Sephora, Ulta, and the new playbook for beauty ad spend

Spend for the category peaked predictably in December, with its second-highest maxima falling in April. The five highest-spending brands were Sephora (35% of Beauty Retail ad spend), Ulta Beauty (18%), Target (7%), Amazon (6%), and Macy’s (6%). All five boasted healthy year-over-year growth, with top dog Sephora exhibiting the lowest increase (+23%) and Amazon the most (+61%). Interestingly, while investment followed the usual seasonal pattern for Sephora, Ulta, and Macy’s — spiking in December before falling in January — the more general retailers Target and Shop Amazon bucked this trend, and actually boosted their beauty spend going into the new year.