WWD Beauty Inc's Top 100 Beauty Manufacturers in 2021 – WWD - WWD

1. L'ORÉAL

CLICHY, FRANCE

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$38.19 BILLION

€32.28 BILLION

+15.3% VS. 2020

+8.1% VS. 2019

MAIN BRANDS: CONSUMER PRODUCTS: L'Oréal Paris, Garnier, Maybelline New York, NYX Professional Makeup, Stylenanda, Essie, Mixa, Dark & Lovely. L'ORÉAL LUXE: Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Kiehl's, Helena Rubinstein, Biotherm, Shu Uemura, It Cosmetics, Ralph Lauren, Urban Decay, Mugler, Valentino, Viktor & Rolf, Azzaro, Prada, Diesel, Atelier Cologne. PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTS: L'Oréal Professionnel, Redken, Kérastase, Matrix, Pureology, Pulp Riot. ACTIVE COSMETICS: La Roche-Posay, Vichy, SkinCeuticals, CeraVe.

Key Financials:

Like-for-like sales: +16.1% vs. 2020

Operating profit: €6.16 billion, +18.3%

Net profit: €4.6 billion, +29%

Sales by Division:

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Professional Products: €3.78 billion, +22.2% (+24.8% like-for-like)

Consumer Products: €12.23 billion, +4.5% (+5.6% like-for-like)

L'Oréal Luxe: €12.35 billion, +21.3% (+20.9% like-for-like)

Active Cosmetics: €3.92 billion, +30.3% (+31.8% like-for-like)

Sales by geographic zone:

Europe: €10.18 billion, +10.7% (+10.1% like-for-like)

North America: €8.16 billion, +18.1% (+22.2% like-for-like)

North Asia: €9.86 billion, +18.6% (+17.6% like-for-like)

SAPMENA [South Asia Pacific, Middle East, North Africa]: €2.19 billion, +9.4% (+13.8% like-for-like)

SSA [Sub-Saharan Africa]: €119.5 million, +23.2% (+17.2% like-for-like)

Latin America: €1.77 billion, +20.6% (+20.6% like-for-like).

Biggest markets: The U.S., China and France.

In what chief executive officer Nicolas Hieronimus — in his first year as leader of the world's largest beauty company — described as a "grand slam," L'Oréal claims to have grown twice as fast as the overall beauty market, with gains in all zones, divisions and product categories. The strength of the U.S. market and North Asia, especially China, coupled with the growth of luxury, were major sales drivers. In Europe, L'Oréal gained significant market share and saw its sales return to pre-pandemic levels.

For the L'Oréal Luxe division — which became the company's largest in 2021 — fragrance was particularly strong, and the company gained market share in North Asia and performed well in Europe. In North America, following the restructuring of distribution, sales began to accelerate once more, L'Oréal said. It gained market share in all of its categories, and consolidated its leadership in fragrance, driven by established lines like Libre by Yves Saint Laurent and launches including Alien Goddess by Mugler and Luna Rossa Ocean from Prada. Skin care was driven by ultra-premium lines Lancôme Absolue and Helena Rubinstein, and antiaging innovations including Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum. In makeup, which remained less dynamic, Lancôme and Shu Uemura performed well.

Consumer Products performed strongly in makeup, L'Oréal said. Momentum was strong in the U.S. and markets including India, Brazil, Mexico and Indonesia. Growth in all zones, and especially in emerging markets, was driven by e-commerce development. Sky High mascara was reportedly Maybelline's most successful launch, and premium innovations in hair care also did well. L'Oréal Paris surpassed 6 billion euros in annual sales and strengthened its position as the world's number-one beauty brand.

Active Cosmetics continued to outperform, and has doubled its size over the past four years, L'Oréal said. With growth in all zones, the division performed especially well in North America and North Asia.

Professional Products ramped up its omnichannel activity. Its strongest gains came from the U.S. and mainland China. Kérastase was boosted by new line Curl Manifesto, and L'Oréal Professionnel and Redken also did well. Matrix rebranded, aiming to broaden its appeal with a more diverse consumer base. Omar Hajeri was named president of the division in March 2021.

In mainland China, the company recorded overall like-for-like growth of more than 50% in the fourth quarter on a two-year stack, breaking records during the Singles' Day festival on Tmall, it said. While L'Oréal remains optimistic about the long-term potential of the Chinese market, it admitted that growth had slowed in the second half of last year.

In June, the company said it would merge its reporting entities to create a new Europe zone, grouping together its Eastern and Western European operations that were previously run separately. The new zone is headed by Vianney Derville, formerly head of the Western Europe activity, and follows the retirement of Eastern Europe head Alexandre Popoff. The company said the move was the final step in its restructuring of its regional structure initiated in late 2020 to offer greater coherence to each zone in terms of consumer behavior and market maturity.

E-commerce represented 28.9% of sales for the year, and grew 25.7% on a like-for-like basis.

Key executive news included the appointment of David Greenberg as CEO of L'Oréal USA, following the abrupt departure of Stéphane Rinderknech in March of this year. Asmita Dubey was named chief digital officer in April last year. She was previously L'Oréal's chief media officer and chief digital officer for the Consumer Products division. Her promotion followed the departure of Lubomira Rochet.

