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Summary of our market study
French cosmetics market valued at over €12 billion
The global cosmetics industry is estimated at over $262 billion , with an expected annual growth rate of 4.2%.
The market is segmented into skin care, hair care, fragrances and make-up, with skin care leading the way. Innovations are driving the market, with the organic and men's cosmetics sectors posting dynamic growth.
In Europe, the cosmetics market is worth around 80 billion euros, with France playing a leading role, particularly in the design and manufacture of skincare and make-up products.
France occupies a strong position in this market, with a substantial trade surplus and a number of major players.
The sector comprises over 1,000 companies in Europe, and France is the country with the largest number of SMEs in the industry. These SMEs often occupy niche markets, such as organic and ethnic cosmetics.
The French cosmetics market is renowned for its excellence and innovation, with leading companies such as L'Oréal and Yves-Rocher.
Supermarkets and hypermarkets still account for almost half the market share of cosmetics sales.
Online sales are growing. The influence of social networks and beauty influencers is also changing purchasing behavior.
Key players in the cosmetics industry landscape
- L'Oréal
- Unilever
- Procter & Gamble (P&G)
- Yves-Rocher
- Fareva: make-up specialist
- Cosmetic Valley:
- Cosmetic Valley is France's leading perfume and cosmetics cluster in Europe and worldwide. Comprising 150 companies and 7,000 employees, Cosmetic Valley in the Orléans region is the world's leading resource for cosmetic expertise.
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Presentation and definition
In France, cosmetic products are defined by article L.5131-1 of the French Public Health Code as "any product intended to be placed in contact with the superficial parts of the human body, with a view to cleaning, perfuming, modifying the appearance of, protecting, maintaining in good condition or correcting body odors ". This category therefore includes skincare products (moisturizers, anti-wrinkle creams, body moisturizers, etc.) and make-up products (foundations, powders, varnishes, mascaras, etc.).
France enjoys a significant competitive advantage in this market, with representative companies in the sector such as L'Oréal and Yves-Rocher exporting and benefiting from very dynamic demand in emerging countries such as India. However, the market is highly competitive and concentrated in the hands of a few cosmetics giants, who must constantly innovate and reinvent themselves to keep pace with changing consumer needs, and hinder the entry of a growing number of small, specialized players. Growing interest in issues such as the environment and transparency, with greater attention being paid to product origin, is enabling new entrants to position themselves on the market. As a result, many manufacturers are now offering organic products in response to strong demand in recent years.
With the Covid-19 crisis and pandemic-related restrictions (teleworking, wearing masks, etc.), sales of beauty products fell by around 17% over the first six months of 2020, with a different impact depending on the different market segments. [LCI] Hygiene-related products are up on 2019, while the lipstick market has suffered a 75% drop in sales over the first six months and 26% over the whole period. [LCI] However, the market now seems to be showing good momentum, with the global market set to grow by over 4% annually in the years ahead, and the French market enjoying a substantial trade surplus.
1.2 The global cosmetics market
The global cosmetics market is valued at over $*** billion in **** according to Grand View Research, and is expected to continue growing at an annual rate of *.*% in the years ahead. This gives us the following estimates:
World cosmetics market World, ****-****, in billions of dollars Source: Grand View Research * forecasts
Historically, ...
1.3 Europe, the world market leader
In ****, the European cosmetics market is estimated at ** billion euros. [***]
European cosmetics markets Europe, ****, in billions of euros Source: ****
The most buoyant segments in the European market are :
Skin care and toiletries Hair care Fragrance Make-up
The weights of these different segments are represented in the graph below, with the skin ...
1.4 France, a leader in European and global markets
The French cosmetics industry benefits from strong foreign demand. French cosmetics exports will reach $**.* billion by ****. Roughly three-quarters of the sector's exports will be for skincare and fragrances.
While French exports of cosmetics are destined for countries all over the world, exports to Asian markets are particularly strong exports to Asian ...
1.5 The impact of COVID-19 on the cosmetics market
Perfumes and color cosmetics have seen a sharp decline in ****, but overall demand for beauty products remains strong, as consumers turn instead to the skincare, hair care and personal care categories in ****, all of which are less disrupted by new Covid-** routines and lend themselves well to online discovery and purchase.gories ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1 Cosmetics consumption in France
Almost all women are consumers of cosmetics, which is not necessarily the case for men. Around **% of women say they have already used a common cosmetic product (***), while the penetration rate of cosmetics among men was only **% in ****. [***] Yet products for men are booming, as we'll see in the rest of ...
