Does sustainability still drive sales of beauty products? Not in itself, according to Tom Patton, Director of Product Insights for Western Europe at NielsenIQ. Faced with rising living costs, consumers expect, first and foremost, products that meet their needs at the right price. He spoke on 28 October 2026 in Paris at the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit.
Rising food prices top the list of consumer concerns (31%). Rising energy and water bills have moved up from fourth to second place (20%). Global warming ranks only tenth (10%).
Consumers are divided. Globally, 20% plan to increase their spending on beauty products over the next twelve months, while 24% plan to cut back. In France, the gap is even wider: only 8% plan to spend more, while 21% plan to cut back.
Yet this pessimism is fueling small pleasures. For example, 21% of Gen Z say they are less interested in certain life milestones, such as becoming a homeowner. According to Tom Patton, some of the money they would have saved is now being spent on beauty.
Beauty driven by e-commerce
Global sales of beauty products have grown by 8% in value year-over-year. “That’s the kind of growth our friends in the food industry would love to see,” the expert notes. TikTok Shop is gaining traction: 22% of consumers worldwide say they’ve already purchased a product there. The platform is the second-largest e-commerce site in the United Kingdom, but only the twelfth-largest in France. In France, Vinted is the fourth-largest online retailer of beauty products …
