Male grooming products emerge as an important sector in the cosmetics and fragrance industry

With the beauty market on course for steady growth, the men's grooming sector is similarly full of potential.

Muscling in on this lucrative sector is Beautyworld Middle East, run-ning alongside Wellness and Spas Middle East, due to open from June 7 - 9, 2009, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Center. A number of international and regional exhibitors participating in the twin shows will display a wide range of products and services targeted to the male grooming market.

"Male consumers are increasingly placing greater importance on look-ing good and the personal care aspects of improved health and well-ness. Recent reports have revealed that the global sales of men's grooming products reached 71.6bn ($19.5bn) in 2008. The value of the market in 2009 is estimated to be Dhs79.7bn ($21.7bn), an increase of 11.3% as compared to last year,"

said Ms. Elisabeth Brehl, Managing Director of Epoc Messe Frankfurt GmbH, organizer of the twin events.

Men are beginning to spend more time and money on personal grooming, and that includes everything, from investing in personal trainers and health club memberships to buying skin care products, and in extreme cases even going under the knife for cosmetic surgery.

Concerns over the signs of aging are also common among men but anti-aging benefits are only present in a small number of male grooming products, meaning this category has huge potential. Alessandro International GmbH, a key exhibitor at the Beautyworld Middle East, will be showcasing its full line of antiageing products for men. Formed from the most active and organic antiageing ingredients, on display will be intensive hand gel and moisturizers, along with day and night creams and serums.

"Looking to profit from the new male image are cosmetics companies, health clubs, retailers and wellness service providers as men become more image conscious. The economic downturn has tempered optimism but the men's beauty market remains one of the best performing segments in the personal care sector," stated Ms. Brehl.

Euromonitor International adds that global sales for men's grooming products is predicted to grow even further, the market is forecast to be worth Dhs92bn ($25bn) in 2011.

Eastern Europe and Asia Pacific in particular, are expected to boom as male consumers increasingly adapt to western lifestyles. In Asia Pacific sales are projected to reach Dhs15bn ($4bn) in 2011, while in Eastern Europe they are predicted to grow to Dhs9.2bn ($2.5bn).

The desire to look and feel healthy has been driven by male role models such as film actors and sportsmen, and communicated via the huge growth in premium magazines dedicated to men.

Role models such as UK sports star David Beckham, Rugby player Lawrence Dallaglio, Olympic rower James Cracknell and swimming champion Mark Foster, have led popular marketing campaigns cater-ing to male grooming.

While, ubersexual icons such as George Clooney, Bill Clinton, Bono, Barack Obama, Guy Ritchie, and Jon Stewart, are being held responsible for promoting a groomed image to the masses, whilst still remaining masculine.

As the boundaries between genders continue to be broken down, global companies are expected to find increasingly innovative ways to profit from the evolving characteristics of the male consumer.

Beautyworld Middle East is ranked amongst the top four exhibitions in the world for the industry, and is also the largest and most successful international beauty trade fair in the region.