Beauty and Personal Care Products Key Terms

Become knowledgeable about beauty and personal care products

By Raechel L. Conover

The beauty and personal care products industry, one of the largest in the world, is littered with familiar and unfamiliar key terms. To make the most out of your business in this huge industry, become fluent in the basic key terms used to describe beauty and personal care products: fragrance, exfoliant, organic, cosmetic, anti-aging and palette. Knowing these terms will help you on your way to becoming a knowledgeable source of information for your customers.

Fragrance

Almost every product in the beauty and personal care industry has a fragrance version, not to mention the perfume industry. Simply speaking, fragrance refers to any substance that is added to a product solely to give it an odor. Fragrance also refers to perfumes.
Try: Salon Web offers a detailed definition of fragrance in its extensive beauty glossary.

Exfoliant

Many personal care products say they help to exfoliate your skin. Exfoliants work to remove dead skin cells from your skin either through chemical means (such as alpha hydroxy acids) or by physical means (such as through course granules).
Try: Discover the different types of exfoliates, the different ways to exfoliate and how often to use exfoliating products at YGoY.

Organic

It's no surprise that organic beauty and personal care products are increasingly becoming popular in today's climate of environmental concerns. Organic products are made with ingredients that are grown free of pesticides, herbicides and insecticides. Products that claim to be organic must be certified by an independent organization, and there are different levels of organic certification.
Try: Sephora USA explains what organic means to the beauty and personal care industry, along with the different levels of certified organic products.

Cosmetic

Cosmetic is a term frequently used in the beauty and personal care industry, but do you know what is actually defined as a cosmetic? A cosmetic is classified as any product used on the body to enhance beauty, alter appearances or add fragrance.
Try: The Food and Drug Administration defines the word cosmetic.

Anti-aging

As skin starts to lose elasticity, many people start to search for anti-aging personal care products. Anti-aging products are skin-care products that are made from formulations of ingredients that give the skin extra nutrients to increase blood flow and help firm and reduce wrinkles.
Try: To learn more about anti-aging products, visit Your Skin 101.

Palette

Often referred to as a color palette, a palette is a way of grouping colors by tones or function to the skin. Color palettes are made for lipsticks, eye shadows, foundations, powders and more.
Try: In its extensive glossary of beauty terms, Lamas explains what a palette is.