Target's beauty sales grew 9% in Q2 2024, budling on double-digit growth in the same period of 2023. This strength in beauty is nothing new, with the retailer previously touting beauty as its strongest sector.
The news comes as Lisa Roath transitions into the role of chief merchandising officer of food, essentials and beauty.
Target's Beauty Winners
"Beauty continues to gain meaningful market share ... driven by a balanced combination of new offerings, celebrity brands and seasonal relevance," chair and CEO Brian C. Cornell told attendees of an analyst call.
Notably, he said, "This has been a summer of sun care with guests looking for familiar, affordable options like [Target's private label] Up & Up Sunscreen, as well as newer trending brands such as Vacation."
As previously observed by Circana, beauty minis are hot. Cornell explained, "Minis have also been a major growth driver, with travel on the rise and consumers looking for a little bit of affordable indulgence for at-home too."
Target Goes All In On Hair Care
"In beauty, after years of meaningful investments in cosmetics and skin care offerings, we're investing in all things hair care," said Cornell, who highlighted the retailer's partnership with L'Oreal on its ColorSonic home coloring device.
This launch is off to a great start, and we see big things ahead for this brand. The device allows consumers of any hair type, length and texture color their hair easily "by automatically mixing dye and developer in a perfect 1:1 ratio with the press of the button," per the brand.
Per Cornell, the launch is off to a strong start.
"[O]n top of our exciting launch of Jennifer Aniston's Lola B hair care line, we launched a new partnership with celebrity Blake Lively for her exclusive to Target line, Blake Brown Haircare, which quickly became our biggest hair care launch on record," said Rick Gomez, executive vice president, chief commercial officer.
He added, "On launch day alone, Blake Brown had the five best-selling hair care items at Target."
Later, Gomez added, "[I]t [Blake Brown] is already the most successful hair care launch that we have ever had a Target. And I think this is another great example of the consumer is willing to buy when they find that right combination of on-trend, stylish product at an affordable price."
