2020 will be another exciting year in the beauty industry. The current global beauty industry is a $532 billion business and is projected to reach $806 billion by 2023 (Forbes and Reuters). Based on the data we have gathered from beauty companies nationwide, we have identified industry trends that will continue to build momentum, and expand employment opportunities for key skill sets in 2020.
Product Innovation will continue to be a driver in a saturated market. As brands strive to create a point of difference in a crowded space, Product Development professionals and R&D Chemists that are ingredient savvy with a proven track record of identifying unique product concepts, and are tuned into consumer insights will be sought after. “Natural,” “Organic” and “Clean” beauty is expected to become more standard as consumers seek transparency and are more conscious about cosmetics packaging’s impact on the environment. Product innovation is key to deliver in the clean and green category.
As the retail landscape continues to evolve, Amazon.com will increase as a strong revenue stream for brands. While some brands have been highly successful in seeing multi-million dollar increases through this distribution channel, other brands are not seeing the ROI as they have yet to identify the specific formula to capitalize on the Amazon business model. We have partnered with beauty brands to support a number of searches to identify professionals with an expertise in building strategy to make the right investments to drive sales. Amazon experts with a proven track-record developing and executing an Amazon strategy will see career opportunities rise in 2020.
E-Commerce and Digital Sales continue to break new records year-over-year with 2019’s Black Friday sales (up 22.3%) and Cyber Monday sales (up by 19.7%) according to Adobe Analytics (CNBC). As the retail landscape becomes more challenging, we predict brands will invest in the expansion of their E-Commerce teams to drive the Direct-to-Consumer business with higher profit margins. E-commerce leadership roles, data analysts, content developers, and social media roles focused on shoppable platforms will see an influx of openings.
Influencer Marketing and Social Media will continue to evolve. 32% of Gen Z and Millennial consumers claim that their “final look wouldn’t be nearly as good” without YouTube tutorials (AList). In 2019 we saw brands pull back from the macro-influencer approach due to high expense and lackluster results. In 2020, we will see brands tailor their influencer campaigns using new software programs developed to provide tools to monitor the true impact an influencer can make. While strategies for user-generated content, brand awareness and shoppable platforms will adapt with the times, brands will continue to hire talent in Influencer Marketing and Social Media roles. The most in-demand professionals will be those that can influence Executives with data and have a proven track record of impacting sales in addition to increasing followers and engagement.
We will continue to see mergers, acquisitions, and investments from Venture Capital firms, Private Equity firms and large corporations. The beauty industry has proven to be lucrative based on the continuous growth and many beauty brands that launched in the last 2 years witnessed the high volume of acquisitions and have defined an exit strategy with the goal to grow rapidly and be acquired. “As of 21 November (2019), beauty deal activity for 2019 had already outpaced 2018 by 19 per cent… The second quarter of the year set a record for highest deal volume in the last five years with 33 transactions, including Unilever’s acquisition of Tatcha for an estimated $500 million” (VougeBusines).
The Private Equity and Venture Capital firms are in the business of making money and in most cases replace the original regime (C-level and VP- level) within the first six months to one year. We will continue to see this same hiring cycle with new mergers and acquisitions in 2020. The PE and VC world can be very exciting for individuals that thrive on driving fast growth and can be rewarded with a significant LTI plan.
These trends will affect some beauty categories more than others. Each year we find that that a new category steadily increases in overall market share. We saw a lift in popularity of color cosmetics in 2017, hair care in 2018, men’s grooming in 2019, and in 2020 skincare is projected to rise as consumers embrace natural beauty/no makeup-makeup look (FoxBusiness).
At Premier, we specialize in partnering with beauty companies and professionals to identify opportunities for both parties to elevate growth and impact. If you’re looking to explore a new opportunity to expand your career, don’t hesitate to connect with us for a confidential exploratory conversation.
Follow Premier Executive Recruiting to receive the latest beauty trends, beauty stats and career opportunities on a weekly basis as we keep you informed of the evolving beauty industry.