Tech-wise, the company partnered with Israel-based Breezometer on a multiyear partnership to develop a beauty-driven exposome platform, and with Clue, an app that tracks menstrual cycles, to better understand the links between skin health and hormonal changes. Armani Beauty launched Face Maestro, an AI-powered digital service designed to give personalized product recommendations like a makeup artist would. Digitalizing the point-of-sale is also an area of focus, and in January, L'Oréal signed a partnership with health tech player Verily to help better understand and characterize skin and hair aging mechanisms.

In December, L'Oréal acquired Youth to the People, a California-based skin care brand with products built around superfood ingredients, for an undisclosed sum. The brand was expected to do $50 million in sales in 2021. L'Oréal also took a minority stake in Swiss company Gjosa, which offers water-savings solutions and has been partnering with L'Oréal since 2015, notably on the L'Oréal Water Saver shower head for use in salons and homes.

On the sustainability front, L'Oréal announced that by ramping up green chemistry, 95% of the ingredients it uses will come from renewable plant sources, minerals or circular processes, and all formulas will be conceived to respect aquatic environments by 2030.

L'Oréal USA announced that all of its manufacturing, distribution, administrative and research and innovation facilities are now carbon neutral for scope one and scope two emissions. The achievement is a major step on the road to all of its site worldwide reaching carbon neutrality by 2025, a key goal announced in its 2020 plans.

The company was a founding member of a new coalition of beauty conglomerates aiming to rank the sustainability of their beauty products. Henkel, Natura & Co., L'Oréal USA, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and Unilever all joined forces to create a scorecard for beauty manufacturers used to rank the environmental impacts of their products.

Nestlé, L'Oréal's second-largest shareholder after the Bettencourt Meyers family, announced it was reducing its stake to 20.1%, from 23.2% previously. L'Oréal is buying back the shares, which represent 4% of its capital, before canceling them by Aug. 29, 2022. The news was met positively on financial markets, and is expected to help optimize L'Oréal's balance sheet.

 

2. UNILEVER

LONDON

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$23.82 BILLION (EST.)

€20.14 BILLION (EST.)

+ 3.7% VS. 2020 (EST.)

+0.2% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: AHC, Axe/ Lynx, Clear, Dollar Shave Club, Dove, Dove Men+Care, Lifebuoy, Love Beauty and Planet, Lux, Nexxus, Pond's, Rexona/Sure/Degree, Schmidt's Naturals, Shea Moisture, Simple, Skinsei, St. Ives, Suave, Sunsilk/Seda/Sedal, Tigi, TRESemmé, Vaseline, The Right to Shower. Unilever Prestige: Dermalogica, Garancia, Hourglass, Kate Somerville, Living Proof, Murad, Paula's Choice, Ren Clean Skincare, Tatcha.

KEY FINANCIALS:

Beauty & Personal Care division revenues: €21.9billion, +3.7% vs. 2020, +0.1% vs. 2019

(underlying sales growth vs. 2020: 3.8%, underlying volume growth: 0.8%)

Division operating profit: €4.47 billion, +3.7% vs. 2020

Total company revenues: €52.44 billion, +3.4% vs. 2020

Operating profit: €8.7 billion, +4.8% vs. 2020

Net profit: €6.6 billion, +9% vs. 2020

The recent past has been tumultuous for Unilever.

The consumer-goods giant started 2022 with a failed bid to take over GlaxoSmithKline's consumer health care arm, triggering a share-price collapse, and subsequently said it would shake up its corporate structure, dividing the business into five category-focused divisions, which among other changes will see its Beauty & Personal Care activity split into two entities, Beauty & Wellbeing, and Personal Care, respectively. The new organization is intended to help Unilever move away from a "matrix structure" and become simpler and more category focused. Each business group will be responsible for its strategy, growth and profit delivery globally, according to the company.

Sunny Jain, who took on the top beauty job at Unilever in 2019 and helped it to navigate the pandemic, is leaving to set up an investment fund. His position is being eliminated, and was announced alongside the broad swathe of organizational shifts this January. Senior management roles will be reduced by 15% and more junior management roles by around 5%, resulting in a headcount reduction of around 1,500 globally.

With the shake-up — which Unilever says was a year in the making — Fernando Fernandez, executive vice president of Unilever Latin America, will become president of Beauty & Wellbeing, including Unilever Prestige. Fabian Garcia, president of the firm's North American arm, becomes president of Personal Care, responsible for skin cleansing, deodorants and oral care. The changes were effective from April 1.

The Elida group of personal care brands, including Q-Tips, Caress, Tigi, Timotei, Impulse and Monsavon, will report into the new Personal Care arm. Unilever had originally planned to sell the cluster of brands, which had combined revenues of around €600 million in 2020, but has now said it can create more value if it manages Elida as an independent unit within the overall business.

Operations-wise in 2021, prestige beauty saw double-digit growth. Deodorants grew well, and skin care saw high -single-digit gains while hair care was up in the mid-single digits.

Dove became Unilever's first brand to reach €5 billion in sales. The brand continued to advocate in the U.S. against race-based hair discrimination with the  CROWN coalition and created a new campaign to raise awareness.

Within prestige beauty, all brands benefited from e-commerce growth and a recovery in brick-and-mortar. The prestige brands did more than half of their sales online last year, according to Unilever — well above the market average. Unilever is now targeting €3 billion in revenues for its prestige business in the next few years, it said, without giving a specific time frame. Last year, it expanded the division with the acquisition of skin care brand Paula's Choice, founded in 1995 by Paula Begoun. The brand had estimated sales of $220 million in 2020.

