This article first appeared in The State of Fashion 2022, an in-depth report on the global fashion industry, co-published by BoF and McKinsey & Company. To learn more and download a copy of the report, click here.
Consumers cut spending on discretionary items amid Covid-19 stay-at-home restrictions, and sales of beauty products plunged. In 2020, global sales fell 15 percent from $538 billion in 2019 to $458 billion. In 2021, as lockdowns ease, the sector is close to reversing that fall. A 13 percent increase in sales to $518 billion is projected for 2021 and, in 2022, sales should top 2019 levels.
Asia Pacific and North America should be the first regions to completely recover 2019 sales performance, followed by Europe, while Latin America, the Middle East and Africa will take longer. China, where the beauty market continued to grow during the pandemic, will pick up speed, fuelled by