The Low Down: Beauty & Personal Care on Amazon
Diving into the Beauty and Personal Care category on Amazon in the USA and UK
The beauty and personal care category on Amazon shows substantial growth over the last few years and high revenue potential for brands. In the USA, this category is projected to generate over $36 bn in sales in 2024, growing 26% YoY. Skincare is particularly strong as a sub category, with a growth rate of 43.8%, heavily driven by shopper interest in products like serums and those with anti-aging treatments. In the UK, the stats are less readily available, but the category still shows promising potential, especially in skincare, haircare and men’s grooming products. The UK has also seen a shift towards more premium and eco-friendly products. In both regions, the category is very susceptible to social trends, especially when it comes to platforms like Instagram and Tik Tok.
Category Trends and Consumer Preference
Shoppers in the USA and UK often show high interest in and are more impacted by Tik-Tok driven trends, which have really helped products like Olaplex treatments and Dyson’s Airwrap gain popularity in 2024. Value-driven shopping is a trend for brands to be aware of for 2024 and beyond, as consumers seek effective but affordable products. We see a lot of this in the rise of drugstore brands and private label beauty products. Many shoppers are searching for products that have clear, transparent reviews and that have social influence or natural ingredients.
Popular keywords on Amazon’s beauty category include searches like “face serum”, “natural shampoo”, “anti-aging”, “sun cream” and “hair loss”. Other searches including terms like “vegan” or “natural” or “sustainable packaging” are also gaining traction within this category, as consumers shift towards eco-friendly and health-conscious decisions. Some of the hottest subcategories within Beauty and Personal care in 2024 include skincare, haircare, makeup and men’s grooming.
Skincare: Growing rapidly, with more interest in anti-aging, preventative products with natural ingredients, and a huge drive towards Korean beauty (K-beauty) products, influenced by social media trends. Serums, moisturisers with SPF and face masks are extremely popular.
Haircare: Products with a “hair-health” focus such as products for dry, damaged hair and hair loss are gaining popularity e.g. natural or special shampoos and conditioners, hair protectants.
Makeup: Sees many seasonal and trend peaks from #BeautyTok such as makeup gift sets around Christmas, tanning peaks in the lead up to and over Summer and peaks in products / brands after an Influencer uses and promotes them online. This category is also heavily influenced by Peak Events like Prime Day and BFCM.
Men’s Grooming: Products like beard care and hair styling are growing in favour, driven by more male consumers being more interested in, and knowledgeable about personal care.
Top Brands
Skincare
CeraVe, La Roche-Posay, CORSX and Neutrogena are top choices across all regions
Bio-Oil and Valitic Kojic Acid Soap are particularly popular in the USA
La-Roche-Posay, Vichy and Bioderma are more dominant in Europe, due to their local origins
Makeup
Maybelline, L'Oréal, NYX, and e.l.f. Cosmetics are popular in both the US and UK with their products going viral often on social media
Ilia and Laura Geller are also building popularity in the USA
KIKO Milano, Rimmel and Essence are more widely recognised in Europe, especially in Italy, Spain and Germany
Haircare
Olaplex and Dyson’s hair tools have a generally strong presence in the US and UK
Mielle Organics is also gaining traction with its niche appeal for those with more textured hair in these regions
Kerastase and Schwarzkopf are more popular in France and Germany
Revlon also shows consistent performance across multiple markets with its quality and affordability
Shaving and Hair Removal
Gillette and Venus razors dominate in the US and UK for men and women
Philips and Braun electric shavers have higher popularity in Germany and France, where there is a preference towards electric grooming devices
Veet sees stronger demand in the UK and Spain for hair removal creams
Finishing Touch facial hair removals are popular in the USA, where portable, gentle devices are in high demand
Amazon PPC Advertising
There are some strategic tactics you can undertake to best tackle and crack this category on Amazon, some of these tactics are:
Competitor Targeting
This category and its related subcategories are incredibly saturated. In your competitor and product (PAT) targeting, be specific and tailored to avoid easily wasted spend. Truly understand who your actual competition is key in an efficient ad strategy. For example, working out who your competitors are in product quality, types and pricing to be able to accurately and effectively assign keywords and PAT targets in your campaigns. If you are a high quality brand in this space who charges £20 for your product, targeting £5 brands will be a wasted effort, as consumers will be searching for a different product to suit a fundamentally different need of theirs.
Remember that many consumers use Amazon as a search engine in its own right, so consider targeting brands that are not yet selling on Amazon, but are being searched for. Brands such as Charlotte Tilbury don’t have an official owned space in the category (yet - they do have some products up, but are an unfortunate mix of legitimate and fake options), but are still being searched for by shoppers. If you have a brand that aligns well with these types of searches, they could be a key target area to offer yourself as a convenient alternative.
Top Terms
The top flagship terms within each sub-category will be expensive, especially with big players with even bigger budgets dominating the space. Consider if TOS or high value placements on these terms are worth their CPCs. If CPCs are extremely high, consider the margins your products need in relation to these, and if they seem slightly too tight or out of reach, consider longer tail terms or smaller competitors as your main focus areas.
Social Proof
Reviews and ratings are crucial within these categories, as they are products that consumers directly use on their bodies. A higher volume of positive reviews for your products, with lifestyle imagery and high quality content supports trust with prospective customers. Opting into Influencer marketing across social channels that can direct traffic to your Amazon pages can further support this thought.
Brand Stores
Strong brand stores are key in providing consumers with a full experience and can support cross and upsell within your offerings. Creating a brand store that mimics your DTC website, but is optimised to reflect the way shoppers shop for your sub-category (e.g. different tabs for different areas like Skin, Face, Body etc) is important in providing ease and convenience.
Brand Story
In addition to the above, having a strong brand story supports trust and growth on Amazon, in all categories but in Beauty and Personal Care in particular. Having a compelling story you tell about your brand is imperative in building strong awareness, loyalty and engagement on Amazon.
Want to know more about the Beauty and Personal Care category on Amazon? Get in touch with us at zeal@zealagency.co.uk or at www.zealagency.co.uk.
