On November 8th, with the release of the third-quarter financial report by the Brazilian beauty giant Natura&Co, the performance of the top global cosmetics groups for the first three quarters has now all been disclosed.
Since the beginning of this year, due to the uncertainty of the global economic environment, beauty giants have frequently taken measures such as layoffs and strategic adjustments. So, what changes have occurred in the rankings of the top ten global beauty companies in the first three quarters of this year? And what kind of new market trends have emerged?
The total sales volume of the top ten global cosmetics companies is $109.1 billion, up 1.17%.
According to the financial report released by Natura & Co, the company’s net revenue for the third quarter of 2024 was 6 billion Brazilian reais ($1.045 billion), an 18.5% year-on-year increase. At the same time, the company’s net revenue for the first half of 2024 was 13.458 billion Brazilian reais ($2.345 billion). Based on this, Natura & Co’s net revenue for the first three quarters totals 19.458 billion Brazilian reais (approximately $3.39 billion). This performance is lower than Puig, causing Natura & Co to fall out of the top ten global cosmetics companies.
In fact, due to frequent divestitures of subsidiaries, Natura & Co had already dropped out of the global top ten list in the first half of this year, while Puig entered the top ten for the first time. As of the third quarter, despite achieving performance growth, Natura & Co’s total sales for the first three quarters were still $290 million less than Puig, failing to re-enter the top ten.
CHAILEEDO statistics have found that after divesting non-cosmetics businesses, there have been new changes in the top ten global cosmetics companies for the first three quarters of 2024. From January to September this year, the total sales volume of the top ten global beauty companies was $109.1 billion, an increase of approximately 1.17% compared to the same period last year.
In terms of rankings, for the first three quarters of this year, L’Oréal had sales of $34.754 billion, maintaining an absolute lead and being the only company to exceed the $30 billion mark. However, its 6% growth rate is the lowest for L’Oréal in nearly four years.
Following closely behind is Unilever, with sales of $21.6 billion. Estée Lauder and Procter & Gamble rank third and fourth, with sales of $11.17 billion and $11.166 billion, respectively.
Beiersdorf and LVMH rank fifth and sixth, with sales of $6.76 billion and $6.6 billion, respectively. The last four positions are held by Shiseido, Coty, Kenvue, and Puig, with sales of $4.7 billion, $4.37 billion, $4.363 billion, and $3.68 billion, respectively.
In terms of growth rates, for the first three quarters of this year, compared to the same period last year, seven companies achieved sales growth. Among them, Puig had the fastest growth rate, reaching 9.6%. However, Procter & Gamble and Coty experienced declines in performance, with decreases of 1.4% and 2.5%, respectively. Meanwhile, Shiseido’s sales remained relatively stable compared to last year, showing no significant change.
It is worth mentioning that the financial report data of the top ten global cosmetics companies compiled and analyzed by CHAILEEDO completely excludes sales data from certain companies’ oral care, OTC drugs, and daily necessities segments, relying solely on the sales data of beauty and personal care businesses disclosed by each group.
Due to the high proportion of oral care, Colgate-Palmolive did not make it into the top ten global cosmetics companies solely by calculating the personal care business. Colgate-Palmolive’s business is divided into oral care, personal and home care, and pet nutrition segments. Its beauty and personal care business mainly focuses on personal care, including three skincare brands PCA SKIN, Filorga, EltaMD SKIN care, and nine personal care, oral care, and household cleaning brands.
According to the latest financial report, in the first three quarters of 2024, Colgate-Palmolive’s net sales reached $15.156 billion, with the personal care segment accounting for 18%. By calculation, the sales of this segment were $2.728 billion, which is $948 million short of the threshold for making it into the top ten.
First appearance of dark horse, fluctuation in competition in the “lower tier”
Comparing the top ten global beauty rankings for the first 9 months of the past 3 years, there have been few changes in the list of companies that made it in. However, in terms of ranking order, only L’Oréal and Unilever have consistently held the first and second positions, while Shiseido has long held the seventh position, with other companies’ rankings fluctuating.
In the “upper tier” (1-3 positions), the third position has been alternated between Estée Lauder and Procter & Gamble, showing a dynamic change of positions.
In the “middle tier” (4-7 positions), the fourth position has been consistently occupied by Estée Lauder and Procter & Gamble. The fifth and sixth positions have been taken by LVMH and Beiersdorf, showing a fluctuating trend. However, in the past two years, Beiersdorf has had the upper hand, steadily holding the fifth position.
In contrast, the rankings in the “lower tier” (8-10 positions) have shown more significant fluctuations. Kenvue’s sales mainly come from its skincare and beauty, as well as children’s care sectors, and over the past 3 years, Kenvue has fluctuated between the eighth and ninth positions. Due to strategic adjustments, Coty’s ranking has steadily risen in recent years, moving up from the 10th position in 2022 to the 8th position this year. In comparison, Natura & Co’s ranking has slipped from 8th to 10th place, eventually dropping out of the top ten this year.
It is not difficult to see that in the beauty industry, the leading beauty companies, with their strong market power, firmly hold the majority of market share, demonstrating a clear “siphon effect.”
