End of a beer-a: Shampoo sales go flat after 60 glossy years

Sixty years ago it was hailed as a miracle – if slightly intoxicating – cure for dull, lifeless hair.

But time has finally been called on Linco beer shampoo.

Manufacturers Church & Dwight said dwindling sales meant the traditional remedy was no longer profitable.

Such was the disappointment that Superdrug, the last remaining Linco stockist, tried to persuade the company to reconsider after it was inundated with calls from disgruntled customers.

But Church & Dwight said it  had ‘discontinued the product as sales fell far short of our minimum threshold’.

Alice Hart-Davis, beauty expert and founder of the Good Things skincare range, said: ‘It is a real shame to see it go. It encapsulated a time it was popular to try natural remedies such as avocado and egg yolk on the hair.’

‘But, formulas have moved on so much over the last decade that beer shampoo seems dated and perhaps basic compared to the stuff we have now.

‘We want the high-gloss, anti-frizz shampoos which the celebrities use and are highly marketed.

‘We do like the idea of organic and natural ingredients and yet these shampoos still don’t sell as well as the more mainstream products.’

Since its announcement in January, a campaign has been quietly growing on the internet, as fans go in search of the few remaining canary-coloured products and recall its distinctive malty aroma and its natural shine-inducing properties.Beauty forums are filled with questions about where people can get their hands on one of the few remaining sachets.

Carole Farmer, of London, wrote: ‘It has been around a million years and is genuinely one of the most impressive beauty secrets available to us ordinary girls. And I know – my mum used it before me.

‘But apparently this little British treasure is no more, having been discontinued by the manufacturers – why? When reviews are unanimously positive, and you just have to look at the prices reached on eBay and the like by the odd few sachets left!

‘It clearly has a loyal following ... what on earth is wrong with Church and Dwight?’

Another wrote: ‘It’s the best shampoo in the world and they have stopped making it.

A Good Anti Aging Skin Care Product is Easy to Pick When You Know ...

If they have a strong, deliberate fragrance put them back on the shelf. Many anti aging skin care cream products have a “nice” smell added in the factory. The chemicals that make this trick work have toxins. And these will get in through the pores of your skin into your bloodstream. Avoid that, even if the product is cheap and smells heavenly. OK. It is true that your skin ages, sags and wrinkles because the natural collagen in the skin breaks down as it gets older. And it’s logical to assume that if you rub some in, this will compensate for the loss of natural collagen. But actually, the molecules are too big to enter your skin when simply rubbed across the surface. The only way you can replenish collagen is to use compounds that will stimulate your own body to produce more collagen in its own way and time. That’s why you see glamorous models and celebrities promoting these products. Beauty sells. It’s why skin care products come in elegant glass containers or stylish tubes. Appealing design sells. That’s why they spend thousands of dollars for full page ads in glossy fashion magazines or on television. Constant, manipulative branding sells. Take the many models and celebrities who endorse an anti aging skin care product. Elle Macpherson is the latest face of Revlon, joining Halle Berry, Jessica Alba and Beau Garrett as glamorous stars sponsored by the cosmetic giant. How much is Revlon paying them? At Chanel, Nicole Kidman is the face of No. 5. Keira Knightley promotes Coco Mademoiselle. Claudia Schiffer, Jane Fonda, Pierce Brosnan, Penelope Cruz and others endorse L’Oreal.

Home care nursing handbook

Skin Moisturization

Product marketing for beauty industry retailers & manufacturers

Anti - Ageing and Skincare Made Easy

Plunkett's health care industry almanac 2009