The Degree deodorant brand (also known as Rexona and Sure) ramped up inclusivity initiatives, launching the #TrainersForHire campaign calling for greater representation of people with disabilities in the fitness industry. It also debuted Degree Inclusive, a product concept intended to be easier to use for people with upper limb disabilities and visual impairment.

The company unveiled the Unilever Compass, a strategy focused on sustainable growth with five pillars — developing Unilever's portfolio in high-growth spaces; winning with brands as a force for good powered by purpose and innovation; accelerating in the U.S., India, China and other key growth markets; leading in the channels of the future, and creating a purpose-led, future-fit organization and growth culture.

For the beauty business specifically, March 2021 saw the introduction of the Positive Beauty for People and Planet strategy, aiming to be the "most positive beauty business in the world" and use its scale to do more good.

Key initiatives included TRESemmé and Lakme joining Unilever's roster of PETA-approved brands, which now number 27. Dove introduced its first refillable deodorant, while REN, in partnership with supplier Tubex, created the first 100% recycled aluminum sample tube. The company also teamed with other industry leaders Henkel, L'Oréal, LVMH and Natura & Co. to codevelop a brand-agnostic industry-wide environmental impact assessment and scoring system for beauty products.

3. THE ESTÉE LAUDER COS.

NEW YORK 

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$17.7 BILLION (EST).

+24.6% VS. 2020 (EST.)

+11.3% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: Estée Lauder, Aramis, Clinique, Lab Series, Origins, Tommy Hilfiger, MAC, La Mer, Bobbi Brown, Donna Karan New York, DKNY, Aveda, Jo Malone London, Bumble and bumble, Michael Kors, Darphin Paris, Tom Ford Beauty, Smashbox, Ermenegildo Zegna, Aerin, Le Labo, Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, Glamglow, Kilian Paris, Too Faced, Dr Jart+. Deciem: The Ordinary, Niod.

Key Financials:

Skin Care: $10.2 billion, +25% vs. 2020 / 58% of total ELC sales

Makeup: $4.5 billion, +15.9% vs. 2020 / 26% of total ELC sales

Fragrance: $2.3 billion, +49.6% vs. 2020 / 13% of total ELC sales

Hair: $609 million, +20.1% vs. 2020 / 3% of total ELC sales

The Americas: $4.4 billion, +31.3% vs. 2020 / 25% of total ELC sales

EMEA: $7.6 billion, +24.9% vs. 2020 / 43% of total ELC sales

Asia Pacific: $5.8 billion, +21% vs. 2020 / 33% of total ELC sales

 

The Estée Lauder Cos. had a major comeback year in 2021, which culminated with the company's largest sales quarter — $5.5 billion over the holiday period. In total for the calendar year, Lauder had nearly $18 billion in sales.

The company grew sales broadly across categories and geographies, leveraging its signature multiple engines of growth strategy. Skin care and fragrance sales soared, as did those in the Asia Pacific region, which were up more than 75%.

Part of the success is due to the company's post-COVID-19 recovery plan, a strategy put in place in 2020 that redirected company resources to growing areas of the business — especially skin care, fragrance and the Asia Pacific region.

The results speak for themselves. Skin care sales were up nearly 25%, to more than $10 billion, on top of 11% growth in 2020. The category was led by Estée Lauder, Clinique and La Mer, which saw major increases during the year due to their respective hero franchises. Clinique became one of the first beauty businesses to launch an NFT, or non-fungible token, that the brand used as a loyalty play. Dr.Jart+, which Lauder acquired fully in 2019, also contributed to sales gains.

Lauder's fragrance segment also grew rapidly, to $2.3 billion in sales, thanks to a renewed interest in fragrance and its connection to self care from consumers. Several of the company's luxury and artisanal brands, including Tom Ford Beauty, Jo Malone London, Frédéric Malle, Le Labo and Kilian Paris, contributed to growth.

Makeup improved over 2020 levels, with nearly 15 percent growth from the prior year to $4.5 billion, although it is the one category that did not rise above pre-COVID-19 levels for Lauder during 2021.

Geographically, the firm saw gains across regions — even in the U.S., which had struggled well before COVID-19. By the end of calendar 2021, U.S. sales had rebounded, and sales in the Americas for the year totaled $4.4 billion.

Lauder continued sales gains in the Asia Pacific region, where it generated $5.8 billion in revenues, as well as in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, which posted $7.6 billion in sales. China remained a particularly important market; Joy Fan was promoted to president and CEO for China, effective 2022. The company's top three markets for the year were China, the U.S. and the U.K.

Wins in 2021 did not come without challenges, however. Lauder shuttered operations at Prescriptives, Rodin Olio Lusso and Becca during the year. The company also decided to wind down the Aramis and Designer Fragrances division, letting licensing agreements expire. The segment is expected to fully shutter by 2023, and several brands, including Michael Kors and DKNY, have already signed new licenses.

In executive news, John Demsey, who had a career spanning more than 30 years with Lauder, was asked to leave the company this February after posting a meme on Instagram that contained a racial slur and a joke about COVID-19. Before his departure, Demsey's purview at the company had been focused on makeup since 2020.

