Female teens’ annual beauty spending grew 10% year over year to a peak of $374, but how and where they’re spending could be shifting, according to Piper Sandler’s semi-annual Taking Stock With Teens survey.
The survey, polling 6,455 teens across 43 states, found that Sephora remained in the top spot as a beauty destination for female teens, while Ulta and Target lost share. The gap between Ulta and Sephora grew from 9 percentage points in the fall to 12 percentage points in the spring, per Piper Sandler, with Sephora gaining 2 percentage points of share since the fall. Target fell to the fourth-ranked spot, surpassed by Bath & Body Works, which made it into the top 10 for the first time in over six years. Piper Sandler noted that the combined share of Ulta and Target represent 33% of female shoppers’ vote, down 7 percentage points from its last survey and 8 percentage points year over year.
TikTok entered the top 10 for teen female shoppers for the first time. Amazon slipped one spot to No. 5, but for male teens, Amazon ranked as the top beauty destination, with 29% mindshare.
Teens still prefer to shop in stores, and opt for specialty retailers as their top channel for beauty purchases, though mass, department, and drug stores slipped 3 percentage points in share of channels. Brick-and-mortar stores remain essential for first-time purchases, while teens go online for replenishment, Piper Sandler noted.
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About 52% of female teens have a beauty loyalty membership, which the report said indicates beauty is “not a one takes all market.” While Sephora has the most teen members at 72%, Ulta Beauty Rewards gained 2 percentage points, up to 64%, since the fall. Amazon Prime, Bath & Body Works, and Target Circle round out the top five loyalty programs female teens engage with.
Piper Sandler found that in beauty, all categories, except for hair care, saw YoY growth with teens. Fragrance spending rose 22% YoY for females, and 44% YoY for males, as the percentage of teens wearing a fragrance every day has reached 78%, up 4 percentage points YoY.
E.l.f. has remained female teens’ favorite cosmetics brand, followed by Rare Beauty and Maybelline. For hair care, they’re reaching for Amika, followed by Not Your Mother’s and Olaplex. CeraVe is the top skin care choice for both female and male teens. For fragrance, female teens favor Bath & Body Works, Sol de Janeiro, and Victoria’s Secret, while male teens prefer Jean Paul Gaultier, Versace, and Dior.