2.2 End consumers increasingly sensitive to product composition
Consumers are increasingly wary of the cosmetics and food industries, and are paying more and more attention to product quality and the sustainability of the value chain. The Yuka start-up responds to consumers' need for transparency by, for example, enabling cosmetics and food products to be scanned and classified according to ...
2.3 The development of "home-made" products
Alongside the trend for organic products, the fashion for "homemade" cosmetics is attracting more and more consumers, and represents a new threat to traditional players in the cosmetics industry [***]. numerous beauty blogs and YouTube channels promote this "Do It Yourself" practice, inviting users to master the manufacture of their own products ...
2.4 Men's cosmetics market on the rise
According to a report by Persistence Market Research, the global market for men's skin care products is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of *% between **** and ****. The following global estimates can be provided:
Evolution of the global men's cosmetics market World, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: ****
In ...
3 Market structure
3.1 A fragmented market with an international reputation
A dense industrial fabric fueled by an international reputation
France has a reputation for excellence in terms of know-how and product quality in the cosmetics production sector[***]
On the one hand, subsidiaries of major groups with large production sites and R&D centers, such as L'Oréal and Pierre Fabre, both ...
3.2 Specialized players bound by demanding specifications
In addition to the production subsidiaries of major groups, whose business is sustained and boosted by the brand's image, the many industrial cosmetics manufacturers who subcontract on behalf of the various brands and distributors are bound by ever more demanding, rapidly evolving specifications.in addition, the many industrial cosmetics manufacturers who ...
3.3 Investments in innovation and modernization of production tools
Whether they are subsidiaries of major groups or SME subcontractors for distributor companies, all market players, bound by the requirements mentioned above, logically focus their biggest investments on two key competitive factors:
Innovation and R&D, enabling them to offer a flexible, tailor-made product range, adapted to distributors' requirements and evolving ...
3.4 Cosmetics production
The costs
The cost of the cosmetic shapingprocess depends on a number of factors. The nature of the formula chosen is essential, since it will determine a series of factors influencing the price charged by the shaper:
The choice of raw materials; The choice of natural or organic products; The quality ...
3.5 A decline in cosmetics sales in supermarkets and hypermarkets, which remain the leading distribution channel
Distribution of finished cosmetics is generally handled by the customer, not the manufacturer.
To do this, cosmetics groups rely on several distribution segments, targeting distinct customer groups depending on the nature and range of their products. Supermarkets and hypermarkets (***) account for around half of cosmetics salesof cosmetics sales, offering a full ...
4 Offer analysis
4.1 The different categories of cosmetics
Cosmetics converting covers all the products traditionally associated with the sector. In fact, groups using subcontractors for their finishing activities do so indiscriminately for different types of products:
Skincare products (***), which include moisturizers, anti-wrinkle creams, suncare products, hand and foot creams and body moisturizers; Make-up, including eyeshadows, foundations, powders, nail polishes, ...
4.2 Innovations in cosmetics production
While the major cosmetics groups distinguish themselves by marketing top-of-the-range products, players in the shaping industry are trying to stand out by establishing themselves in niche markets, of which the following are a few examples:
The medical aesthetics sector
At a time when cosmetic surgery operations are costly and have recently ...
4.3 Consumer prices for cosmetics
With regard to the price of cosmetics in France more generally, the consumer price of beauty products has already been rising for several years according to Insee figures, and, like many consumer goods, has also undergone inflation in ****.
Consumer price index for cosmetics (***) France, ****-****, base *** in **** Source: ****
Consumer prices for ...
5 Regulations
5.1 Regulations governing products from manufacture to distribution
Pre-marketing regulations
These are detailed by :
The French National Agency for the Safety of Medicines (***) and health products; Regulation (***) n°****/**** of the European Parliament and Council of November **, **** on cosmetic products since July **, ****; The French Public Health Code (***).
Before a cosmetic product can be marketed, it must be able to meet ...