Chris Good, Cedric Prouvé, Alexandra Trower and Greg Polcer retired. Matthew Growdon was promoted to general manager for Asia Pacific; Mark Loomis was appointed to president, North America, and Peter Jueptner was named president, International, among other executive moves.

Lauder also inked several deals, including its largest — a majority position in Deciem that valued the company at $2.2 billion. Deciem, the parent company of The Ordinary and other skin care, hair care and personal care lines, is growing quickly. Under the terms of the agreement, Lauder will buy the rest of the company in about two years. Lauder also made a minority investment in grooming brand Faculty.

4. PROCTER & GAMBLE

CINCINNATI

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$14.6 BILLION (EST).

+7.5% VS. 2020 (EST.)

+9.8% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: Aussie, Hair Food, Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, Rejoice, VS (hair care). First Aid Beauty, SK-II, Snowberry (skin care). Olay (skin and body care). Native, Old Spice, Walker & Co. (hair and body care, deodorant). Gillette (body care, deodorant). The Art of Shaving, Ivory, Safeguard (body care). Secret (deodorant).

KEY FINANCIALS:

Organic Growth 2021: +5%

Procter & Gamble's beauty division continued to grow during 2021, in line with the broader P&G business, which has expanded significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. For beauty, sales came from a mix of categories and geographies. P&G continued to lean into its strategy of premium innovation, and ramped up e-commerce transactions. In total, the company had $14.6 billion in beauty sales during the year, an 8% increase from 2020.

P&G continued to build its prestige beauty division during the year, acquiring Jen Atkin's brand Ouai, which was P&G's first foray into prestige hair care and lifestyle, and farm-to-face skin care brand Farmacy. In early 2022, P&G also bought Tula, a probiotic-focused skin care business, from L Catterton.

P&G Beauty CEO Alex Keith has said P&G's more modern acquisition strategy — "letting the founder and/or CEO really continue to run the business in the way that made it successful and attractive to us in the first place" — is working.

Recently acquired brands saw disproportionate growth during the year. Native, acquired in 2017, as well as First Aid Beauty, Walker & Co. and Snowberry, all acquired in 2018, collectively grew about 30% during the year. Native expanded with more retail stores during 2021, and First Aid Beauty entered Asia.

In skin care, SK-II returned to pre-pandemic sales levels (in 2019, the brand's sales approached $3 billion) due to duty-free sales in China's Hainan. Olay launched several ingredient-focused lines, including Regenerist Vitamin C Collection and Regenerist Collagen Peptide Collection. Olay Vitamin C Facial Moisturizer was a bestseller. Three-fourths of the brands in P&G's hair portfolio saw growth versus the prior year, including Pantene, Head & Shoulders, Aussie, Rejoice and Vidal Sassoon. China was a big part of that growth, where hair care sales expanded more in 2021 than in nearly a decade. In North America, P&G focused on textured hair and saw double-digital growth from Bevel, My Black Is Beautiful, Pantene Gold Series and Head & Shoulders Royal Oils.

In personal care, two P&G brands reached $1 billion status: Safeguard and Old Spice. Both grew sales from premium innovation as well as cleansers. P&G's personal care division has grown by more than 20% since the beginning of the pandemic.

The company debuted a systems-thinking framework for its Responsible Beauty platform, which considers quality and performance, safety, sustainability, transparency and equity and inclusion as it looks to progress the beauty industry. The goal for the program is to openly share technologies, programs and processes that could help the beauty industry have a more positive impact on the world. In line with that Responsible Beauty goal, P&G Beauty launched reusable, refillable hair care systems at scale in Europe during the year. Four brands — Pantene, Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences and Aussie — have refillable options. In personal care, Old Spice and Secret also now offer refillable packaging.

5. SHISEIDO

TOKYO

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$9.20 BILLION (EST.)

¥1.01 TRILLION (EST.)

+15.2% VS. 2020 (EST.)

-7.9% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: Shiseido, Clé de Peau Beauté, Nars, Benefique, Ipsa, Shiseido Professional, Elixir, Maquillage, Anessa, Aupres, Urara, Pure & Mild, Senka, Ettusais, Drunk Elephant. Fragrance: Issey Miyake, Narciso Rodriguez, Elie Saab, Zadig & Voltaire, Serge Lutens, Tory Burch.

KEY FINANCIALS:

Total sales: ¥1.04 trillion, +12.4% vs. 2020 (+7.8% at constant currency, +11.9% like-for-like)

Operating profit: ¥41.59 billion, +177.9%

Net profit: ¥42.44 billion, compared with a net loss of ¥11.66 billion

Sales by region:

Japan: ¥276.17 billion, -8.9% vs. 2020 (-1.4% like-for-like)

China: ¥274.72 billion, +16.5% (+19.1%)

Rest of Asia Pacific: ¥65 billion, +9.9% (+5.8%)

The Americas: ¥121.4 billion, +32.8% (+29.9%)

EMEA: ¥117.04 billion, +24.1% (+16.5%)

Travel Retail: ¥120.46 billion, +22.3% (+18.4%)

Professional Sales: ¥15.87 billion, +24.4% (+19.6%)

Sales increases by brand:

