Ready for their Close-Up: A Look at Celebrity Beauty LinesReady for their Close-Up: A Look at Celebrity Beauty Lines

If you walk into a makeup specialty store, a department store or a drugstore, you will be inundated with many celebrity beauty brands. From makeup to skincare to hair care, celebrities are tapping into their fanbases to capitalize on their iconic looks.

Celebrity beauty products are nothing new. Iman Cosmetics, launched in 1994 by supermodel Iman Abdulmajid, is widely considered as the first celebrity makeup line. Elizabeth Taylor launched her first perfume, White Diamonds, in 1987, and it is still on the market today. In the early 2000s, celebrities including Britney Spears, Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera introduced branded perfume lines. 

Arka, a player in the packaging industry, recently released a study noting the top ten most successful celebrity-owned businesses by both online search popularity and revenue. Of those businesses, seven were beauty brands. Among those on the list were Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty at third; Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty at fourth; Jessica Alba’s The Honest Co. at fifth position; Scarlett Johansson’s The Outset in sixth; Lady Gaga’s Haus Labs at seventh; Ariana Grande’s beauty and body care line, including r.e.m. beauty and God is a Woman, at eighth; and Jennifer Lopez’s JLo Beauty rounding it out. 

In a separate study, Arka noted the 10 most successful celebrities under 30. Seven of these celebrities (Kylie Jenner, Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner, Millie Bobby Brown, Charli D’Amelio, Naomi Osaka and Addison Rae) had beauty lines or licensed beauty collaborations.

Related:An Introduction to The Beauty Industry and Fandom

“These young celebrities exemplify how modern fame extends beyond traditional entertainment, with many successfully launching businesses that reflect their brands,” says a representative for Arka in a statement. “The drive to create lasting impact is evident from beauty and fashion lines to skincare and beyond. This approach enhances their public personas and establishes them as savvy entrepreneurs, setting a new standard for celebrity success in the digital age.”

Fenty Hair, launched by Rihanna.

Celebrity Beauty as Billionaire Makers

Selena Gomez, actress, singer, producer and founder of Rare Beauty, recently made headlines as the latest celebrity to crack the billionaire’s club. With an estimated $350M annual revenue, Rare Beauty was a large percentage of why she was able to have this accomplishment. Rihanna, a singer, actress and billionaire known for her Fenty Beauty makeup line, made more than $600M in revenue for the brand in 2023, according to Statista. Rihanna also owns the Fenty Skin and Fenty Hair brands. Kylie Jenner, reality TV personality and founder of Kylie Cosmetics and Kylie Skin among other business ventures, shares billionaire status with her sister, Kim Kardashian, who recently re-released her beauty line, now called SKKN by Kim, formerly KKW Beauty.

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Another notable celebrity billionaire is Taylor Swift. Swift teamed with Elizabeth Arden over the years to release multiple fragrances. Expired bottles of the original Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift fragrance, discontinued in 2014, sell for upwards of $1,000 on eBay. Though no longer sold in stores, the impact of the fragrance line remains amongst her fans and consumers have started an online movement begging for a relaunch. The Financial Post notes that in 2013, Wonderstruck raked in $27M alone. Though $27M is a small sum to a billionaire, the line of fragrances was a starting point for Swift’s financial success.

Blake Lively in a promotional photo for her Blake Brown haircare line.

Celebrity Beauty Brands in Licensing

Name a celebrity, and they may very well have a beauty brand: Dolly Parton, Beyoncé, Blake Lively, Drew Barrymore, Halsey, Harry Styles, Tracee Ellis Ross and Alicia Keys are just a few. However, celebrity beauty brands are not created equally; each celeb has used their brand to tout a different promise to its consumers; for some, that includes licensed collaborations to further solidify that brand outside of the image of the associated celebrity.

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Kylie Cosmetics has done licensed collabs by leaning into the image of Kylie Jenner as a celebrity and the image of specific IPs. Jenner has collaborations with friends and family including her mother, Kris, her daughter, Stormi and her best friend, Stassie. Still, she has also ventured into licensed IP with the likes of “The Wizard of Oz,” “Nightmare on Elm Street,” Batman and more.

Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty has only done one licensed makeup collaboration thus far: “Only Murders in the Building.” The collaboration touted a liquid blush and a tinted lip oil that Gomez’s character, Mabel Mora, wears on the show. Rather than leaning into Selena the celebrity, Gomez leaned into the Hulu show’s success and her involvement in it to give licensing a try.

Then there’s Ariana Grande’s r.e.m. beauty, which recently revealed a collaboration inspired by “Wicked.” As both an established IP with a dedicated fanbase and an IP that Grande was directly involved in honoring (the Broadway musical was recently turned into a film in which Grande plays one of the lead characters), r.e.m. capitalized on the film’s hype from Broadway fans and Grande fans alike in a unique yet authentic way.

Beyoncé’s hair care line, Cécred.

Celebrity Beauty: What’s On the Horizon

Expect more partnerships as celebrities hone in on what licensed collaborations work for their brands. 

In 2024, celebrity brands grew 4.1% and health and beauty grew 6.3% from 2023, according to the Licensing International Global Licensing Industry Survey. According to a 2023 report from Licensing International, “post-pandemic, the name of the game across all beauty categories has been a shift to maximalism, marking a return to glamor and lifestyle self-expression, and amid the surge in sales of fragrance and beauty products, many companies are expanding their foundation in licensing.” They also noted that the industry was 40% higher in 2023 than in 2019.

Piper Sandler’s recent survey concluded that Gen Z’s core beauty wallet reached the highest level since spring 2018 at $342 (+6% year-over-year), and fragrance is growing the fastest at +25% year over year.

With the beauty industry growing, licensing opportunities abundant and celebrity billionaire statuses being reached, we will continue to see more celebrity beauty brands launched. Who amongst those new launches will succeed in this space? We will have to wait and see. 

This story was taken from the December 2024 issue of License Global. Read the full issue here ...