Beauty retail major Sephora has confirmed its acquisition of prestige beauty e-commerce player Feelunique, with the deal expected to close between March and July next year.
Personal care major Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has reported a significant surge in net earnings for the second quarter (Q2) of 2021, largely propelled by its medical device and pharma divisions, but consumer health also returned to growth.
Personal care major Unilever has reported a net sales rise for its second quarter (Q2) of 2021, with Europe growth rebounding and prestige beauty seeing continued success.
In this round-up of financial results, M&As and funding drives in the cosmetics industry, we highlight L’Occitane’s full-year results, Unilever’s acquisition of Paula’s Choice and more.
Hong Kong-listed L’Occitane International has credited the growth of its online sales in part to its successful social selling initiatives in markets including South Korea, Europe and the US.
In this round-up of financial results, M&As and funding drives in the cosmetics industry, we highlight the first-quarter results from Shiseido, Kao Corp, L’Occitane and more.
Personal care major Unilever will acquire US-headquartered direct-to-consumer (D2C) premium skin care brand Paula’s Choice, bringing it under its growing prestige portfolio.
Robertet is to acquire Ecom Food Industries in a deal that serves to strengthen the French natural ingredient specialists’ botanically sourced product line for the sports and cosmetic industries.
A deep dive into Kantar Worldpanel 2021 Brand Footprint
Colgate, Lifebuoy and Dove are the most chosen beauty and personal care brands in the world, with a hygiene focus driving growth in an otherwise flat market, according to Kantar Worldpanel’s 2021 Brand Footprint.
International skin care major Beiersdorf has shuffled its leadership team with a CEO succession as it edges into 2021 after reporting an overall sales rise for the first quarter.
Personal care giant Colgate-Palmolive has seen net sales rise for the first quarter (Q1) of 2021, bolstered by a particularly strong surge in APAC, thus continuing its growth trajectory despite ongoing COVID-19-related volatilities.
Kao Corporation is working to reinforce the online presence of its high-end beauty brand SENSAI in key markets such as Japan, China and Europe, in order to strengthen its position in the prestige skin care market.
Japanese beauty major Shiseido has announced that it will partially terminate the exclusive global license with Dolce & Gabbana regarding the product development, manufacturing, distribution and marketing of its beauty products.
Personal care major Unilever has finalised the separation of its smaller beauty and personal care brands, now set to operate under a standalone business ‘Elida Beauty’ where executives will decide next moves for generating growth.
![Sephora will gain access to the UK market via the acquisition to tap into the 'strong appetite' for curated prestige beauty amongst consumers [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/23/sephora-confirms-acquisition-of-feelunique-stating-uk-prestige-beauty-promise-a-key-driver/12673810-1-eng-GB/Sephora-confirms-acquisition-of-Feelunique-stating-UK-prestige-beauty-promise-a-key-driver_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Within the company's consumer health division, the skin health beauty franchise had performed particularly well along with baby care [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/headlines/business-financial/johnson-johnson-q2-2021-net-earnings-surge-with-consumer-health-back-to-growth/12669707-1-eng-GB/Johnson-Johnson-Q2-2021-net-earnings-surge-with-consumer-health-back-to-growth_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Skin care performed particularly well, with especially strong growth seen in Unilever's prestige beauty division [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/22/unilever-q2-2021-net-sales-rise-h1-results-sit-strong-particularly-in-prestige-beauty/12668871-1-eng-GB/Unilever-Q2-2021-net-sales-rise-H1-results-sit-strong-particularly-in-prestige-beauty_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![[Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/financial-focus-l-occitane-unilever-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update/12656280-1-eng-GB/Financial-focus-L-Occitane-Unilever-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![L’Occitane credited the growth of its online sales in part to its successful social selling initiatives. [L’Occitane International]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/l-occitane-online-sales-grow-69-thanks-to-social-selling-initiatives/12600820-1-eng-GB/L-Occitane-online-sales-grow-69-thanks-to-social-selling-initiatives_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Our updates on financial results, M&As and funding drives in the cosmetics industry. [L'Occitane]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/shiseido-kao-l-occitane-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update/12569556-1-eng-GB/Shiseido-Kao-L-Occitane-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![US-headquartered Paula's Choice has a large range of skin care products, including face cleansers, exfoliants, serums and retinol treatments, available across its global D2C network and select prestige retail outlets [Image: Unilever/Paula's Choice]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/06/15/unilever-to-acquire-paula-s-choice-from-ta-associates-under-prestige-beauty-division/12566251-1-eng-GB/Unilever-to-acquire-Paula-s-Choice-from-TA-Associates-under-prestige-beauty-division_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Lifebuoy