Shiseido : +15%

Clé de Peau Beauté : +21%

Ipsa: +4%

Drunk Elephant: +11%

Anessa: +10%

Shiseido is in the midst of transforming its business to focus on its core premium skin care activity — it hopes to become the global market leader in the "skin beauty" category by 2030. Last year was the "groundwork" phase for its new three-year strategic roadmap, WIN 2023 and Beyond, and involved significant structural changes to its portfolio. Shiseido transferred its personal care business to CVC Capital, now operating as Fine Today Shiseido, in which the Japanese company retains a 35% stake through a joint venture, KK Asian Personal Care Holding. It also sold off three of its U.S.-based prestige makeup brands, BareMinerals, Buxom and Laura Mercier (now operating as Orveon) to Advent International, and partially terminated its licensing agreement with Dolce & Gabbana — the contract was ended in late 2021 in all markets except France, with production and global distribution intended to continue for another year. In early 2022, it announced a further divestment — it is selling its professional business in Asia to Henkel, although it will retain a 20% stake.

As part of its drive to accelerate in digital last year, Shiseido established the Shiseido Interactive Beauty Company, Limited as a joint venture with Accenture, and entered a strategic partnership with Tencent to strengthen its digital marketing globally. In March 2022, it said it was acquiring a minority stake in beauty tech firm Perfect Corp.

It also ramped up production and logistics with a new factory in Osaka and a distribution center in West Japan starting up full-scale operations during the year. A new research facility in Shanghai's Oriental Beauty Valley began full-scale operations.

As well as divesting non-core activities, the shift includes less of a focus on topline growth to improve profitability and cashflow management to strengthen its foundations.

Shiseido's performance in 2021 was mixed, but overall — when stripping out its divestments — like-for-like sales for the year gained 11.9% year-over-year, but failed to rebound to pre-pandemic levels.

On the domestic front, consumer traffic was impacted by shortened opening hours at retail and consumers staying home due to the country's State of Emergency implemented to counter the pandemic. The lack of international visitors also hampered sales. Shiseido nevertheless registered market share gains, mainly in base makeup and sun care. Live commerce events and online video counseling helped boost domestic e-commerce sales, which grew in the double digits. Excluding the impact of the divestment of its personal care activity, Japanese sales dropped by 1.4%, the company said.

In the rest of the world, sales picked up again, particularly in Europe and the U.S.. In China, partial retail closures and bad weather hampered growth, but e-commerce remained strong, accounting for 40% of annual sales. Investment in prestige brands drove market-share gains, especially for Clé de Peau Beauté and Nars, although overall, profitability for the Chinese business declined significantly.

In the rest of Asia Pacific, business was slowed by continued lockdowns in certain markets, although e-commerce grew and prestige brands including Shiseido and Nars performed well.

Business in the Americas was strong. Drunk Elephant expanded its retail footprint and Nars grew its market share due to virtual store openings and digital marketing actions. Shiseido, Clé de Peau Beauté and the company's fragrance brands also did well.

For Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the company said it captured the turnaround, notably in skin care and fragrance, to increase its market share, and rolled out Clé de Peau Beauté and Drunk Elephant.

Travel Retail continued to suffer from the lack of international travel. Hainan Island in China was also affected by curbs on travel, but nevertheless saw significant sales acceleration, mainly through e-commerce. Drunk Elephant continued to roll out in travel-retail distribution and the company expanded the number of counters for its major brands in Hainan.

Shiseido made progress in improving its profitability — operating profit jumped 177.9% year-over-year — due to better margins, stronger sales, a more favorable product mix and effective cost management, it said. Net profit gains were attributed to extraordinary gains on the transfer of the personal care business and stronger operating profit, tempered by impairment losses on trademark rights for Dolce & Gabbana and goodwill on the transfer of the U.S. makeup business.

6. LVMH MOËT HENNESSY LOUIS VUITTON

PARIS

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$7.82 BILLION (EST.)

€6.61 BILLION (EST.)

+25.9% VS. 2020 (EST.)

-3.3% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: Parfums Christian Dior, Guerlain, Parfums Givenchy, Parfums Kenzo, Fendi, Pucci, Acqua di Parma, Parfums Loewe, Benefit Cosmetics, Make Up For Ever, Fresh. Maison Francis Kurkdjian (majority stake). Officine Universelle Bully. Kendo Brands: Bite Beauty, KVD Vegan Beauty, Marc Jacobs Beauty, Ole Henriksen, Fenty Beauty by Rihanna. Bulgari. Louis Vuitton. Sephora.

Key Financials:

Organic sales growth: +27%

LVMH Perfumes and Cosmetics revenue by region:

France: 9%

Rest of Europe: 19%

U.S.: 16%

Japan: 4%

Rest of Asia: 42%

Other markets: 10%

Perfumes and Cosmetics Division profit from recurring operations: €684 million, +755% vs. 2020, +0.2% vs. 2019.

LVMH continued to suffer the impact of the absence of international travel and temporary retail closures in 2021, and its sales remained below 2019 levels. Nevertheless, the company said its major brands regained momentum, especially in the second half. Its strategic focus was on keeping distribution selective, limiting promotional activity and developing online sales through its own websites.