6 Positioning the players
6.1 Segmentation
The following segmentation of market players is used:
- Robertet
- Alkos Cosmétiques Groupe
- Alpol Cosmétiques
- Codexial Dermatologie
- Fareva
- Laboratoires Lebeau
- Laboratoires Prevost
- Laboratoire Science & Nature
- Lorcos
- Phytocosma
- SICAF
- Skinlys
- Technature
- Sephora
- Nocibé (Douglas Groupe)
- Marionnaud France
- Caudalie
- Pierre Fabre
- Galderma
- Weleda
- Revlon
- Groupe Rocher (Yves Rocher)
- Rituals Cosmetic
- Clarins Groupe
- Beiersdorf
- Berdoues
- Sisley
- Unbottled
- Rogé Cavaillès
- Cofatech
- Gilbert Groupe
- Aesop (L'Oréal groupe)
- Vabel Groupe - Sarbec Cosmetics
- La Prairie
- Anjac Health and Beauty
- Lorience Groupe
List of charts presented in this market study
- Annual growth rates for cosmetic products
- Market share of cosmetics by region
- Turnover of the most important players in the cosmetics market
- Global cosmetics market
- Number of SMEs in the cosmetics market by country
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Latest news
Lorience Groupe acquires facial care start-up Biotulin - 10/09/2024
- Biotulin sales for current year: 3 million euros
- - Biotulin revenues expected to triple in the next 18 months
- - Distribution of Biotulin offer: 80% via digital channels, 20% in specialized German perfumery networks
- - Lorience Groupe sales in 2023: 15 million euros
- - Lorience Groupe sales growth rate in 2023: 30%
- - Share of digital in Lorience Groupe's business: 50%
- - International contribution to Lorience Groupe sales: 50%
Pierre Fabre sells its immuno-oncology research center - 02/09/2024
- - The Pierre Fabre Group has entered into exclusive negotiations to sell its Saint-Julien-en-Genevois R&D center to pharmaceutical subcontractor Jubilant Biosys.
- - The center employs 35 people.
- - The center was set up in 1990 and specializes in immuno-oncology, notably in the development of monoclonal or conjugated antibodies and immunomodulating biologics.
- - Jubilant Biosys, which employs 2,300 people in India, Italy and the USA, carries out contract R&D for pharmaceutical groups.
- - The site also included a 45-strong monoclonal antibody clinical batch production unit, which was sold in 2020 to subcontractor Fareva, and later to GTP Bioways, acquired by Italy's Olon.
- - Pierre Fabre is discontinuing immuno-oncology research to focus on targeted cancer therapies, with an oncology R&D budget of 100 million euros per year and revenues of 500 million euros.
- - The group has transferred all its research to the Toulouse Oncopôle, which employs 650 people, with 40 new hires in 2023 and 30 planned for 2024.
- - Pierre Fabre's sales in 2023 will be 2.83 billion euros, up 6%, with 57% generated in dermocosmetics.
Sephora downsizes in China after leaving South Korea - 22/08/2024
- - Sephora is shedding "just under 3%" of its workforce in China, or around 100 jobs.
- - Sephora has around 400 stores in Asia, including 300 in China.
- - Founded in 1968 and acquired by LVMH in 1997, Sephora set up in Beijing in 2005.
- - Sephora is the number one retailer of high-end beauty products in the United States.
- - The company is targeting sales of "20 billion euros".
- - Sephora's operations in China would have generated combined losses over 2022 and 2023 of $46 million, according to annual reports from Shanghai Jahwa United Co. Ltd. which holds 19% of its business on the mainland.
- - Sephora recently reduced its presence in South Korea and withdrew from Taiwan.
- - The brand is a significant contributor to LVMH sales, second only to Louis Vuitton (over 20 billion in sales).
- - Sephora has estimated sales of over $12 billion, according to Bernstein.
Ten years after its exit, L'Oréal re-acquires a stake in Galderma - 06/08/2024
- - In early 2014, L'Oréal sold its 50% stake in Galderma to Nestlé.
- - Galderma achieved its biggest IPO on the Zurich Stock Exchange since 2017, with a capitalization of 17 billion euros.
- - Galderma's sales have risen from 1.6 billion euros in 2014 to 4.1 billion euros in 2024.
- - L'Oréal's investment to acquire 10% of Galderma's capital would amount to 1.7 billion euros.
- - In 2019, Galderma is acquired by a consortium led by the Swedish fund EQT and a subsidiary of the sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority for 9.3 billion euros.
L'Oréal launches into injectable aesthetics by investing in Swiss company Galderma - 06/08/2024
- - L'Oréal stake in Galderma: 10%
- - Share of Galderma's worldwide sales generated by injectable aesthetics: 50%
- - Galderma sales growth in one year: 8.5
- - Injectable aesthetics market: strong growth
Beiersdorf opens new logistics center in southern Germany - 15/07/2024
- Beiersdorf, owner of the Nivea skincare brand, is planning to invest 200 million euros in the new platform
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the cosmetics market | France
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