Top Beauty & Personal Care eCommerce drivers in the U.S. and Europe

Beauty and Personal Care are among the most popular and rapidly growing eCommerce categories across the U.S. and Europe, according to eMarketer benchmarks. 

However, with rising living costs, consumers are shifting their shopping habits. To stay competitive, multichannel brands must leverage first-party data and implement smart, adaptable eCommerce strategies such as shoppable media.

As we approach the holiday season, key Q3 benchmarks from the MikMak Shopping Index reveal insights about the drivers shaping Beauty and Personal Care eCommerce in markets like the U.S., UK, and France.

Amazon competes with Walmart in the U.S. and with specialized retailers in Europe for Beauty and Personal Care eCommerce traffic

In the U.S., Amazon and Walmart hold the top positions for driving Beauty and Personal Care shopper traffic based on Purchase Intent Clicks, a MikMak metric measuring shopper engagement with retailer checkout options within branded content.

Walmart leads in Personal Care, while Amazon advances in Beauty. eMarketer attributes Amazon’s growth to the retailers’ strategic moves, including expanding their selections of premium brands and hosting exclusive beauty sales events.

Amazon's influence is expanding in Europe too. In Q3, Amazon emerged as the top retailer for Personal Care in the UK and France. In France, Amazon saw a 9-percentage-point increase in Beauty shopper traffic compared to last year, though it ceded the top spot to a specialized retailer Nocibé in MikMak’s yearly analysis.

Despite Amazon's growing presence, specialized retailers stay strong in Europe. In the UK, Boots remains, by far, the leading Beauty retailer, commanding over a third of the market's shopper traffic throughout the year.

Meta leads social commerce, but TikTok's rapid growth shakes up the Beauty and Personal Care markets

While TikTok leads globally in terms of monthly time spent on social media, Meta platforms, Facebook and Instagram, have a much larger user base, and continue to dominate social commerce traffic. Shoppable media integrated across these platforms is essential for brands looking to convert engaged consumers into buyers.

Currently, Meta platforms (Facebook and Instagram) drive nearly two-thirds of social commerce traffic for multichannel brands on the MikMak platform in both the U.S. and Europe. However, TikTok is rapidly gaining ground. 

Between 2023 and 2024, MikMak data revealed a 10 percent growth in brand traffic on Meta, compared to a staggering 190 percent increase on TikTok. Despite regulatory concerns, TikTok's growth remains strong, especially in the Beauty and Personal Care sectors, where user engagement continues to soar.

In Q3 2024, TikTok outperformed its competitors in key European markets, capturing 59 percent of Purchase Intent Clicks among Beauty shoppers in the UK and 45 percent in France. This underscores the platform's rising influence among younger, highly engaged audiences.

For Personal Care, YouTube emerged as a contender, moving into the third position for Purchase Intent Clicks in both the U.S. and the UK. As shopper preferences shift, driven by factors like demographics, product categories, and platform features, brands must continually adapt their strategies to maximize results across multiple social platforms.

Seasonal dynamics in Beauty and Personal Care eCommerce: What to expect in Q4

Last year, the two weeks leading up to Christmas generated the highest traffic for Beauty and Personal Care brands in the U.S., while Purchase Intent Rate, a MikMak metric measuring consumers’ likelihood to convert, peaked earlier in the season. 

This year, with Thanksgiving falling later, the holiday shopping window is shorter, meaning shoppers will have less time to capitalize on Black Friday and last-minute deals. It's crucial to make the most of shoppable media and where-to-buy solutions to capture last-minute shoppers.

Q4 was the strongest quarter for Beauty and Personal Care brands in Europe in 2023. With online sales in these sectors expected to grow by 10 percent in 2024, we anticipate another strong finish to the year. Projections suggest continued expansion through 2025, signaling long-term growth potential for these categories.

However, rising living costs are reshaping consumer behavior. Shoppers are becoming more strategic, balancing the appeal of premium products with the need for affordability. Many are focusing on ingredient quality while seeking out discounts, rewards, and "dupes”, affordable alternatives to luxury products. This trend is especially prevalent among Gen Z consumers.

According to eMarketer, Gen Z turns to TikTok as their go-to platform for discovering and evaluating brands and products, followed by Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. With this demographic driving much of the conversation around affordability and product research, brands will need to leverage these platforms to stay competitive.

Strategies to maximize eCommerce marketing effectiveness 

• Maximize Your Social Commerce Opportunities: Implement shoppable media and where-to-buy solutions to ensure consumers can easily find and buy your products from their preferred retailers. Convenience and accessibility are key factors in boosting sales.

Here’s how Topicrem brand in France leverages shoppable media to make it convenient for consumers to purchase their dermo-cosmetics:

• Maximize Your Social Commerce Opportunities: With social commerce becoming a dominant driver of traffic and sales, brands should focus on platforms where growth and consumer engagement are highest, especially Meta and TikTok. Investing in these channels will allow brands to tap into their vast audiences, with TikTok offering a unique appeal to younger demographics and Meta consistently leading in social-driven eCommerce traffic.

• Offer Discounts to Attract Gen Z Shoppers: Discounts remain a powerful motivator for Gen Z consumers during the holiday season. According to Bazaarvoice, 67 percent of Gen Z shoppers are influenced to purchase holiday products online when discount codes are available. By offering strategic promotions, brands can capture this key audience, especially as price sensitivity continues to shape purchase decisions.

• Keep your offers fresh: The holiday shopping season is stretching longer every year, starting with events like Amazon’s second Prime Day in October. Brands must keep their offers and ads dynamic and engaging to sustain shopper interest throughout this extended period. The MikMak Shopping Index shows that 68 percent of Amazon’s in-market traffic is driven by social channels, with Meta contributing 93.9 percent of this traffic. Check a few ideas for successful ad campaigns for Meta in this interview with Beauty brands by eMarketer. 

By offering fresh, compelling promotions, and leveraging shoppable media and where-to-buy features efficiently, Beauty and Personal Care brands can fully capitalize on holiday sales opportunities. MikMak’s holiday guide offers further insights to help you fine-tune your marketing and media strategies for maximum conversion during this critical season.

For more detailed guidance on driving Beauty and Personal Care eCommerce in global markets, connect with MikMak today.