By Richard Kestenbaum
Publication Date: 2025-11-24 19:27:00
TikTok influencers like Evelyn Unruh, seen here at her vanity at home in Olathe, Kansas, are changing the industry. (Arin Yoon for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The Washington Post via Getty Images
The beauty industry is undergoing major, rapid and technological changes. That’s according to data presented by Anna Mayo, vice president of NielsenIQ, at a Revieve brand event last week.
Brands that fail to adapt risk becoming invisible.
Digital is a beauty rocket
In 2020, around a third of beauty sales were online, today it is almost half and the trend is rising. Online sales are growing about nine times faster than in-store sales, at about 20% year-over-year.
The change wasn’t just facilitated by consumers moving their in-store purchases online. It’s an entire ecosystem that allows purchases without actually touching or trying the product.
It starts with influencers, who Mayo says are “the number one marketing driver in beauty.” They are…