Slowdown in high-end beauty industry
As mentioned earlier, among the top ten global cosmetic companies in the first three quarters of this year, only Procter & Gamble and Kenvue saw a decline in performance. According to Procter & Gamble’s financial report, its beauty sector had the lowest growth rate among its five major business segments, directly leading to Procter & Gamble’s performance declining for the first time in nearly five years in the first three quarters.
In the financial report, Procter & Gamble once again singled out SK-II, stating that due to an overall decrease in market sales and a decline in sales of ultra-high-end brands such as SK-II, the product mix was unfavorable, resulting in a more than 20% decrease in organic sales of skincare products.
Furthermore, as a core driver of L’Oréal’s performance growth in recent years, its luxury cosmetics division saw a growth rate of 5.3% in the first three quarters of this year, with sales reaching 11.353 billion euros, making it the slowest-growing division.
Nicolas Hieronimus stated in a media interview, “The development of high-end cosmetics in China this entire summer has been very weak, beyond our expectations.”
Despite a 2.6% growth in performance in the first three quarters of this year, Estée Lauder Group, a global leader in high-end beauty, also saw poor performance from its high-end beauty brands in its latest financial report. According to Estée Lauder’s Q1 2025 financial report, both La Mer and Estée Lauder brands saw double-digit declines, while the makeup brand MAC and the perfume brand Tom Ford saw “high single-digit” percentage decreases in net sales.
Meanwhile, in the first three quarters of this year, several brands under the Shiseido Group also faced challenges. Shiseido brand, NARS, Cle de Peau Beaute, and Zotos saw declines of 7%, 5%, 2%, and 10% respectively, while IPSA plummeted by 21%. Additionally, La Prairie, under Beiersdorf, saw a 7.3% decrease in organic revenue.
Although Puig is the fastest-growing company, its high-end skincare products are not the main driver of performance growth. Puig Group CEO Marc Puig pointed out that growth came from accelerated growth in the perfume business in the third quarter, outperforming the overall high-end beauty market.
Of course, high-end beauty remains an important part of business development and growth. For example, Shiseido mentioned in its latest mid-term strategy “SHIFT 2025 and Beyond” that high-end beauty is still a key focus for the group. Beiersdorf also indicated in its latest financial report that it aims to continue expanding the market share of its La Prairie brand and more.
Chinese Market Cools Down, Chinese Domestic Beauty Brands Rise Strongly
Looking at the top ten global cosmetics companies, CHAILEEDO found that in 2024, many beauty giants experienced weak growth in the Asia-Pacific market, even showing year-on-year declines.
L’Oréal mentioned in its latest financial report that in the first nine months of this year, the sales in the North Asia market, including China, amounted to 7.43 billion euros, a 3.5% decrease compared to the previous period. Worth mentioning is that this is the third consecutive decline for L’Oréal in the North Asia market in nearly 5 years. In particular, L’Oréal’s high-end beauty products faced the most severe setbacks in China, with sales in the third quarter of this year dropping by around 15% year-on-year.
According to Estée Lauder’s latest financial report, due to declining performance in mainland China and Hong Kong, its net sales in the Asia-Pacific region decreased by 11%, with organic net sales dropping by 11% as well. Meanwhile, Shiseido’s development in the Chinese market still faces growth challenges. The company’s third-quarter financial report shows that sales in the Chinese market amounted to 173.9 billion yen, a 2.4% year-on-year decrease.
Despite the decline in performance, beauty giants remain confident in the Chinese market and are actively adjusting their strategies. For example, L’Oréal announced plans for product innovation and entry into third and fourth-tier cities in China. Beiersdorf Group CEO Vincent Warnery also pointed out, “There is still a lot of development space in China’s high-end skincare market.” Procter & Gamble also stated that they are prepared to continue succeeding in the Chinese market.
At this year’s Import Expo, international giants further demonstrated their focus on the Chinese market. Among them, L’Oréal’s North American high-end hair care brand PUREOLOGY officially entered the Asian market, while Beiersdorf’s high-end skincare and makeup brand Chantecaille and Coty’s own high-end fragrance brand Infiniment Coty Paris were all showcased as new brands for the first time, highlighting their determination to deepen their presence in the Chinese market.
On the other hand, as international beauty giants slow down in the Chinese market, how are Chinese beauty companies performing?
According to the latest Double 11 rankings released by “Tmall Beauty,” Pechoin has consistently ranked first since the start of pre-sales, achieving a “ten-time champion.” At the same time, in the first three quarters of this year, Pechoin’s revenue has approached nearly 7 billion yuan. As seen from the above, the sales of Puig, ranked tenth globally in the first three quarters of this year, are equivalent to 3.78 times that of Pechoin.
It is undeniable that there is still a considerable gap between Chinese domestic beauty companies and the top ten global giants. However, in the current challenging environment facing the cosmetics market, rapidly rising domestic beauty companies like Pechoin demonstrate the strong growth potential of local brands. In the future, Chinese beauty companies are expected to further narrow the gap with international giants and become significant players in the global beauty market.
