New skin care for men

Richard Cree tries out Decléor's new range of male beauty products in his quest for the ultimate men's daily skin care regime

As a naturally cynical male, the thought of adopting something cosmetics companies like to call a "daily skincare routine" is about as laughable as the thought of running a marathon or stopping drinking for a year. At least the benefits of less booze and more exercise are immediately obvious. Less convincing are the claims that daily application of a collection of creams, serums and lotions will prevent my face from looking like an old shoe and my eyes from bearing an uncanny resemblance to an airport baggage carousel.

So the arrival of a new range of male beauty products from French cosmetics house Decléor filled me with all the excitement of a visit to the gym or a month on the wagon, although as I once used a Decléor moisturiser that was exceptionally good I decided to pop along and see what the fuss was about.

Decléor is proud of its "first mover" status in the male grooming market. Back in 2000, when it entered the market with its first product specifically designed for men, it was breaking new ground. Back then the male grooming market was unknown territory. Now, it's an essential part of the business, and most of the major houses offer a range for men. Analysts Mintel estimate it's a market worth around £800m, with annual growth close to £50m a year.

Decléor's new Men Essentials range is therefore entering what has become a crowded market and has sensibly decided to stick to the well recognised formula that when it comes to selling beauty products to men, success lies in keeping it simple. Men may be able to hold precise Top Trumps-style details of the exact horsepower of their favourite cars, and to every England squad and FA Cup winner since time began, but we can't be trusted to remember the details of a complex daily facial regime.

So Decléor has opted for a variation on the standard three-step regime of cleanse, shave and moisturise. The clever bit is in the variation from this formula. In reality the new collection offers a three-step regime involving five products and six steps.

The point of these new products, all of which have been specifically designed for male skin, is to protect men's skin from the rigours of the daily shave, as well as the pollution and other general hardships our delicate chins and cheeks are subjected to every day.

The star of the range is the new Aromessence Triple Action Shave Perfector Serum. Based on clove essential oil, it sits outside of the three-step regime, and is designed to be applied first between the cleansing and shaving and then again between the shaving and moisturising. Despite being an oil-based product, the first thing you notice is how light it is and how quickly it soaks into the skin, without leaving a residue. Eucalyptus, rosa moschata and sweet almond combine well with the clove oil to give a soothing, refreshing sensation. Best of all—and admittedly on the evidence of one shave so far—it does seem to make a difference to shaving. The razor seems to glide more easily across the skin. The shaving foam itself is also silkier than many, and although I'm not a huge fan of foams, it offered a very effective, close and comfortable shave.

Then it's back on with the serum, which allegedly reduces or slows hair re-growth (a major attribute of the clove oil). Finally there's the skin energizer fluid, which is as good as the previous Decléor I'd used. Refreshing, but without giving off any overly strong perfume, it leaves the skin feeling soft and fresh. By the time I pick up the eye cream, I'm beginning to wonder if all this pampering might become a regular ritual. The downside is that assuming each tube lasts about a month, I'd be laying out over £130 every four weeks on beauty products. And after all that I would still end up with a face that looks like an old shoe, albeit one made from very soft leather.

Decléor's new Men's Essentials range is one sale now at several leading department stores. Prices start at £14.50 for the Smooth Shave, £19.50 for the Clean Skin Scrub, £29.50 for the Eye Contour Energiser, £35.50 for the Skin Energiser and £38 for the Aromessence(tm) Triple Action Shave Perfector.