Retail > Digital/E-commerce | Global Cosmetic Industry

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.

'Cyber liability insurance provides coverage for data breaches—hacking incidents, payment info exposure,' says Kenneth Hegel of Epic Insurance Brokers & Consultants. 'Especially important of you are storing any customer data or you sell DTC alongside retail.'

The Retail Insurance Rules Beauty Brands Can’t Ignore

"Rising insurance costs are changing how beauty brands operate in a pretty fundamental way."

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.

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Under the agreement, Pencil’s end-to-end AI content platform will be integrated across Coty Consumer Beauty brands—including CoverGirl, Rimmel, Sally Hansen and Max Factor—enabling creative and marketing teams to rapidly generate, test and optimize advertising assets across markets and channels.

Coty Bets Big on Generative AI as Pencil Partnership Pushes Beauty Content Into Real Time

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

AI-Inspired Beauty: Accelerating Innovation Through Intelligence

AI-Inspired Beauty: Accelerating Innovation Through Intelligence

Ulta is pushing aggressively toward full-funnel integration, collapsing discovery, comparison and transaction into a single step within Google’s ecosystem.

Ulta Leans Into Google’s AI Checkout As Sephora Bets on ChatGPT Discovery

The partnership marks a pivotal scaling moment for Erly, which has built early traction through founder-led activations, boutique distribution and strong repeat purchase rates in its first year on the market.

Erly Skincare Lands at Ulta Beauty, Scaling Barrier-First Simplicity Nationwide

For Ulta Beauty, the addition underscores a broader merchandising direction: clinically credible brands that balance efficacy with ease of use.

As trend cycles accelerate, assortments sprawl and omnichannel complexity becomes the norm, AI is emerging as a core operating lever, not a shiny experiment.

2026: The Year AI Decides Beauty’s Winners and Losers

"Leaders must view AI as a core operating capability for managing trend volatility, not a digital innovation project."

MOON: mascara in glass by Lumson and Ponzini

MOON: mascara in glass by Lumson and Ponzini

MOON is the first glass mascara created by Lumson in collaboration with Ponzini. This Made in Italy design elevates the formula, transforming the mascara into a luxury object. The bottle comes with three applicators for a tailored, premium performance

Building a Science-Forward Beauty Brand Is Harder Than Ever. Here’s What I've Learned.

The companies that will thrive in the coming decade are those that treat science not as a decorative flourish but as a foundational element of their identity.

Investigations suggest a covert marketing strategy utilizing very young micro-influencers to encourage compulsive purchasing among vulnerable groups, specifically those under the age of 10 to 12.

Italian Antitrust Authority Targets LVMH and Sephora Over 'Cosmeticorexia'

The probe scrutinizes marketing and sales practices within the Sephora Collection and Benefit Cosmetics lines.

'The most valuable thing we can do with this capital is remove the operational friction, focus the best talent in the business on the work they are genuinely brilliant at which will unquestionably unlock innovation adding more value to our clients and our community—that is truly where the magic happens,' says Jane Walsh, CEO, SEEN Group (at center, pictured with the company's management team). 'No one tool or one capability in isolation, but in the compounding effect of a team that is operating at its fullest. Clients feel that. The community feels that. The quality of the work reflects it.'

Micro-Creators, Macro Growth: SEEN Group Scales Its Influence Engine

The centerpiece of this next phase is Community X SEEN (CXS), the group’s proprietary influencer platform dedicated to micro- and nano-creators.

Customers who link their Sephora Beauty Insider accounts will receive personalized advice and can utilize member benefits, including loyalty rewards and free shipping promotions.

Beauty Retail Heats Up: Sephora Expands Into the 'Intelligent Channel' of ChatGPT as Ulta Beauty Launches in TikTok Shop

Sephora shoppers can prompt specific beauty needs—such as "help me find a foundation for dry skin."

The company has appointed Gaeun Kwon as its first U.S. CEO, reflecting an effort to embed on-the-ground leadership as Olive Young works to translate its Korea-proven retail model for American consumers.

Olive Young Builds U.S. Muscle with CEO and Logistics Hub

The company aims to improve speed to shelf as competition intensifies around K-beauty’s rapid product cycles and growing U.S. demand.

Prestige beauty outperformed the market, despite average price increases, buoyed by emotionally driven, want-based shoppers.

Beauty Holds the Line as Resilient US Consumers Keep Spending

“There is a growing divide between industries where consumers feel value aligns with pricing and those where elevated costs are dampening demand.”

Hanskin is currently transitioning from an Amazon-dominant strategy to a 1,400-store launch at Ulta Beauty.

K-Beauty’s New High-Speed Pipeline to North American Beauty Enthusiasts

Recent launches and expansions reflect a broader trend of professionalizing K-beauty, moving away from whimsical packaging toward clinically proven, microbiome-focused, and biotech-driven solutions.

Each circuit in the U.S. federal court system has its own version of the infringement test, but in essence, they all look at similar factors: (1) the strength of the plaintiff’s trademark or trade dress, (2) the similarity of the goods, (3) the similarity of the marks or designs, (4) evidence of any actual confusion, (5) the similarity of marketing channels, (6) the sophistication of the purchasers or the level of care they likely use, (7) the defendant’s intent, and (8) the likelihood of expansion of the product lines.

Dupe Culture Meets the Courtroom

What the Benefit vs. e.l.f. mascara ruling reveals about the legal limits of beauty dupes.

Cymbiotika has developed a following around its liposomal delivery systems, designed to enhance nutrient absorption and bioavailability.

Ulta Beauty Pushes Deeper Into Wellness With Cymbiotika

In Q4 fiscal 2025, skin care and wellness grew to 24% of Ulta results, per the company.