Euromonitor International has found that 22% of global S-Commerce sales in 2024 were influenced by social media, with 3% of total e-commerce sales conducted via these platforms. The surge in K-Beauty trends on social media has boosted product sales on e-commerce platforms, with social media platforms replacing search engines for discovering new products. This highlights the importance of user-generated content and influencer marketing in the wellness and personal care industry.
Bob Hoyler, global insights manager for retail at Euromonitor International, said: “With content creation at our societal forefront, businesses and marketers are leveraging these platforms for branding, advertising, and consumer engagement to reach their target audiences, drive conversion, and enable product discovery.”
According to Euromonitor’s Voice of the Consumer: Beauty Survey 2024, fielded June to July 2024, 36% of global consumers are planning to increase spending on health and wellness.
Consumers are increasingly focusing on healthy skin, ingredients, and accomplishing beauty from within. Digital channels are educating them on their needs, driving a shift towards healthier lifestyles and greater spending on health-focused products.
Whether through special offers, media engagement, or trusted reviews, digital media plays an important role in influencing purchasing decisions and shaping the overall customer experience, This is especially true within the skin care market.
Influencers, dermatologists and skin care experts continue to drive the narrative, but they are now joined by brands using integrated social commerce features. “Shoppable videos” and livestreamed skin care tutorials let consumers ask questions in real time and make purchases on the spot.
TikTok Shop (TTS) established a massive user base when launching in September 2023, offering 11 product categories. Beauty and personal care products were the top sellers in 2024, accounting for about 6% of US TTS sales, according to Euromonitor’s E-Commerce system.
Jitong Li, a consultant for beauty and fashion at Euromonitor International, stated: “The app is increasingly driving product trends in the US, particularly in the colour cosmetics and skin care categories. As beauty and personal care product prices rise and consumer awareness of ingredients grows, “dupe products are gaining traction.”
The #Kbeauty hashtag, deriving from the recent surge in Korean beauty trends and products, garnered usage on 7.7M posts on Instagram and 1.4M posts on TikTok. COSRX, the leading cultural beauty brand from Korea and known for its Snail Mucin Serum that’s trended across social platforms, channeled 72% of its e-commerce sales via Amazon in 2024.
Backed by e-commerce, digitally native brands are having growing success across the globe, reshaping global skin care trends.
