Beauty was in full swing this quarter.
While there are signs that the category could be next in line for a slowdown, according to retailers like Sephora and Macy’s, consumers were still eager to shop beauty, particularly stocking up on skin care, makeup and fragrance.
With the celebration of Valentine’s Day, fragrances and themed gift sets were a hit across the board. Additionally, certain trends continued to gain traction this quarter like sleep-related skin care and gourmand scents. Across retailers, specific products stood out like Guerlain’s Rouge G collectible lipsticks, from $80, and La Mer’s The Night Recovery Concentrate, $650.
Here, a look at how beauty consumers shopped during the first quarter, according to key retailers.
Bergdorf Goodman
At Bergdorf Goodman, while fragrance remained a mainstay with brands like Creed and Byredo, nighttime skin care also proved to be a winner this quarter.
“Our customers are looking for skin care that works while you sleep and intensive programs that do the work over a 30-day time frame,” said Angela Welcome, associate divisional merchandise manager, cosmetics, fragrance, hair and eye accessories at Bergdorf Goodman.
La Mer The Rejuvenating Night Cream
Courtesy
Top sellers included La Mer The Night Recovery Concentrate, $650; La Mer The Rejuvenating Night Cream, $450; RéVive Rescue Balm Overnight Mask, $250; Sisley Sisleÿa L’Intégral Anti-Âge La Cure, $1,420; La Prairie Life Matrix Haute Rejuvenation Cream, $1,950, and Augustinus Bader The Skin Infusion, $430.
Additionally, Bergdorf’s luxury-minded consumers have been loving the Guerlain Rouge G, starting at $80.
“[It] has been a sensation since late November and continues to be strong,” Welcome said. “The novelty is changing your lipstick case to match the moment.”
Saks
Saks experienced similar trends with fragrance, nighttime skin care and the unique and recently reformulated Guerlain Rouge G, starting at $80.
Guerlain Rouge G
“Fragrance has continued to perform strongly at Saks, with standout highlights by Parfums de Marly, Le Labo and Ex Nihilo,” said Kate Oldham, senior vice president, general merchandise manager of jewelry and beauty at Saks Fifth Avenue. “Customers were especially excited for the launch of Parfums de Marly’s new Valaya Exclusif, $410; our exclusive collaboration with Le Labo for the 50th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live,” and the continued growth of Ex Nihilo’s Blue Talisman fragrance, $245, originally launched last year in celebration of the brand’s 10th anniversary.”
She continued: “In makeup and skin care, our customers have loved Guerlain’s Rouge G Lipstick, starting at $80; La Mer’s The Night Recovery Concentrate, $650, as well as Chanel’s spring 2025 and Camélia Futura makeup collections.”
Neiman Marcus
With the celebration of Valentine’s Day, it’s no surprise that fragrance was one of the mainstays for Neiman Marcus during the first quarter.
Bond No. 9 B9
Courtesy Photo
“Neiman Marcus introduced the [Guerlain] L’Art et la Matiere Peche Mirage Eau de Parfum, $425, in February, which is a captivating and daring interpretation of a luscious, leathery peach,” said Tatiana Birkelund, vice president, general business manager, beauty, jewelry and home at Neiman Marcus. “Bond No. 9 has been extremely successful with our customers. Its Lafayette Street, $320, fragrance is a warm, spicy scent featuring bergamot, coriander, vanilla, tonka bean and gray amber. It has captivated our customers seeking bold yet sophisticated fragrances with romantic storytelling.”
Sephora
Perhaps as expected, Sephora also saw growth across men’s and women’s fragrance. In particular, “men’s fragrance [was] outpacing women’s year-to-date,” according to executive vice president of merchandising Carolyn Bojanowski. Key scents revolved around warm gourmands, fruits and florals, with bestsellers like Kayali Yum Bougie Marshmallow, $100; Kayali Vanilla 28, $100; Valentino Born In Roma, $120; Glossier You, $78; Glossier Reve, $78; Glossier Doux, $78; YSL Myself, $97; Phlur Vanilla Skin Eau de Parfum, $99, and Phlur Heavy Crème Body Mist, $38.
Phlur Vanilla Skin
Makeup and skin care also remained strong.
“Makeup standouts included Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Powder, $39; Haus Labs Foundation, $49; Merit Complexion Sticks, $38; Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Palettes, $52, and One/Size Beauty On Til Dawn $32,” Bojanowski said. “Skin care top performers included existing favorites like InnBeauty Project Extreme Cream, $48; Dieux Instant Angel, $78, and Innisfree Green Tea Vitamin C Serum, $32.”
Sofie Pavitt Face Mandelic Clearing Serum
Kent Rogowski
The retailer also introduced several new brands across categories including Sofie Pavitt Face, Emi Jay, Ultra Violette, Violette_FR and Isamaya. Additionally, new K beauty brands are also performing well, including Biodance and Aestura.
Walmart
On what shoppers have been interested in, Walmart beauty vice president Vinima Shekhar said it is in line with industry trends.
“Skin health — and skin in general — continues to be a category that has been growing, and we see that we win really well in the hair care business, both from the premium side as well as the everyday essentials,” she said. “We continue to see that fragrance is having a moment and Walmart is winning in fragrance.”
Nails are also big business at the mass giant. “If you layer on what’s happening in the economy, a lot of customers are having to make some tough choices,” she said. “So going to the salons is something that they’re rethinking, but they want to have the nails. Nails is a new form of self expression, and instead of having to wait three weeks to go into a salon, you can pay half the price and get new nails every week. That continues to be an area that is growing for us.”
Stéle
When shopping for fragrance, Stéle customers had two seemingly opposing approaches.
“People are drawn to comforting fragrances like rice, spices and lactonic scents for their soothing qualities,” said Matt Belanger and Jake Levy, who cofounded the Brooklyn perfumery. “On the other hand, many are also captivated by bold and provocative florals, which evoke a desire to make a statement and stand out.”
Régime des Fleurs Tóor Tóor
courtesy
In the more comforting category, Gabar’s Ludlow with notes of black tea and sandalwood and Mabelle Orama’s Pheoxic Flame featuring sumac were top performers, while a few more vibrant scents also were bestsellers including Perfumehead’s Canadian Tuxedo with coriander and Maison d’Etto with Verdades and Canaan, both bold takes on florals, according to Belanger and Levy.
During the first quarter, Stéle also introduced Serviette to its assortment. Of the brand’s scents, Byronic Hero, featuring clove, fir, saffron and rose, has become the bestseller. Florals, from brands like Régime des Fleurs were also a hit during Valentine’s Day.
Bluemercury
Bluemercury has seen a strong performance coming from personal fragrance and color categories, specifically within eau de parfum, eye, and lip.
“Clients are gravitating towards floral and fruity scents and soft feminine colors that enhance their natural beauty, and are seasonally on point as well. Top sellers within fragrance and color include Parfums de Marly’s Delina Eau de Parfum, U Beauty’s Proem Eau De Parfum, Chantecaille’s limited edition Les Papillons Collection, Victoria Beckham Beauty’s Satin Kajal Liner, and Sisley Paris’ Phyto-Rouge Shine. We also launched Charlotte Tilbury on March 12th and have seen amazing results right out of the gate. Clients love her Pillow Talk lip products, volumizing mascara, and all things complexion to get the perfect Charlotte glow,” said Morgan Cobbler, associate merchant, color at Bluemercury.
