Women’s health is experiencing intense innovation activity in consumer products and femtech, driven by start-ups and growing investor funding. While investment from big corporates remains relatively cautious, businesses across pure-play consumer health/pharma, and other industry sectors, such as beauty and nutrition, are dedicating more resources through specialised divisions and workstreams to enhance research, innovation and go-to-market initiatives.
Amid growing education and recognition of unmet needs, consumer brands have the potential to diversify and curate propositions through a female-focused lens and lifestyle-centric regimen building. Scoping prospective solutions requires the exploration of converging spaces and (horizontal and vertical) adjacencies for white space opportunity mapping or evolving existing concepts through reformulation, repositioning or femtech utilisation, whether through external partnerships, direct investment or acquisition.
Prioritising customer centricity and value creation as key prerequisites for innovation
Embracing the opportunity for innovation and narrowing gaps entails a close assessment of existing consumer pain points and value creation across an evolving spectrum of routines, health priorities and path to purchase. These efforts need not come just in the form of products, single-point solutions or technology, but through amplifying education, access, forging partnerships and considering the wider societal, economic and environmental impacts.
Nearly 60% of industry professionals identify solving a consumer need as the top priority for successful innovation, while over 50% of respondents put emphasis on value creation in targeting new occasions or underserved areas as means to grow categories across existing portfolios
Source: Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Industry Innovation Survey, 2024
From 2021 to 2023, menopause-positioned SKUs in US consumer health products rose by 39%, while the UK led in new sub-brand launches with menopause-related attributes for skin moisturisers and treatments
Source: Euromonitor International Via and Passport Innovation tools
Focus on medical-grade beauty and multi-benefit approaches in supplements
The rise of ingredient-led narratives and a strong appetite for dermocosmetics provide a favourable context for beauty players to hone ingredient formulations and science-led marketing around hormonal health impacts on skin and hair care.
As “scalp health” attributes continue to drive innovation in hair care, and “hair loss prevention” stands among consumers’ top five most sought-after product features, hair care brands can leverage further research and education around women’s hormonal and biological factors for more targeted and health-orientated solutions. Product and service innovation should be cognisant of multiple aspects including a closer exploration of skin and hair health root causes and causal effects, and further diagnostic enablement alongside specific life stage-related or condition-based applications.
In a rapidly proliferating women’s health supplement market (registering double-digit growth for two consecutive years), propositions in this space stand to benefit from a more multidimensional approach to product formulations and positioning. More specifically, utilising a wider palette of health considerations across psycho-physical need states (eg migraines and mood/stress/anxiety), alongside corresponding areas of care and life stages (eg menstrual care and menopause), to ensure improved consumer appeal and adoption.
Catering to women's diverse life stages with functionality and personalised nutrition
Similarly, if not more importantly, adopting holistic functional claims in food and beverages is critical for effectively addressing the evolving nutritional needs of women across diverse areas of care, extending beyond reproductive and maternal health.
Women are more predisposed to various conditions like osteoporosis, thyroid disorders, mental health concerns, and digestive disorders due to both hormonal and biological factors. Functional foods targeting such concerns with physical, psychological and cognitive benefits can resonate more effectively with women, especially in consideration of existing general health motivations and nutritional path to purchase influencers.
Women aged 45-59, particularly relevant to menopausal care, show a heightened interest in specific ingredients and nutrients, highlighting a defined consumer target for more tailored offerings through transparent communication of benefits, without overly segmenting by life stage.
Fortified/functional health and wellness foods and beverages represent 8% of total global sales, with dairy products and alternatives accounting for the largest share of the market, worth over USD100 billion in 2023
Source: Euromonitor International Passport Health and Wellness
Although still nascent, women’s health-specific propositions in fortified and functional foods can build on general health benefits across female life stages, explore emerging areas such as menopausal care, and capitalise on positive trends in personalised nutrition through technology or tailored advice.
Key fundamentals for commercially viable solutions
The evolution of women’s health hinges on a more resilient innovation ecosystem that adopts a sex-based lens across all aspects of health needs, from inception to path-to-purchase engagement and marketing. Business expansion and scaling through higher adoption and retention necessitates a close assessment of adjacencies in view of existing pain points and regimens, stronger commitment to education and building integrative solutions through collaborative science- and tech-enabled approaches.
Learn more about scaling prospects in women’s health across consumer-facing industries in our report, Transforming Women’s Health: Cross-Industry Impact and Innovation.