D. Petruzzi
Research expert covering Cosmetics, Personal Care, Health & Hygiene industries.
M&A in the beauty & personal care sector - statistics & facts
From innumerable trends to increasingly growing revenues, the beauty and personal care industry has been thriving in the last few years. With global revenues reaching nearly 650 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, this market is one of the most profitable, and forecasts predict its growth will not reach an end anytime soon. Like many others, this highly competitive sector has also seen a surge in mergers and acquisitions in the past years. Portfolio expansions through more or less niche brands, the demand for sustainability and innovations, as well as new markets to tap into are some of the driving forces behind the beauty industry’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity.
Being one of the most profitable segments of the beauty and personal care industries, it comes as no surprise that skincare was the subsector with the highest deal volume that year, with personal care and makeup ranking second and third.
M&A activity in this sector has fluctuated, registering around 21 deals in 2023, slightly lower than in the previous year. The same can be said about the average M&A deal value, which peaked in 2022, and amounted to nearly 820 million U.S. dollars a year later.
In the current economic landscape, M&A activity in the beauty sector has slowed down compared to just a few years ago. However, companies are still aiming to grow and gain relevance in emerging markets, while improving their sustainability practices and technological solutions.
The beauty sector’s slowdown
Despite the industry’s success, in the most recent years, the number of M&A deals in the sector has decreased, especially after the peak recorded in 2021. Indeed, as of 2023, the number of announced transactions added up to 152, showing a decline of over 30 percent compared to just a year before. Europe was the leading region in 2023, with about 65 deals, followed by Asia and Oceania.Being one of the most profitable segments of the beauty and personal care industries, it comes as no surprise that skincare was the subsector with the highest deal volume that year, with personal care and makeup ranking second and third.
The prestige beauty sector
Prestige/luxury beauty recorded outstanding results. Although many beauty companies have been affected by the industry’s slowdown, especially in markets like China, U.S. prestige beauty keeps on outpacing the mass market and recorded sales of about 32 billion U.S. dollars in 2023.M&A activity in this sector has fluctuated, registering around 21 deals in 2023, slightly lower than in the previous year. The same can be said about the average M&A deal value, which peaked in 2022, and amounted to nearly 820 million U.S. dollars a year later.
The most talked about deals
In 2023, French beauty giant L'Oréal made the news with the announcement of the acquisition of Aesop. The deal was valued at around 2.5 billion U.S. dollars, and it is only one of the largest M&A deals in the beauty sectors recorded since 2019. In that year, ETQ & Partners acquired Galderma, previously under Nestlé, for about 11.5 billion U.S. dollars. Another noteworthy acquisition in the sector saw Estée Lauder becoming the owner of the Tom Ford brand in 2023. As of 2024, ChapStick was acquired by Suave Brands. In the same year, L'Oréal acquired a 10 percent stake in Galderma; while Estée Lauder completed the acquisition of DECIEM, the creator of the brand The Ordinary.In the current economic landscape, M&A activity in the beauty sector has slowed down compared to just a few years ago. However, companies are still aiming to grow and gain relevance in emerging markets, while improving their sustainability practices and technological solutions.
