You may have considered starting a business in the beard niche. Your main concern probably centers around the fact that beards have been a trend for a few years now and could possibly be slowly going out of fashion, leaving you invested in a dying business. To be able to make the important distinction between a fad and a viable trend, it is important to recognize what the differences are between the two and how to spot a sustainable business.
Telling Trends from Fads
Deciding on whether beard businesses are growing or slowly waning will require us to look at the niche through the criteria that determine whether a business is a fad or a trend. There are 2 main factors to look at.
1. Duration
Fads tend to last anywhere from a few months to a couple of
years. Most fads tend to taper off drastically after this critical time frame.
If a business lasts for five or more years, it has greater chances of
sustaining a market. That’s not to say that niches haven’t completely
dissipated after five or ten years of existence; however, the more time a trend
lasts, the less likely it is to fall under the fad category.
It is therefore important to look at when the most recent beard trend started.
Most sources agree that the trend started off shortly after October of 2007. A
search on Google Trends will show that the first noticeable increase in
interest occurred in 2008 with a spike in 2012.
These dates coincide loosely with the beard craze that was born after the
release of the movie “300” on March 9, 2007. Many celebrities started sporting
beards and popular entertainment news outlets displayed countless examples of
this phenomenon. Beards are still very popular in 2019 and have been shown to
foster a wider range of styles and associated products.
2. Copycats vs. New Products
Fads can easily be spotted in niches where a product appears and there is a sudden increase in copycat offerings as opposed to product innovation. Since the beard trend has become popular, there have been many products and services that have surfaced around facial hair care. From special trimmers to beard wax to beard protectors, there are many types of goods to suggest that the niche is still growing and that there is a proper ecosystem built around it.
What Do the Numbers Say?
Besides ruling out whether the beard business is a fad, the statistics regarding revenue and market growth should tell the rest of the story. A recent report by Reports and Data puts the growth of the global beard oil market for the period 2018 to 2025 at a projected rate of 4 percent and Technavio places the growth rate for the entire beard grooming products market for the 2019 to 2023 period at a healthy 7 percent.
Are Beard Businesses a Worthwhile Investment? If you are a prospective entrepreneur that is thinking about getting into the beard business, the signs seem to be favorable. Middle Eastern and Asian countries in which beards have been a cultural staple are using related products more than ever. In the West, beard fashion is evolving from unruly facial hair to a sculpted and well-maintained appearance trait. Product sales numbers are on the rise and projections show no signs of slowing down
