HALAL HANNOVER (6–8 March 2020)

With nearly five million Muslims living in Germany today, demand for halal cosmetics is strong, and the market is growing at a fast pace. Even so, retailers in Germany have so far been rather slow in responding to this trend. That needs to change. Which is why halal cosmetics will be among the topics explored at HALAL HANNOVER – a new show premiering in Hannover, Germany, from 6 to 8 March 2020.

Hannover. The cosmetics market is growing at a steady clip, and demand for halal products is skyrocketing. A study by UK market research firm Tech Navio from October 2018 projects that the global market for halal cosmetics will more than double from its current volume of 25 billion euros (that’s about six percent of total global trade in beauty products) to 55 billion euros by 2022. Annual growth over the next three years is expected to average 13.55 percent.

These global sales figures for halal beauty products indicate that there is enormous potential to be leveraged, also on the German market. There are no centrally collected statistics on the subject in Germany, but inquiries made with manufacturers such as Fair Squared do give some indication of the scale of the demand. The Cologne-based firm sells its natural and halal cosmetic products primarily online, but also in fair trade shops, pharmacies and selected drugstores. “We use only raw materials from fair- trade sources, and in 2018 succeeded in growing our sales by a further 25 percent to 1.5 million euros,” said CEO Oliver Gothe. Fair Squared will be among the companies exhibiting at HALAL HANNOVER.

In cosmetic products, the “Halal” label is seldom seen on its own; it generally appears in conjunction with “vegan” labels, “cruelty-Free” or “not tested on animals” claims and assurances of sustainability. More and more small and medium businesses are moving into these niches and selling their products online.

One such business is LaNaturél, a halal-certified cosmetics firm based in Herten. LaNaturél believes in the power of nature. CEO Hasan Hüseyin Aydogan is committed to helping people protect their health, which, for him, means first and foremost using natural ingredients exclusively and being completely additive-free. LaNaturél will be showcasing its natural products at HALAL HANNOVER.

There are many newly established companies operating under the “back to nature” banner, developing products designed to appeal to both vegans and Muslims. One innovation in this area is a skincare line made of coffee oil extracted from used coffee grounds.

Nail polish is an area of cosmetics that touches on one of the core tenets of Islam.

Observant Muslims pray five times a day. In the ritual cleansing that takes place before each prayer, water must actually touch and wet the fingernails. Traditionally, this has meant that Muslim women must either forgo nail polish altogether or go to the trouble of removing it before each prayer. Now, however, there are several manufacturers who offer water-permeable and breathable nail polishes. The biochemical properties of these products mean that water is able to penetrate through to the fingernails.

These products are also free of formaldehyde, toluene and camphor – harmful chemicals that are almost always present in conventional nail polishes. Because, in addition to being water permeable, these new nail polishes are free of chemical, animal and alcohol-based additives, they are also marketed as being suitable for allergy-sufferers, vegans and pregnant women.

Searches on Amazon for “halal cosmetics” currently yield hits for as many as 224 products. L’Oréal, the global market leader in cosmetics, offers hundreds of halal- certified products, but the company’s focus is not primarily on the German market, but rather on Muslim-majority countries and the USA. The Germany-based international fragrance chain Douglas currently has nearly 400 articles on its German website that are marketed as vegan and largely also suitable for Muslim women. For example, it has makeup brushes made of synthetic hair. In more recent times, Germany’s drugstores, traditionally one of the country’s primary channels for cosmetics, have seen growing competition from importers like Oriental Style, which sources high-quality Saudi cosmetic products from stockists in Dubai.

HALAL HANNOVER is a new business and knowledge-sharing platform for the halal industry that premiers from 6 to 8 March 2020, focusing on halal-compliant food, beverages, cosmetic products and travel. The exhibition will also feature an international conference program and a special food-tasting area. Day one of the three-day event is for trade visitors only, while days two and three (Saturday and Sunday) will also be open to consumers.

For further information about HALAL HANNOVER, visit https://halal-messe.de/.