Parfums Christian Dior recovered well, according to the company, especially in Asia, the U.S. and the Middle East, and consolidated its position in Europe. The brand ramped up its sustainability drive, focusing on ingredients sourcing, joining the Union for Ethical Biotrade and expanding its refillable packaging offer. Fragrance sales were bolstered by Sauvage, and core lines J'adore, Dior Homme and Miss Dior. Francis Kurkdjian was named creative director of Dior's fragrances, taking over from François Demachy, who had been in-house perfumer since 2006. He remains artistic director of his eponymous brand, which was acquired by LVMH in 2017. Dior's skin care was driven by the Prestige, Capture and L'Or de Vie lines. In makeup, the brand launched refillable packaging for Rouge Dior lipstick and the Forever Liquid transfer-proof product. The brand's shift online attracted a new clientele.

Guerlain reportedly grew well, especially in China, thanks to a strong performance in skin care. In fragrance, the Aqua Allegoria line and new artisanal line L'Art et la Matière were high points globally. For makeup, the brand named makeup artist and influencer Violette Serrat — known by just her first name professionally — as its new creative director, replacing Olivier Echaudemaison. Guerlain also stepped up its sustainability initiatives.

Givenchy returned to growth and gained market share thanks to the success of L'Interdit and the relaunch of Irresistible in fragrance. Prisme Libre powder and Le Rouge lipstick drove makeup. Benefit was boosted by They're Real Magnet mascara, and extended its position in the mascara and brow categories. Fresh enhanced its focus on premium skin care, with major growth for Crème Ancienne. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, the brand launched an initiative to support the communities where its key ingredients are sourced. After relaunching key products in 2020, Make Up For Ever implemented a new retail concept and benefited from the launch of Setting Powder in its Ultra HD range. Fenty Beauty launched Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint foundation, and expanded its range of highlighters. Fenty Eau de Parfum, launched in August exclusively online, was another success for Rihanna's brand. Parfums Kenzo launched a new EdT version of star product Flower by Kenzo and revamped Kenzo Homme and Kenzoki skin care. Maison Francis Kurkdjian continued to outperform, especially in the U.S. Acqua di Parma expanded its presence in China. Parfums Loewe repositioned its offer to draw on parallels with its fashion, and launched a home fragrance collection conceived by Jonathan Anderson.

LVMH continued to expand its beauty portfolio, snapping up Officine Universelle Buly 1803, a high-end apothecary label with 30 retail outposts worldwide and around 800 stock keeping units founded in 2014 by Victoire de Taillac and Ramdane Touhami. It had previously supported the brand's growth through its LVMH Luxury Ventures investment vehicle — the first time a brand supported by the fund has been acquired by the luxury giant.

7. NATURA &CO.

SÃO PAULO

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$7.45 BILLION

R$40.16 BILLION

+8.8% VS. 2020

+177.9% VS. 2019

MAIN BRANDS: Natura (fragrance, makeup, skin, hair, sun and body care, toiletries). Aesop (skin, body and hair care, fragrance). The Body Shop. Avon (outside North America).

Key Financials:

Constant-currency growth vs. 2020: +3.8%

Natura &Co. Latin America net sales: R$22.41 billion, +9.1% (+6.3% at constant currency)

Avon International net sales: R$9.33 billion, +2.5% (-4.3%)

The Body Shop net sales: R$5.82 billion, +9.2% (+0.7%)

Aesop net sales: R$2.6 billion, +33.4% (+25.1%)

Gross profit: R$26.15 billion, +10.4%

Group consolidated net income: R$1.05 billion, compared with a net loss of R$650.2 million in 2020 and net income of R$173 million in 2019.

 

Natura continued to fine-tune in its second year as a true beauty heavyweight. It said it was beginning to see signs of a turnaround at Avon, whose international activity it acquired in early 2020, a move that made it a top 10 beauty player for the first time. 2021 involved a focus on integrating Avon's business in Latin America and accelerating the brand's transformation worldwide, as well as investing in digital group-wide. Learnings from the Natura brand have helped the company build a new commercial model for Avon in Brazil, which has also been implemented in nine other key international markets after pilot programs in South Africa and the Nordic countries.

The company upwardly revised its forecasts for synergies created by the Avon integration to between $350 million and $450 million by 2024, a target it plans to achieve through shared manufacturing and distribution outside Latin America. It had already delivered 40% of anticipated synergies by the end of 2021, and is planning on 70% for this year.

During 2021, Natura &Co. decreased its dependency on its home market — Hispanic markets accounted for 53% of group sales in Latin America last year, compared with 46% in 2020 — strengthening its resilience to volatility in any given market in the region, where currency fluctuations and inflation are often sources of uncertainty.

The Natura brand grew 10.5%, driven by markets outside Brazil. At home, the brand was impacted by a tough environment, although its sales sequentially improved through the year, and it outperformed the overall beauty market in the country.

Avon's Latin American business gained 6.6% in the year, driven by a strong performance in Hispanic markets in the first nine months of the year, although this was offset by the impact of the implementation of its new commercial model in Brazil. At constant currency, Avon's sales grew for the first time in five years in the region, increasing 2.2%, according to the company. Overall, Avon's sales for the year were roughly stable, despite the headwinds in Brazil, and the company said this reinforced its confidence in the brand's turnaround plan.

The Body Shop demonstrated its ability to adapt through an enhanced multichannel offer, and is growing its appeal, according to Natura, although its constant-currency sales were roughly stable for the year. During the fourth quarter, the brand saw a significant impact from the Omicron wave on retail sales during the holiday season in the U.K., its biggest market.

