Cosmetics market yet to reach peak, says Sa Sa

Sa Sa International, the largest cosmetic retailer in the Asia-Pacific, says the Hong Kong market has yet to peak with a shift in the ages of customers in the city.

"In the past, young girls accompanied by their mums would buy their first lipstick after they graduated from high school," said Simon Kwok Siu-ming, the chairman and chief executive of Sa Sa, at a Chinese General Chamber of Commerce forum yesterday. "Now I see many teenagers buying nail polish on their own."

Sa Sa also sees a potential market in the elderly as senior citizens are beginning to increasingly use cosmetics.

"Many people worry about the topping out of Hong Kong cosmetic sales but I believe the market has yet to reach its peak," Kwok said.

Sa Sa plans to open eight to 10 outlets in the city annually in the next three to five years.

This is despite rental costs hovering at high levels, especially street-level shops in prime locations that are highly sought.

Sales at Sa Sa's about 100 outlets in Hong Kong and Macau, which account for 80 per cent of the company's total sales, jumped 20 per cent year on year to HK$2.6 billion in the six months to September.