and Dettol - two personal care brands heavily focused on hygiene - were the fastest-growing in the world during the period [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/05/24/top-50-beauty-brands-2021-from-kantar-worldpanel-brand-footprint-show-colgate-lifebuoy-and-dove-most-chosen/12505282-1-eng-GB/Top-50-beauty-brands-2021-from-Kantar-Worldpanel-Brand-Footprint-show-Colgate-Lifebuoy-and-Dove-most-chosen_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![China now L’Occitane’s largest market in FY2021. [L'Occitane Intl]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/l-occitane-q4-results-china-now-firm-s-largest-market-after-sales-surge-by-60/12419211-1-eng-GB/L-Occitane-Q4-results-China-now-firm-s-largest-market-after-sales-surge-by-60_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![SENSAI working to reinforce its online presence in key markets. [SENSAI]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/kao-corp-aiming-to-strengthen-super-prestige-brand-sensai-in-key-markets/12391279-1-eng-GB/Kao-Corp-aiming-to-strengthen-super-prestige-brand-SENSAI-in-key-markets_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Shiseido will partially terminate the exclusive global license with Dolce & Gabbana. [Dolce & Gabbana]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/shiseido-partially-terminates-global-license-with-d-g-to-focus-on-2023-targets/12407092-1-eng-GB/Shiseido-partially-terminates-global-license-with-D-G-to-focus-on-2023-targets_news_teaser_medium.jpg)
![Sephora will gain access to the UK market via the acquisition to tap into the 'strong appetite' for curated prestige beauty amongst consumers [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/23/sephora-confirms-acquisition-of-feelunique-stating-uk-prestige-beauty-promise-a-key-driver/12673810-1-eng-GB/Sephora-confirms-acquisition-of-Feelunique-stating-UK-prestige-beauty-promise-a-key-driver_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![The patent-pending system has been designed to identify 'skin trends' associated with certain biomarkers, enabling highly customised formulations to be blended or product recommendations made [Getty Images]tion development and improve existing product recommendation](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/22/l-oreal-patents-protein-biomarker-analysis-and-skin-diagnostics-system-for-highly-personalised-skin-care/12668298-1-eng-GB/L-Oreal-patents-protein-biomarker-analysis-and-skin-diagnostics-system-for-highly-personalised-skin-care_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![Skin care performed particularly well, with especially strong growth seen in Unilever's prestige beauty division [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/22/unilever-q2-2021-net-sales-rise-h1-results-sit-strong-particularly-in-prestige-beauty/12668871-1-eng-GB/Unilever-Q2-2021-net-sales-rise-H1-results-sit-strong-particularly-in-prestige-beauty_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![Within the company's consumer health division, the skin health beauty franchise had performed particularly well along with baby care [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/headlines/business-financial/johnson-johnson-q2-2021-net-earnings-surge-with-consumer-health-back-to-growth/12669707-1-eng-GB/Johnson-Johnson-Q2-2021-net-earnings-surge-with-consumer-health-back-to-growth_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![MONO Skincare has developed a range of eco-friendly microbiome-friendly skin care tablets. [MONO Skincare]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/brand-innovation/waterless-beauty-mono-skincare-develops-skin-care-tablets-that-pack-a-punch-with-prebiotic-ingredients/12655934-1-eng-GB/Waterless-beauty-MONO-Skincare-develops-skin-care-tablets-that-pack-a-punch-with-prebiotic-ingredients_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![Gender-neutral products and branding will take over from 'unisex' offerings, targeting specific skin and lifestyle needs that hold wider appeal [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/21/gender-neutral-beauty-to-become-central-in-skin-care-makeup-says-globaldata/12665963-1-eng-GB/Gender-neutral-beauty-to-become-central-in-skin-care-makeup-says-GlobalData_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![[Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/headlines/business-financial/financial-focus-l-occitane-unilever-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update/12656280-1-eng-GB/Financial-focus-L-Occitane-Unilever-and-more-feature-in-our-latest-beauty-business-and-finance-update_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![Content creators are creating more content across a wider variety of channels, and consumer engagement with this content is at an 'all-time high' [Getty Images]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/article/2021/07/20/influencer-marketing-in-beauty-continues-to-surge-with-great-emea-promise-says-tribe-dynamics/12660791-1-eng-GB/Influencer-marketing-in-beauty-continues-to-surge-with-great-EMEA-promise-says-Tribe-Dynamics_wrbm_tiny.jpg)
![The new range featured solid soap bars but also a solid toothpaste, deodorant and shampoo [Image: Monoprix]](https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/cosmetics/cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/headlines/brand-innovation/monoprix-bio-launches-solid-personal-care-range-to-expand-green-beauty-offering/12662305-1-eng-GB/Monoprix-BIO-launches-solid-personal-care-range-to-expand-green-beauty-offering_wrbm_tiny.jpg)