Strategies for Supercharging Beauty Retail
Published 22 July 2024
The global beauty market is predicted to grow by 6% annually to reach $580bn by 2027 (McKinsey, 2023). We distil how to capture it via strategies including longevity-hacking diagnostic services, marketing to the mainstream men’s beauty boom, athbeauty-based sponsorship, activations and advocacy, Gen Z-snaring kink-led spaces and campaigns, care-centric e-commerce and the T-Suite for teens/tweens, and skintellectualism-evolving content and influencers.
Longevity-Hacking In-Store & E-Commerce Services
Marketing to Mainstream Men’s Beauty Enthusiasts
Athbeauty’s Ascent Tracks the Women’s Sports Boom
Post-Perfectionist Spaces & Campaigns Lean into Anti-Wholesome Scene
Teen & Tween-Connecting Tactics: Care Content & The T-Suite
Branded Beauty Content Evolves Skintellectualism
The anti-ageing market – comprising cosmetics, skincare and supplements – is a booming part of the thriving wellness sector, predicted to reach $78.7bn globally by 2032, up by more than 75% from 2022 (Market.Us, 2023). Astute brands are creating longevity-led retail services with age-reversing ambitions, including artificial-intelligence-(AI)-assisted diagnostics (Sephora, Naos x Haut.AI) and in-store age-renewal treatments (Ya-Man).
The anti-ageing market – comprising cosmetics, skincare and supplements – is a booming part of the thriving wellness sector, predicted to reach $78.7bn globally by 2032, up by more than 75% from 2022 (Market.Us, 2023). Astute brands are creating longevity-led retail services with age-reversing ambitions, including artificial-intelligence-(AI)-assisted diagnostics (Sephora, Naos x Haut.AI) and in-store age-renewal treatments (Ya-Man).
Globally, men’s grooming is set to reach $115.3bn by 2028, up 44% from 2022 (see Key Stats), driven by men increasingly recognising skincare as part of their overall health. Stereotype-subverting tongue-in-cheek campaigns (Horace, Eos, Shakeup Cosmetics) and straight-talking narratives (Sally Hansen) are fuelling the expansion beyond gender-fluid beauty fans.
As elite women’s sport grows (surpassing $1bn in sponsorships and advertising for the first time in 2024; Deloitte, 2023). Smart brands are meeting the rising demand for sweat-proof athbeauty – aligning with this adrenaline-fuelled spirit via event activations (E.l.f Cosmetics), athlete sponsorship and campaigns (Charlotte Tilbury, Athletic Cosmetic Company), in-workout workshops (Peloton) and adventure-centric messaging (Paracas).
Catering for Gen Zers’ appetite for less wholesome, messier beauty (first flagged in Beauty: Gen Z-Based Brand Engagement) youth-centric avant-garde brands are creating spaces and campaigns that replace the ultra-millennial squeaky-clean #CleanGirl vibe with a more nefarious, gritty and kinky post-perfectionist nightlife aesthetic. The rise of male-gaze-rejecting #UnapproachableMakeUp influencers offers collaboration opportunities.
While the teen/tween beauty landscape is lucrative, it’s also contentious. A spate of new online brands, established in partnership with teens/tweens, are centring responsible care. Common tactics include teen advisory boards, self-care content spanning life advice as well as skincare (some for both Zalphas and their parents) and a commitment to unvarnished campaign imagery.
The tenets of skintellectualism (an ultra-scientific intellectual approach to skincare routines) now apply beyond its original coterie of knowledgeable skin sleuths, previously detailed in Labs for Serious Skintellectuals in Blueprints for Winning Beauty Destinations. Smart brands are keying into its evolution via beautypedias, science-grounded podcasts and scientists-turned-revered-beauty-influencers.
Strategies for Supercharging Beauty Retail
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