Sephora has maintained its position as the top-performing beauty brand in the US for May 2025, according to Traackr’s latest Brand Vitality Score (VIT) rankings.
The brand recorded a VIT of 157,000, holding steady from the previous month.
“It's no surprise to see legacy brands like Sephora and L’Oréal Paris in the top spots,” Halie Soprano, senior professional services consultant at Traackr told Cosmetics Business.
“But what’s particularly exciting is the big jumps from brands like e.l.f., Kylie Cosmetics and Dior—each for very different reasons.”
The ranking also reflects Sephora’s sustained strength in influencer marketing and consumer engagement.
The company is set to open its first store in Yorkshire on 11 July at Sheffield’s Meadowhall shopping centre, which marks its ninth UK store since re-entering the market in 2022.
Additional openings are planned for Manchester Arndale this summer and Cardiff’s St David’s Centre this autumn.
Sarah Boyd, Managing Director of Sephora UK, said the new store opening forms part of “one of our most exciting, and busiest, years yet”, underlining the brand’s focus on accessibility and inclusivity.
In parallel with this expansion, Boyd and Sue Fox, former President of Estée Lauder UKI, have been appointed to the British Beauty Council’s board of directors, bringing extensive industry experience to support the council’s strategic goals.
While Sephora held firm at the top, other brands made notable moves.
e.l.f. Cosmetics climbed 12 places to second, posting a 185% increase in VIT to 113,500 points.
“Even without new product drops or paid surges, e.l.f. generated major organic attention,” Soprano noted.
“Over 97% of their VIT came from unpaid posts, and more than half of that was from mega and VIP influencers.
"We saw creators jump on the trend of washing and reusing the brand’s jumbo Halo Glow bottle, mixing multiple lip gloss shades into one giant tube—a great example of how community-driven trends can build real brand momentum.”
Kylie Cosmetics achieved the biggest leap on the leaderboard, jumping 48 spots to fifth place with a 405% increase, signalling renewed momentum driven by its influencer campaigns.
“Its new hybrid blush, blending the ease of a cream with the finish of a powder, generated buzz thanks in large part to Kylie herself,” said Soprano.
“With 92% of the brand’s VIT coming from VIP influencers, this is a textbook example of the power of personality-led brands.”
Other brands in the top ten include L’Oréal Paris (third, 94,300 VIT), Ulta Beauty (fourth, 79,300 VIT), Rhode Skin (sixth, 61,100 VIT), Rare Beauty (seventh, 58,400 VIT), NYX (eighth, 56,300 VIT), Dior (ninth, 52,900 VIT), and Charlotte Tilbury (tenth, 52,200 VIT).
The Brand Vitality Score combines influencer activity, audience engagement, and sentiment to provide insight into how brands perform in the digital beauty ecosystem.
The results highlight the growing importance of influencer marketing and strategic retail growth as key drivers in the US beauty market.
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