The influence of gender on psychological factors in the cosmetics sector

Currently, the cosmetics industry is flourishing all over the world. It no longer seems to be the preserve of women. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of gender on the psychological variables of cosmetic consumption. To answer this question, a review of the literature and semi-structured interviews with a sample of 19 consumers made it possible to select relevant variables for the study. The exploration was followed by a data collection phase with 279 consumers using a questionnaire. Following the analysis of flat sorts, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation and the comparison of the means test, the results show significant differences in consumption according to gender. Explicitly, the results show that compared to men, women are more sensitive to brands and more involved in the toilet milk category. They also indicate that both men and women are concerned about their self-image and are influenced by their environment when it comes to cleansing milk. The managerial implications of this research may have a strong impact on gender-based brand segmentation and positioning strategies. Although this research is conducted on a single product category and in one region of the country, it has the merit of drawing on behavioral change theories to study a field of investigation little explored in the Cameroonian context.