous people faking and passing off our hair attachment products, especially Ultra and Rich Braid, coupled with low sales and the present economic situation in the country, we deemed it absolutely imperative to downsize our workforce in order to remain in business,” the company was quoted as saying.
“The said products have suffered monumental faking and passing off by Nigerians and Chinese nationals despite our fight against their unholy activities,” it said.
According to Mayegun, the industry faces challenges of poor access to funding for sophisticated machinery and raw materials.
ODINAKA ANUDU & GBEMI FAMINU
