Many men will never graduate from bar soap to, say organic face wash, let alone adding concealers, herbal moisturizers or age-defying sunscreens to their daily routines.
Some men tried in the middle of the previous decade - we called them metrosexuals - but the fad quickly died out, dragging sales of just-for-men beauty products down with it.
But there is once again a demand among men for high-end skin-care products, in spite of a moribund economy and high unemployment. Or maybe because of it. The reason, beauty analysts say, is a changing attitude among men, who now associate healthy-looking skin less with vanity than with professionalism.
At a time when job security is at a low, they say, men are placing a higher premium on being presentable.
Not long ago, Thomas Sullivan's beauty routine began and ended with Irish Spring. But as Sullivan, an entrepreneur, actor, film producer and restaurant owner, approached 40, he realized his livelihood might benefit from a bit more personal maintenance.
"I have to take advantage of any way I can to look, if not younger, healthy," said Sullivan, who is 43, lives in Brooklyn Heights and has a young daughter. "Working in the restaurant and film industry leaves little time for sleep or working out with any regularity."
So he started investing in some pricey skin-care products.
Today Sullivan can rattle off a half-dozen creams that make up his daily routine: StriVectin moisturizer; Kiehl's Abyssine Night Eye Cream; Kiehl's Facial Fuel; something called Hydra-Energetic Ice Cold Ball Roller from L'Oreal. All in all, he estimates that he spends about $600 a year on such products. "I feel this is a small way to compensate," he said.
He's not the only one who feels that way. "Men today say they feel they have to look better to be competitive," said Celeste Hilling, the founder and chief executive of Skin Authority, a brand of skin creams that introduced a men's line in 2010.
Sales of premium skin-care products for men jumped 5 percent that year, and rose an additional 12 percent in 2011, according to the NPD Group, a market research firm. Women buying products for men account for only 25 percent of those sales: Most of the time, men buy these products for themselves.
Looking to capitalize on the trend, manufacturers are again filling shelves with creams designed for men. This time, though, they are trying to avoid the too-prissy mistakes of the previous decade.
"The man today purchasing these products is so different than eight years ago," Hilling said. "These guys who always thought it was vain or too metrosexual" to splurge on beauty products "now think it's almost a badge they wear to say, 'I'm a modern guy because I care about my skin.' "
A common theme among the new crop of men's products is that they are multitaskers. Sunscreens double as moisturizers, and toners double as conditioners. Indeed, all the items in the Skin Authority Man line, including a daily sunscreen and a toner, are labeled "age-defying," an acknowledgment that most men are not likely to buy a separate wrinkle reverser.
"Men are very utilitarian," Hilling said. When it comes to beauty routines, "they are willing to do two steps, not eight, like a woman."
Many men are wary of any product that will add time to their morning routine. They also tend to be more skeptical of over-the-top promises made by manufacturers. Even claims to halt aging can serve as a turnoff, said Blake Yeh, founder of Organic Regimens, another new line.
"The biggest thing in my view is guys want it to work, and it has to work right away," said Yeh, whose products include an Ultra Smooth Shave Formula and a Microfine Face scrub. "We're just more impatient than our female counterparts, who are willing to try something that will make them look younger in a couple months. Guys want it, and they want it now."
Quick to change
There are other signs that men are open to incorporating new products and techniques if the items will make them look or feel younger. Sales of Botox and other fillers for men increased 10 percent in 2010, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. And college campuses are rife with the smell of body sprays made by Axe and Old Spice, a category that did not even exist in the U.S. a decade ago.
But while men have periodically shown an interest in expanding their skin-cream horizons, they are likely to reverse themselves.
"As much as everyone was getting involved in the category back in 2003 and 2004, we didn't see that men were so quick to change their behavior," said Karen Grant, the senior beauty industry analyst with the NPD Group. "The majority of men still don't know they have a skin-care issue. Because of that, they're not necessarily feeling that they need to use a product specifically designed for their face."
