While makeup M&A fell flat this year â much-anticipated acquisitions for brands like Mario Dedianovicâs Makeup by Mario and Selena Gomezâs Rare Beauty never quite materialised â it was still a solid year for cosmetics, and especially premium ones: The prestige makeup category overall grew 5 percent year-to-date in both dollars and units sold during the first nine months of 2024, according to Circana.
The lip category was a particular highlight, the sales of which surged 21 percent, âattributed to the rising popularity of tinted lip balms and oils,â explained Larissa Jensen, Circanaâs global beauty advisor. Summer Fridays, a skincare label whose success is owed in no small part to its âLip Buttersâ, started 2024 by launching a tinted lip oil. Rhodeâs pop-up shop, which stretched across a hot summer week in lower Manhattan, may have sold tens of thousands of Sleepy Girl stick blushes, but the real draw was the $38 silicone case that adhered a tube of Peptide Lip Treatment to an iPhone.
The lip obsession is emblematic of the yearâs most talked-about marketing segment; the so-called âSephora tweens,â whose taste for premium cosmetics has been referenced in the earnings reports of specialty retailers and beauty conglomerates, and served as a recurring topic in the culture at large. (Itâs true: They love Charlotte Tilbury!)
On the flipside, makeup was one of the only categories in the greater beauty industry that saw faltering mass sales in 2024, according to Circanaâs data. And not for lack of marketing. The year began with E.l.f.âs Super Bowl spot starring Judge Judy, and ended with Ariana Grande spoofing a Maybelline commercial on âSaturday Night Live.â Itâs as if shoppers young and old want more out of their makeup, and are willing to pay for it. Next year, weâll see just how much.
Top Stories
Urban Decayâs âNakedâ Relaunch Is a Hit. Now Comes the Hard Part: The LâOréal-owned cosmetics brand discontinued its first smash hit product, the Naked eyeshadow palette, in 2018. Itâs hoping a limited edition re-run could hold the key to a wider brand reboot.
How Anastasia Beverly Hills Lost Its Footing: The influencer-favourite brand seemed on rocket-like trajectory in the 2010s, culminating in a reported $3 billion valuation in 2018. But trends have shifted, sales have slid, debt has mounted and its main investor, the private equity firm TPG Capital, is ready to move on.
What to Do When a Beauty Product Launch Goes Wrong: The backlash that follows a botched product launch can quickly spill over from a bad news cycle to an all-out PR crisis. Beauty brands have the power to foresee these events, and stop them happening, providing theyâre willing to do the legwork.
Lip Gloss Is Beautyâs Secret to Sales and Sex: Recalling the appeal of Lip Smackers balms and Lancômeâs Juicy Tubes, skincare brands like Rhode, Summer Fridays and UBeauty have the lip category cornered.
How to Launch a Black Beauty Brand: In a three-part series, The Business of Beauty followed Black founders like makeup mogul Danessa Myricks and showed how they built, launched and scaled their multi-million-dollar businesses.
The Many Faces of Clean Beauty: In an increasingly crowded space, makeup brands that prioritise natural ingredients are finding new ways to get their message across.
The TikTok âIt Boyâ Whoâs Getting Men to Wear Makeup: 19-year-old Bach Buquenâs âhetero dudeâ image could push more of his male Gen-Z peers to buy into cosmetics, creating growth opportunities for brands with genderless lines.
âClean-Girlâ Beautyâs Next Stop; Ultra-Glam Dubai: Saie, Kosas, Ilia and Glossier are among the beauty brands launching at Sephora Middle East this fall as the GCC countries become a priority for global expansion.
How Merit Won Over the Grown-Up Glossier Girl: Instead of getting caught up in Gen-Z mania, Merit has become profitable and expects to hit $100 million in revenue this year by targeting Millennials with classic luxury branding and no-makeup makeup.
The Tricky Politics of the âNo Makeupâ Look: In a Vogue editorial, celebrity bride Olivia Culpo spoke about skipping mascara and lip liner on her wedding day, touching off a fierce debate about what âno makeupâ really is.
Sign up to The Business of Beauty newsletter, your complimentary, must-read source for the dayâs most important beauty and wellness news and analysis.
