Beauty industry news and analysis, with sources cited.
Estée Lauder's fragrance unit grew 10 percent organically in fiscal 2026, pushing Jo Malone and Tom Ford into its billion-dollar brand tier. The gains mask a stalled makeup recovery, tariff costs near $102 million, and an unresolved review of whether to sell or keep Too Faced, Smashbox and Dr. Jart+.
Galderma has signed a deal to buy ZO Skin Health from Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, a brand founded by Dr. Zein Obagi that posted about $330 million in sales over the year to June 2026.
Augustinus Bader is turning hotel lobbies into its retail counter, opening a spa at The Mark that doubles as a margin play for both the skincare brand and a financially stretched trophy hotel.
Jana Craig's 'Love Island USA' fame is becoming a $15-a-pack lash brand, Aura by Jana, launching DTC Nov. 6 with sets named after her castmate friends.
Givaudan will spend CHF 55 million on a Grasse plant that consolidates two sites into one, processing over 100 natural ingredients by 2028. The build also returns the company to land it left decades ago, now contested by rivals and a shrinking pool of local flower growers.
Reports of salons getting business rates wiped out in the Autumn Budget depend on a Small Business Rates Relief threshold Treasury has not confirmed. A firmer, already-decided story: salons were pointedly excluded from a new pub rates discount.
Cosmetic 360 will test whether beauty’s regeneration rhetoric can stand up to tighter EU claims scrutiny, as export pressure brings politics to Paris. The fair opens October 14.
