Last week in beauty, the blockbuster merger between Estée Lauder and Puig took the spotlight.
ESTEE LAUDER AND PUIG ARE DISCUSSING A POTENTIAL MERGER
A potential merger between Estée Lauder and Puig would create a transatlantic beauty giant with approximately €17.6 billion in annual sales, surpassing Unilever to become the world’s second-largest beauty group behind L’Oréal. The deal would combine Lauder’s skincare expertise and U.S. distribution with Puig’s coveted European fragrance portfolio and agile brand management, creating a strategic counterweight to L’Oréal’s dominance amid softening luxury demand and heightened competition.
HENKEL ACQUIRES OLAPLEX IN $1.4 BILLION DEAL
Henkel has agreed to acquire premium hair care brand Olaplex for $1.4 billion, representing a 55% premium over the stock’s closing price, with the deal unanimously approved by Olaplex’s board and majority shareholder Advent International. The acquisition expands Henkel’s presence in premium hair care, leveraging Olaplex’s science-led positioning and professional channel strength, and is expected to close in the second half of 2026.
ITALY PROBES SEPHORA & LVMH OVER KIDS’ COSMETIC MARKETING
Italy’s competition authority has launched an investigation against LVMH, Sephora and Benefit for allegedly promoting adult cosmetics including anti-aging creams to children and teenagers through stores, online channels and the involvement of very young micro-influencers that encourage compulsive purchases. The companies stated they will fully cooperate with authorities and reaffirm their compliance with Italian regulations.
SEPHORA LAUNCHES CHATGPT APP FOR AI-POWERED BEAUTY SHOPPING
Sephora has introduced a dedicated app within ChatGPT, offering personalized beauty recommendations and advice based on customers’ Beauty Insider profiles, with future updates enabling direct purchases within the platform. The U.S.-first launch reflects the growing integration of AI into e-commerce as ChatGPT expands its shopping capabilities through the Agentic Commerce Protocol, allowing retailers to share product data directly with the conversational AI.
L’ORÉAL INDIA IN TALKS TO ACQUIRE MAJORITY STAKE IN INNOVIST
L’Oréal India is reportedly in advanced negotiations to acquire a majority stake in Indian beauty startup Innovist, parent company of digital-first brands including Bare Anatomy, Chemist at Play, Sunscoop and Vinci Botanicals, in a deal valued at approximately $350–$450 million (₹4,000 crore). The acquisition would strengthen L’Oréal’s position in India’s fast-growing beauty market amid intensifying competition from digital-native brands, with negotiations ongoing for about a year and potential for full ownership following an initial controlling stake.
ADVENT INTERNATIONAL ACQUIRES MAJORITY STAKE IN SALT & STONE
Advent International has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Salt & Stone, the Los Angeles-based premium bodycare brand founded in 2017, as it looks to support the company’s global expansion and product innovation. With over $165 million in revenue and double-digit growth in 2025, the brand, whose deodorant ranks number one at Sephora and Amazon, will continue to be led by founder Nima Jalali, who remains an equity holder.
KOREAN SKINCARE BRAND JIYU SECURES $6.5M FOR US EXPANSION
Korean skincare brand JiYu has raised $6.5 million from private investors and strategic beauty partners to scale its North American operations and invest in clinical product development. The brand, which develops and manufactures its products in South Korea, is experiencing rapid growth on Amazon and TikTok Shop and is projected to exceed $70 million in annual revenue in 2026 as it strengthens its science-led positioning through clinical dermatology research.
KILGOURMD RAISES SERIES A LED BY PRELUDE GROWTH PARTNERS
Dermatologist-founded scalp health and hair growth brand KilgourMD has closed a Series A funding round led by Prelude Growth Partners, with participation from existing investors Willow Growth, Joyance Partners and Able Partners. The brand, which sells a bottle of its clinically-proven scalp serum system every 20 seconds following a 2023 launch, plans to use the funding to expand its R&D pipeline, develop new formulations and conduct rigorous clinical trials for underserved hair loss populations.
K-BEAUTY WORLD ADDS 17 KOREAN BRANDS TO ULTA MARKETPLACE
K-Beauty World, the curated Korean beauty concept developed by Landing International in partnership with Ulta Beauty, is adding 17 new brands to its Ulta Beauty Marketplace assortment, with 12 currently available and five more expected by May. The expansion, which includes nine skincare, five hair care and two body care brands, leverages Ulta’s marketplace platform to rapidly test emerging Korean trends in the U.S. market and provide a faster route to potential in-store distribution.
VIOLET GREY EXPANDS INTERNATIONALLY WITH UK LAUNCH
US luxury beauty retailer Violet Grey is launching its first international expansion with UK shipping and a pop-up at Harvey Nichols starting April 20, marking its first move outside the US since its 2013 launch. The retailer, known for its curated expert-approved assortment, will feature around 26 brands at the pop-up running through August as part of a broader global growth strategy following its 2024 reacquisition from Farfetch.
CARON OPENS NEW PARIS BOUTIQUE ON RUE SAINT-HONORÉ IN PARIS
French fragrance house Caron has opened a new boutique on Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, designed by Casper Mueller Kneer Architects under the artistic direction of Olivia de Rothschild with a minimalist aesthetic focused on the sensory experience of fragrance. The space features a redesigned contemporary perfume fountain inspired by Art Deco lighting and a layout that presents bottles at eye level, reflecting de Rothschild’s vision of creating a calm environment away from overstimulation.
SALLY BEAUTY LAUNCHES ON TIKTOK SHOP
Sally Beauty has launched on TikTok Shop with plans to offer over 1,000 products including exclusive brands like Beauty Secrets and national labels such as Sauce Beauty, with orders fulfilled directly from the retailer’s distribution centers. The move into social commerce aims to meet consumers where they increasingly discover beauty products through creators and community engagement, building on strong double-digit digital growth across the company’s existing e-commerce channels.
MAC COSMETICS LAUNCHES TIKTOK COMMISSION SCHEME FOR UK STAFF
MAC Cosmetics will offer UK employees commission on TikTok Shop sales generated through their content, equipping over 230 stores with mini studios for live shopping broadcasts starting April 2 with the first livestream at its Carnaby Street location. The initiative makes MAC the first major beauty brand in the UK to extend affiliate-style opportunities to its full workforce, tapping into TikTok Shop’s rapid growth where beauty sales rose 60% year-on-year in 2025 while driving both online sales and in-store footfall.
