Consumers & Markets | Global Cosmetic Industry

Consumers are increasingly gravitating toward niche scent profiles, limited launches and storytelling-led olfactive identities—moving away from mass-recognizable designer fragrances.

Indies Set the Pace, Conglomerates Hold the Shelf—2026 Lessons for Beauty

Conglomerates defend share, while indies drive upside.

More than 50% of women learned about menopause’s impact on skin only by experiencing it themselves, notes a recent Galderma study.

Menopause Skin Care: The Multi-Billion Dollar Opportunity Hiding in Plain Sight

Wealthier, asset-confident consumers tend to trade up, seeking science-backed efficacy, personalization, and experiential value, while less wealthy or paycheck-tight consumers trade down, prioritizing clarity, reliability, affordability, and multifunctional performance—though many shoppers move fluidly between the two, mixing premium hero items with value-focused everyday purchases. Across income tiers, both groups increasingly demand transparency, demonstrable results, and smart, efficient solutions, making performance the ultimate currency in a barbell-shaped market.

Beauty in Two Worlds: K-shaped Strategies to Capture Both Premium and Value Consumers

To celebrate packaging's place in beauty, Global Cosmetic Industry spoke to experts across the packaging industry to ask one key question: What is a key trend you see coming in 2026?

Practical, Powerful and Personal: Beauty Insiders' Packaging Predictions for 2026

Beauty is evolving, and so is packaging. Hear from experts in the packaging industry on what trends are coming for 2026.

As we head out of the holidays and step into 2026, the time has come to make our New Year's beauty resolutions, big and small.

Beauty Resolutions: What to Manifest in 2026

Global Cosmetic Industry's first edition of the year is covering everything from packaging, skin care, sun care and makeup, reporting the latest trends in hybrid-everything and hyper-personalization across categories.

For beauty brands navigating this rapidly changing trade environment, various tariff mitigation strategies have become essential: foreign trade zones, bonded warehouses, tariff engineering and strategic sourcing shifts, just to name a few.

The Tariff Mitigation Secret Every Beauty Brand Should Know

A guide to reclaiming up to 99% of import costs with duty drawbacks.

Advance Your Expertise with UC’s Online Master’s in Cosmetic Science

Advance Your Expertise with UC’s Online Master’s in Cosmetic Science

Stay on the cutting edge of skincare, haircare, and personal-care product innovation with UC’s 100% online MS in Cosmetic Science. Gain expertise in formulation and safety taught by world-class faculty with real-world industry experience.

The UAE debut follows Ulta Beauty’s regional entry in Kuwait at The Avenues on November 7, 2025 (pictured), and underscores a rapid expansion strategy across the Gulf.

Ulta Beauty Lands in the UAE, Fast-Tracking Middle East Expansion

Ulta Beauty’s Middle East expansion positions the retailer to test its mass-to-prestige, service-led model in one of the world’s fastest-growing and most brand-driven beauty markets.

'Fragrance has been benefiting from deep changes in consumer trends, including frequency of use, appetite for more premium, luxury scents and new habits to “collect” various scents and brands,' says Alexandre Terseleer, a partner in the private equity practice at global strategy and management consulting firm, Kearney. 'However, at this stage the offering has become so vast that most consumers start feeling overwhelmed–lending itself well for consolidation at the level of brands (and portfolios thereof).'

Megadeals, Fragrance Frenzies and the Gen Z Wallet: Your 2026 Beauty M&A Playbook

Alexandre Terseleer, a partner at Kearney, unpacks the latest beauty M&A trends.

When consumers request vegan skin care, 89% are actually seeking associated benefits such as cruelty-free, clean or natural formulations. Only 11% correctly identify 'vegan' with its actual meaning—animal-free ingredients.

Prestige Skin Care's 'Vegan Paradox' Driven by Consumer Confusion

A new study analyzing consumer attitudes in the prestige skin care sector has uncovered a significant "intention-action gap" regarding vegan product claims.

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The Future of Beauty Is Now: Download Accupac’s 2026 Trend Report

Accupac’s 2026 Trend Report highlights a new era of beauty—where proof is experienced, sustainability drives real impact, bioinnovation supports long-term vitality, and adaptive beauty responds to changing skin, life stages, and environments.

Drunk Elephant Says Goodbye to Sephora Kids with New Age-Appropriate Campaign

“Dupes,” minis, and discovery sets are thriving alongside true luxury.

U.S. Beauty Market Outlook 2026: Value, Wellness, and Technology Power a Category That Keeps Growing

Consumers are still buying beauty—carefully, strategically and with a sharper eye on value.

But while the rise of Ozempic is clear, the decline of fat loss isn't so transparent. 'Ozempic face' is the newest skin concern, a popularly coined term to describe the changes in the face that come from rapid, medically stimulated weight loss.

Ozempic Face and Beyond: How GLP-1 Weight Loss Drugs Are Driving the Next Era of Medical-Grade Skin Care

Ozempic face is real. Medical-grade skin care products and ingredients are here to help.