TABS Analytics Blog

5^th Annual Color Cosmetics Study Shows Multi-Year Declines in Purchasing by Heavy Buyers and Key Demographics, and Less Overall Consumer Engagement in the Sector

Shelton, CT – November 27, 2018 – Faced with fewer heavy buyers in key demographics, declines in purchasing across all product types and generally less consumer engagement in stores and online, the cosmetics industry is on the precipice of recession, according to the TABS Analytics 5^th Annual Color Cosmetics Study. The study offers insights into cosmetics purchasing trends, including who buys cosmetics, the specific products consumers buy, the outlets at which they make purchases, the factors influencing purchase decisions, and year-over-year changes in behavior and attitudes.

YouTube, Facebook, beauty blogs and other social media channels are increasingly important to women when they are deciding which cosmetics to purchase, according to the 2017 Cosmetics Study survey released by TABS Analytics. The TABS study is seeing social media’s impact on brands grow since the inception of the survey four years ago. Among all buyers, 39 percent said that social media is very important – up from 27 percent in 2014.

2017 Edition Special Points of Interest

• Color Cosmetics Top the Industry
• China Gaining Ground in Domestic Beauty Products
• Beauty Care Ingredients Borrowing from Chinese Medicine
• Price Determines where 87% of Women Buy Beauty Products 
• Anti-pollution Skin Care
• Ethical Cosmetic Labeling
• The Use of Probiotics in Skin Care

In presenting the 2016 results from TABS Analytics’ annual study on Beauty (Cosmetics and Skincare), Dr. Kurt Jetta sat down with Andrea Van Dam, CEO of Women’s Marketing, Inc., and discussed a number of important trends and findings. Their combined insights reflect the current state of women’s buying habits of cosmetics and other beauty products.

You can view the entire presentation here, but let’s quickly break down the overall trends, both for the current year as well as year-over-year.

In our second infographic from the 2016 TABS Beauty Study, we highlight several specific cosmetics trends, including:

• The growth of brands and types purchased.
• Which retailers won, and which ones lost, gaining share of purchases.
• Key consumer attitudes towards purchasing cosmetics. 

TABS Analytics recently hosted its Third Annual Beauty Study Webinar. In our first infographic from the study, we outline a few overall trends including:

• Which brands are growing in awareness.
• Who the heavy purchasers of cosmetics are.
• How mass market purchasing in cosmetics compares to mass market purchasing in skincare.

Walmart reasserts its presence in Beauty; YouTube, Beauty Blogs, Facebook and Instagram are top influencers 

Shelton, CT – November 16, 2016 – Millennial and Hispanic women are the heaviest buyers of cosmetics and skincare products in this $25 billion dollar market, TABS Analytics reported today in its Third Annual Beauty Study. Millennial women (ages 18-34) accounted for about 33 percent of the user base for cosmetics and skincare and almost 50 percent of heavy buyers of both categories (defined by the number product types of each category purchased). Over the last three years, there has been a sharp rise in the amount of cosmetics purchased by Hispanic women and they now account for 15 percent of all category buyers, 24 percent of all heavy buyers of cosmetics, and 20 percent of heavy skincare buyers. The skew in purchasing toward high income purchasers continued, but the study showed a dip in purchasing after the $99,000 per year in earnings mark.

2016 Edition Special Points of Interest

• Beauty Industry Trends
• Social Media Trends
• Beauty Specialty Retailer Updates
• Natural/Organic Cosmetics
• Ingredient Innovation
• Marketing Trends
• Consumer Insights