Aesop continued to post double-digit growth, driven by retail in North America, Asia and Australia, and is reportedly outperforming global luxury brands.

Digitally enabled sales — which combine e-commerce and social selling — accounted for 51.5% of the group's total revenue in the fourth quarter, compared with 49% in the prior-year period and 35.4% in fourth-quarter 2019, prior to the pandemic. Natura &Co. has worked to reinvent its traditional direct-sales model. The new Avon On app launched in 51 markets, allowing representatives access to up-to-date brand content and helping them manage their business.

With the aim of growing its presence in markets outside Latin America, the group began steps to enter China, and plans to launch Aesop there during the second half of 2022, followed by The Body Shop.

On the sustainability front, which has long been a key pillar of Natura's strategy, the company concluded the largest sustainability-linked bond issue in Latin America. As a group, it invested $59 million in social and environmental projects, and inked relationships with 40 new communities in the Amazon — exceeding its 2030 target.

Guilherme Castellan joined Natura &Co. as chief financial officer, with responsibility for mergers and acquisitions, and chief of staff Kay Nemoto took on responsibility for the group's transformation agenda.

8. CHANEL LTD.

LONDON

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$7.19 BILLION (EST.)

€6.08 BILLION (EST.)

+31% VS. 2020 (EST.)

+4% VS. 2019 (EST.)

MAIN BRANDS: No.5, No.5 l'Eau, Gabrielle, Allure, Allure Sensuelle, Coco, Coco Mademoiselle, Coco Noir, Chance, Chance Eau Fraîche, Chance Eau Tendre, Chance Eau Vive, No.19, Cristalle, Allure Homme, Allure Homme Sport, Bleu de Chanel, Pour Monsieur, Antaeus, Egoiste, Les Exclusifs, Les Eaux de Chanel (fragrance). Sublimage, Blue Serum, Le Lift, Hydra Beauty, CC Cream, Le Blanc, La Solution 10 de Chanel (skin care). Rouge Allure, Rouge Coco, Le Vernis, Inimitable, Le Volume, Dimensions, Les 4 Ombres, Ombre Première, Les Beiges, Vitalumière, Ultra Le Teint, Le Blanc, Le Teint Ultra, Sublimage, Joues Contrastes, Boy de Chanel, Le Rouge Duo Ultra Tenue, La Poudre Universelle (makeup).

Key Financials:

Main markets: China, the U.S. and Japan represented an estimated 47% of 2021 sales (compared with 45% in 2020 and 35% in 2019).

Chanel's beauty business grew in all three segments compared with 2020, although its makeup business — especially the lip segment — continued to suffer the impacts of the pandemic. The firm's most dynamic segment for 2021 was skin care, driven by gains in Asia. The Sublimage and Le Lift franchises did particularly well, according to estimates. In fragrance, all of the pillar lines returned to growth, with strong performances from Coco Mademoiselle, Bleu de Chanel and No.5, which celebrated its centenary with a range of initiatives including limited-edition products and pop-ups both online and in store. The iconic fragrance got a new bottle that uses recycled glass codeveloped with Pochet that will be rolled out to other lines this year.

All regions were positive for Chanel's beauty business, according to estimates, although travel retail continued to be strongly impacted by the pandemic. Online sales had strong momentum around the world, both via chanel.com and partner sites.

The brand also continued its brick-and-mortar expansion, mainly in Asia, with the opening of more than 30 new boutiques.

In January 2022, Chanel named former Unilever executive Leena Nair as its new global CEO, replacing Alain Wertheimer, who becomes global executive chairman.

Sustainability initiatives — like the eco-designed glass for No.5 — and tech were areas of focus for the year. The brand introduced a lipstick matching app, LipScanner, which allows users to match photos they upload to shades in the brand's range using artificial intelligence.

9. BEIERSDORF

HAMBURG, GERMANY

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$6.99 BILLION (EST.)

€5.91 BILLION (EST.)

+7.5% VS. 2020 (EST.)

-1.5% VS. 2019 (EST.) 

MAIN BRANDS: Nivea, Eucerin, La Prairie, Labello, 8×4, Hidrofugal, Florena, Atrix, Aquaphor, Maestro, Coppertone.

Key Financials:

Consumer Division sales: €6.1 billion, +7.5% VS. 2020 (organic sales growth: +8.8%)

Consumer Division EBIT excluding special factors: €740 million, +5.4%; EBIT margin: 12.1%

Consumer Division sales by region: Western Europe: €2.35 billion, +6.1% (+5.7% organic); Eastern Europe: €558 million, +4.3% (+6.3%);

North America: €646 million, +10.5% (+13%); Latin America: €656 million, +15.4% (+18.8%); Africa, Asia and Australia: €1.92 billion, +6.7% (+8.9%).

It was all change at the top for Beiersdorf in 2021. Vincent Warnery was named CEO, effective May 1 last year. Warnery, who previously headed the company's Pharmacy and Selective division and its North American business, succeeds Stefan De Loecker, who spent just two years in the role, navigating the pandemic and forging forward with the firm's strategic C.A.R.E.+ program. Former La Prairie head Patrick Rasquinet now heads up the derma-cosmetics and prestige activities. In March this year, the company named Philippe Lamy, a former executive at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and L'Oréal, as CEO of La Prairie. Former EssilorLuxottica executive Grita Loebsack was named president of Nivea, a newly created position.

