Leading Brands in U.S. Beauty Retail: Q1 2025 Overview

Introduction

In Q1 2025, the beauty retail sector in the United States demonstrated remarkable digital engagement, with leading brands like Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc, Sephora, and Sally Beauty Supply LLC setting the pace. Leveraging Sensor Tower's comprehensive data, we explore the performance and trends of these brands across their websites and apps, emphasizing audience dynamics, app engagement, and advertising strategies.

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc

Ulta's digital presence is anchored by its website, ulta.com, and the Ulta Beauty: Makeup & Skincare app.

• Audience Trends: From January to March 2025, ulta.com experienced significant fluctuations in visits, peaking in March with over 275M visits. The monthly true audience remained above 28M, with a notable increase in March, reaching over 33M.

• App Engagement: The app's monthly active users rose from around 8.4M in January to over 9.3M in March, indicating strong mobile engagement.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Ulta's monthly ad spend varied, with a notable spike in March, exceeding $7.6M. Facebook and TikTok were prominent channels, delivering substantial impressions.

Sephora

Sephora's online strategy is driven by its website, sephora.com, and the Sephora app.

• Audience Trends: The website maintained a stable monthly audience, with visits consistently above 125M. The monthly true audience hovered around 20M, with slight dips in February.

• App Engagement: Monthly app active users varied, starting at over 6M in January, slightly decreasing in February, then recovering to nearly 5.8M in March.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Sephora's monthly ad spend peaked in February, surpassing $12.5M, with a strong presence on Instagram and OTT platforms.

Sally Beauty Supply LLC

Sally Beauty's digital efforts are centered on its website, sallybeauty.com, and the SALLY BEAUTY app.

• Audience Trends: The website saw a steady flow of visits, maintaining around 21M monthly visits. The monthly true audience remained stable at approximately 3M.

• App Engagement: App engagement was modest, with monthly active users around 120K in March, showcasing a niche but loyal user base.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Sally Beauty's monthly ad spend increased steadily, reaching over $980K in March, with significant focus on Facebook and Instagram.

Conclusion

Ulta, Sephora, and Sally Beauty continue to lead the beauty retail sector with distinct strategies across web and mobile platforms. Sensor Tower's unparalleled data insights reveal the nuances of their digital performance, providing critical intelligence on cross-platform user behavior. For comprehensive data analysis, explore Sensor Tower's Web Insights, App Performance Insights, and Pathmatics offerings. By leveraging these insights, decision-makers can drive strategic growth and maintain competitive advantage in the dynamic beauty retail landscape.