PL2 9 | Global Cosmetic Industry

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While influencers drive consumer excitement and feed AI recommendations, online sources that lead include Reddit, Who What Wear, Wikipedia, Sephora and Allure.

The Top Sites ChatGPT is Using for Beauty Recommendations

Reddit dominates as editorial and retail sites shape AI visibility. But that's not the whole story.

“What stands out in these findings is the clear convergence of digital and physical behaviors,” said Jacqueline Flam, managing director, beauty and health at NIQ. “Gen Alpha is highly fluent in AI and personalization, but they are using these tools to enhance discovery and build confidence, not to replace in-store experiences. For brands and retailers, this means creating connected journeys that link digital influence with real-world engagement.”

The Hybrid Generation: Why Gen Alpha Refuses to Choose Between AI and Stores

The future is interdependent by design, where AI, social discovery and physical retail form a single decision loop.

The positioning is familiar e.l.f. logic—high perceived value, aggressively accessible pricing, and a strong cultural halo built from its cosmetics and skin care businesses.

e.l.f. Dives Into Hair with Mass Entry, Prestige Play and a $6–$10 Disruption Bet in a Split Hair Market

Early hair test-and-learn drops reportedly saw 96% positive sentiment and high new-to-brand conversion

Precision Systems: Closing the Efficacy Gap through Functional Packaging Architecture

Precision Systems: Closing the Efficacy Gap through Functional Packaging Architecture

From passive packaging to precision delivery, discover how beauty brands are closing the “Efficacy Gap” with smart microneedling, integrated LED therapy, and next-gen skincare technology designed to maximize real results.

TikTok has cemented its role as a discovery channel, and its influence on Amazon search rankings means that virality on one platform now directly monetizes on another.

Beauty’s Digital Reordering: TikTok Shop Surges as Amazon Holds, But No Longer Dominates Growth

With the launch of Beauty Crush Skincare, Karen Behnke appears to be betting that beauty consumers want something more than clean—they want clinically driven regenerative biotechnology.

From 'Juice In, Junk Out' to Exosomes: Karen Behnke's Beauty Crush Signals Clean Beauty's Next Chapter

If Juice Beauty helped establish clean beauty's first era, Beauty Crush offers a glimpse of what the category's next chapter may look like.

The retailer also demonstrated improving profitability, with gross margin expanding to 40.1% from 39.1% a year ago, reflecting stronger merchandise margins and lower inventory shrink.

9 Drivers of Ulta’s Q1 Growth (and a Times Square Flagship Teaser)

Growth was broad-based across channels and categories, with gains driven by both higher spending per visit and increased shopper traffic.

The Pasadena store includes dedicated skin care testing zones, water-basin cleansing stations, skin scanning technology, scalp analysis services, and “The Beauty Lab,' where shoppers can receive personalized skin care lessons based on diagnostic insights.

Olive Young Plants Its Flag in the US as K-Beauty’s Retail Expansion Accelerates

The opening comes amid a wave of aggressive K-beauty retail expansion across the U.S. market in 2026.

ELC will refocus on its ongoing initiatives following the end of talks with Puig.

What Happened with Estée Lauder-Puig?

Despite the setback, Estée Lauder remains open to future acquisitions that satisfy its financial requirements.

L'Oréal Luxe is extending fragrance beyond traditional product formats through a new partnership with DataLand, the AI-driven cultural institution co-founded by Refik Anadol (pictured) and Efsun Erkılıç.

L’Oréal Luxe Brings Responsive Scent Technology to AI Art Institution DataLand

The scents were created in collaboration with Refik Anadol Studio using the studio’s proprietary Large Nature Model, an AI system trained on nature-derived datasets.

The views generated on TikTok are translating into meaningful revenue lifts across DTC sites, Amazon, and brick-and-mortar retail through powerful halo effects.

The 15 Most-Viewed Beauty Brands on TikTok Shop

Why it matters: a correlation analysis using Charm’s TikTok Shop data revealed a clear alignment between TikTok engagement and performance across other retail channels.