In December, Beiersdorf said it had inked a deal to purchase fast-growing skin care and makeup brand Chantecaille that valued the label at between $590 million and $690 million. The acquisition was completed at the beginning of February this year. It also invested in personalized digital skin care startup Routinely, which launched in May, through its Oscar & Paul venture capital unit. A new in-house brand launch, O.W.N., follows a similar strategy, with personalized product recommendations based on artificial intelligence from among 380,000 potential formula combinations, and was introduced in Europe in February last year.

In June, Beiersdorf announced plans to build a new hub for the European market in Leipzig, Germany, near its new factory. It will invest €170 million in the facility, in addition to the €220 million it is investing in the factory, expected to start production toward the end of 2022 – its largest investment worldwide in a single location.

Sales-wise, Beiersdorf's beauty activity returned to growth in 2021, although business did not return to pre-pandemic levels. Core brand Nivea saw organic sales growth of 5.5%, driven in part by the Luminous630 product range, which targets pigmentation and age spots and helped drive market share gains, especially in Europe.

La Prairie saw the strongest growth after an especially tough year in 2020. Sales increased 20.1% on an organic business, driven by a recovery in travel retail and to China, where its sales reportedly far exceeded pre-crisis levels.

The Derma business unit also did well – as it did in 2020 – with organic sales for Eucerin and Aquaphor up 19.5% year-over-year, driven by the U.S., Germany, Latin America and China.

E-commerce was a strong growth driver, and accounted for 10% of sales for the Consumer division. Regionally, the highest growth rates came from Latin America and North America.

On the sustainability front, initiatives included Nivea's launch of its first climate-neutral products.

10. COTY INC.

NEW YORK

2021 BEAUTY SALES:

$5 BILLION (EST.)

+21% VS. 2020 (EST.)

-40% VS. 2019 (EST.)*

 *When Coty still owned the Wella/Pro business

MAIN BRANDS: LUXURY BEAUTY: Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Marc Jacobs, Chloé, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Alexander McQueen, Davidoff, Miu Miu, Lacoste, Tiffany & Co., Joop, Jil Sander, Roberto Cavalli, Escada (prestige fragrance). Philosophy (skin care, fragrance). Kylie Beauty (cosmetics, skin care, baby care). Lancaster (skin care). Gucci, Burberry (fragrance, color cosmetics). CONSUMER BEAUTY: Cover Girl, Rimmel London, Max Factor, Bourjois, Manhattan (color cosmetics). Sally Hansen, Risque (nail products). Biocolor (retail hair color). Adidas, Cenoura & Bronze, Paixão, Bozzano, Monage (body care). 007 James Bond, Bruno Banani, David Beckham, Mexx, Vera Wang, Nautica (mass fragrance).

Key Financials:

Prestige sales: $3 billion, +31% vs. 2020

Consumer sales: $2 billion, +9% vs. 2020

Americas: $2 billion, +18% vs. 2020

EMEA: $2.4 billion, +21% vs. 2020

Asia Pacific: $600 million. +33% vs. 2020

 

Coty Inc. was in full turnaround mode in 2021, which was CEO Sue Nabi's first full calendar year on the job. She led a leaner business to continued sales acceleration in the prestige division, and to a turnaround in the mass segment, which has been struggling for years. Nabi also accelerated Coty's business in China, which has been a key region for growth for many of Coty's competitors, while reducing the company's debt.

Her goal, she told investors in November, is to "reclaim" Coty's position "as a true beauty powerhouse."

In the luxury division, Coty saw strong sales in fragrance, including success for Gucci in fragrance and makeup, Burberry and Marc Jacobs. Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia was the top fragrance launch of 2021 in the U.S., according to the NPD Group, and Burberry Hero is also a top seller. Gucci Flora was the top-selling fragrance launch in the U.S. and Canada in 2021, and number seven on Tmall in December. Burberry Hero was the number four men's fragrance in the U.S. in 2021.

Coty pushed further in prestige makeup, especially with Gucci, and ended the year with the category comprising about 4% of total sales. In skin care, Lancaster is swiftly growing in China.

During the year, Coty also signed a licensing deal for Orveda, the skin care brand that Nabi launched in 2017, and bought a 20% stake in Kim Kardashian's beauty business, KKW Beauty. Kylie Jenner's Kylie Cosmetics got a makeover during the year, and now has new, clean formulations and a brick-and-mortar distribution strategy that spans the U.S., Europe and Australia.

In the mass segment, Coty revived Cover Girl, Rimmel and Max Factor — and those efforts started showing signs of success. Coty's mass color brands account for about two-thirds of the Consumer segment's sales.

The consumer division picked up market share for the first time in more than five years. Cover Girl's lineup became centered around the Clean Fresh line; Rimmel launched clean makeup range Kind and Free, and Max Factor named Priyanka Jonas as its latest face, and has seen success with its Facefinity foundation. Sally Hansen, which has been doing well for several years, continued to perform strongly.

On the financial front, in addition to taking stakes in Orveda and KKW Beauty, Coty sold off more of its stake in Wella, decreasing its ownership position to 25.9%. Coty also decreased its debt, which Nabi said will allow the company to invest in profitability.

Coty appointed Anna Adeola Makanju and Mariasun Aramburuzabala Larregui to its board, which is now made up of a majority of women.

11. KAO CORP.

TOKYO<...