Built on the latest 2026 insights from Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Consumer survey, this report combines analysis of consumer sentiment with the proprietary Consumer Types framework to uncover how behaviour is evolving. As economic pressure and digital fatigue reshape priorities, it reveals where value, connection and aspiration are being redefined, and how brands can respond.
Delivery
This report comes in PPT.
Key Findings
Clinical care goes self-directed
More consumers are using dermocosmetics as everyday maintenance products rather than prescription treatments. Safety for sensitive and reactive skin leads demand, with 19% of survey respondents citing this as main requirement of dermocosmetics, and a quarter reporting sensitive skin concerns. Credibility has shifted to named actives and visible proof.
Appetite for experience and novelty
Colour cosmetics consumers are not economising, they are redirecting spend towards novelty and sensation. The proportion of respondents citing delivery format appeal rose to 12% and limited editions to 7%, both led by Gen Z, while experiential demand reaches every age bracket. Value in beauty means emotional payoff, making launch cadence and texture the growth levers.
Premium must earn its price
Value-led shoppers want a lower price and skinification benefits together in hair care, with 29% of respondents now putting price ahead of proven efficacy, while premium buyers pay for novelty and innovation rather than the name on the bottle, choosing premium ingredients over a premium brand by 43% to 18%. Premium now has to be bought with innovation and proof.
Fragrance sells a mood
Scent has moved from occasion-led accessory to daily emotional utility. Mood-enhancing notes are sought by 41% of fragrance buyers, and 46% of Millennials. This shift shows there is consumer demand for functional fragrances that support everyday life, with calming, energising and mood-uplifting effects – more a companion than just something nice and shiny.
Gen AI introduces the shortlist
Beauty is influenced online long before it is bought online, and conversational AI is entering that discovery layer. Generative AI already sways 8% of colour cosmetics purchasers and 15% of Beauty Innovators. This leads to multichannel and quicker product discovery through AI agents, and brands must adapt their algorithms accordingly.
The five trends shaping consumer beauty in 2026
Beauty consumers don’t want more; they want better
Colour cosmetics emerge as beauty consumers’ reward in an age of restraint
Beauty Innovators lead sensory indulgence
Sephora launched plumping lip gloss in partnership with Tabasco
Sensory and collectible cues are driving colour cosmetics choice
Prioritising “how a product makes you feel” over technical attributes
Mood-led demand is global and growing
Elizabeth Arden builds a flagship on proven mood benefits
Sol de Janeiro turns fragrance into a pocket format
Dermocosmetics as a self-directed habit
Consumers demand gentle skin care, safety and prevention
La Roche-Posay launches most popular products in Walmart
A-CICA365 makes sensitive skin a growth engine
Hair care is judged on what it fixes and on what is in the bottle
Bond repair and scalp care: Hair’s skinification audiences
e.l.f. brings affordable luxury into hair care
K18 moves peptides from repair to longevity
Online influence sets up an AI-led discovery layer
Generative AI enters the beauty purchase journey
Sephora launches AI beauty chat and Sephora app in Chat GPT
L’Oréal Beauty Genius features technology and beauty expertise for consumers
Shopping for skin care in 2026
Shopping for hair care in 2026
Shopping for colour cosmetics in 2026
Shopping for fragrances in 2026
Opportunities for growth
Why is Euromonitor’s consumer insights data unique?
Overview of Voice of the Consumer: Beauty Survey
Voice of the Consumer: Beauty consumer types 2026
Beauty and Personal Care
This is the aggregation of baby and child-specific products, bath & shower, colour cosmetics, deodorants, depilatories, fragrances, hair care, men's grooming, oral care, skin care and sun care. Black market sales and travel retail are excluded.
See all of our definitionsNEW REPORT GUARANTEE
If you purchase a report that is updated in the next 60 days, we will send you the new edition and data extraction Free!