According to estimates based on to McKinsey’s From Aisle to Algorithm, between 2019 and 2025, fragrance led the beauty industry growth at 8% per year in both mass and prestige. Haircare grew 6% driven by a 9% growth in prestige. Skincare grew 3% while makeup only experienced a 2% growth with both categories experiencing a 1% growth in prestige.
All fragrance price tiers have been growing significantly. In the luxury segment Amouage closed 2025 with revenue up 66% and retail sales above $430 million. At the entry point of prestige Kayali was the most popular brand on Sephora.com in 2025 according to data from customer reviews analytics firm rAIviews. In the mass category Lattafa built the largest Arab fragrance business on Amazon, being the top selling brand on Amazon globally in Q1 2026 according to data from Pattern. There is also Sol de Janeiro a brand which capitalized on body and hair mists under $40 to triple the brand past $1bn in sales.
In haircare, growth came mostly from the higher price tier. Consumers are increasingly buying scalp and treatment products with clinical backing that used to be reserved to salons. It’s the skincare playbook, arriving in hair a decade late.
In skincare prestige has been challenged while masstige brands posted high single-digit gains, mostly coming from Korean brands. Medicube was the third best selling brand on Amazon in Q1 2026 according to data from Pattern while it was number one on TikTok in Q2 2026 according to data from Charm.io generating $56.2m in GMV in skincare during the quarter. Another Korean brand Dr. Melaxin was the second bestselling skincare brand on TikTok generating $30.3m. Both brands based their success on the credibility of their formulation at a price prestige can’t match without eating its margin.
Finally, makeup never got its comeback. The pandemic knocked lipstick out of the routine. Masks made color pointless, and the skincare habit people picked up in lockdown have taken the priority over makeup. Skincare now comes first and makeup gets whatever’s left. Here prestige brands has suffered the most as the category hasn’t given consumers a reason to spend more contrary for example to the prestige haircare segment.