Ingestible beauty, dopamine-glam and mass market beauty dupes are among the beauty trends that will take the UK high street by storm in 2023.
UK retailer Boots has dropped its annual Beauty Trends Report, which analyses shopping data from its 15 million Boots Advantage Card holders to discover the next big thing in beauty.
From the hottest ingredients to viral looks, these are the six trends it predicts will shape high street beauty buying behaviour this year.
Trend one: the science of skin care
Boots is predicting a greater shift towards maintaining skin health, with “barrier-bettering ingredients” such as ceramides and lipids set to sore.
Searches for ‘peptides’ are up by a third on the retailer’s site year-on-year (30 Jan 2022 to 30 Jan 2023).
Hero ingredient retinol has maintained its popularity as the most searched for skin care ingredient last year.
Vitamin C and hyaluronic acid came in second and third place respectively, the report found.
“This year, we will see a diverse representation of what ‘good skin’ really looks like,” said the brand.
“As we say goodbye to flawless and filtered skin and shift our focus instead to products that help achieve a healthy base.”
Trend two: glow getter
Although a dewy complexion has never gone out of fashion, consumers are now looking for products to help them achieve that glow from within.
Searches for ‘beauty vitamins’ are up 2,170% on boots.com year-on-year.
Interest in ingestible beauty is also on the rise, with collagen the most in-demand ingredient.
“This year, customers are looking for quick and easy shortcuts to get that added radiance from the comfort of their own bathrooms – and fast,” said the brand.
In terms of topical products, Boots is predicting serum concealers will be the next “glow-giving make-up bag essential”.
Sales of serum-infused cosmetics have soared on its site by 85% year-over-year, the report found.
Trend three: viral beauty
Beauty trends that gain fame on social media platform TikTok are continuing to impact beauty buying behaviours well into 2023.
“Social media platforms are well known for their revolving door of viral beauty trends,” said Grace Vernon, Head of Global Trends & Cultural Insights at Boots and No7 Beauty Company.
“Sometimes the effects are short-lived, with just a momentary jump in searches or spike in sales, but others are the product of a much bigger cultural shift.
“We have predicted some emerging trends we think have the potential to… shift from micro to macro”
The hyperfeminine coquette aesthetic look – think flushed blush and pretty hair – is continuing to gain traction with shoppers.
Boots reported a 112.5% increase in sales of blush palettes last year alone.
The retailer also predicts the pretty-in-pink Barbiecore, Dopamine-glam and edgy Grunge-inspired looks will soar in popularity too.
UK Google searches for ‘Barbie ponytail’ were up 30% year-on-year, the report found.
Boots drops its Beauty Trends Report annually
Trend four: the mane event
With the ‘skinifcation of hair’ trend having taken social media by storm last year, Boots is forecasting that more advanced wash-day routines and tools will follow.
Searches for ‘hair care’ have increased 1,146% on the site over the past year, “becoming a bigger priority than ever before”.
‘Shampoo’ was the second most searched for term.
Brands famed for their cult skin care products that have launched hair care lines have also increased in popularity.
Sales of The Ordinary’s hair care range have soared 150% year-on-year, while Vichy Dercos’s collection is up 75% on boots.com.
Trend five: savvy beauty
As the cost of living crisis roars on, the situation is continuing to influence how customers shop for beauty.
Many are on the hunt for “hidden gems” and “affordable finds”, says the retailer.
The self-selection cosmetics category at Boots, which includes brands such as 17, Rimmel, NYX Makeup and Maybelline, saw a 20% increase in sales last year.
“This new era of cash conscious consumers wants to create looks for less, as shown by a huge rise in Google searches for ‘dupes’ – up by 68% year-on-year,” said the brand.
Boots' own skin care range was its best-selling mass market skin care brand in 2022, with one product sold every three seconds.
‘Price advantage’ was also the top search term on its site.
46% of Boots consumers purchased own-brand beauty or grooming products in the past 12 months, the report found.
Trend six: Hybrid high street
The pandemic has indefinitely changed the way beauty consumers shop, states the brand, with many expecting a seamless and complementary online/offline shopping experience.
Now, more than 250,000 customers shop at boots.com every week, while beauty spend in-store by the end of 2022 almost matched pre-Covid-19 levels.
As such, Boots skin care line No7 is set to launch a TikTok shop in spring to deliver a more immersive online shopping experience for customers.
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