Today (April 16), the National Bureau of Statistics released the total retail sales of consumer goods from January to March, during which the retail sales of cosmetics (statistical dimension: retail sales of units above designated size, the same below) reached 108.6 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3.4%.
Screenshot from the official website of the National Bureau of Statistics
Among them, in March this year, the retail sales of cosmetics reached 41.1 billion, a year-on-year increase of 2.2%, which was the highest record in March of the previous year. However, whether it is a quarter or a single month, the growth rate of cosmetics is showing signs of slowing down.
Exceeded 40 billion for the first time
Compared with the retail sales data of cosmetics in the first quarter of the past five years, the performance in the first quarter of this year is remarkable.
In a single month, in March this year, the retail sales of cosmetics exceeded 40 billion for the first time, hitting a new high. However, the growth rate in March this year was not as fast as the same period in 2021 and 2023.
On a quarterly basis, in the first quarter of this year, the retail sales of cosmetics reached a new high of 108.6 billion yuan. The growth rate of 3.4% is also inferior to the growth rate of the same period in 2021 and 2023.
It can be seen that the beauty industry is still growing, but there are signs of sluggish growth. As for enterprises, a number of leading beauty/medical beauty companies have recently released relevant results for the first quarter, and the trend is improving.
For example, Proya Group revealed at the investor exchange meeting that during this year's "3.8 Festival", Proya brand GMV ranked first on Tmall Beauty, a year-on-year increase of 30%+, Douyin Beauty ranked second, a year-on-year increase of 100%+, Caitang Tmall and Douyin GMV increased by 80%+ year-on-year, and Yuefuyuan Tmall GMV increased by 100%+ year-on-year; OR Tmall GMV increased by 80%+ year-on-year (statistical time: February 28-March 8).
For another example, the performance forecast for the first quarter of 2024 released by Jinbo Biotech shows that during the period, its net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies was 0.85-105 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 97.65%-144.16%.
Aimeike also achieved high growth. According to the forecast released by it, in the first quarter of this year, its revenue was 803 million yuan to 826 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 27.5%-31%, and the net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies was 510 million yuan to 534 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 23%-29%.
Wanlian Securities Research Report pointed out that in the short term, in the context of rational consumption, consumers pay more attention to the cost performance of products, and some domestic brands have performed well in the near future;
Offline pressure
12.4% increase online
In the first quarter of this year, online and offline showed a very different development outlook.
The performance of many offline formats was under pressure. According to the data of the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to March, the retail sales of brand stores in retail units above designated size increased by only 1.1% year-on-year, and the retail sales of department stores decreased by 2.4%.
Compared with offline, online is booming. From January to March, the national online retail sales reached 3,308.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 12.4%.
Specific to the beauty category, some online platforms represented by Douyin are still growing rapidly. According to a third-party data platform, in the first quarter of this year, the overall GMV of Douyin Beauty exceeded 48.6 billion, a year-on-year growth rate of more than 42%, hitting a new high again (see "48.6 Billion! Douyin Beauty Soars in the First Quarter").
As an important part of online sales, the sales of some companies are also rising. For example, according to a recent announcement by the live broadcast agency Make a Friend, in the first quarter of 2024, the total gross merchandise volume (GMV) of the group was about 2.432 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 25%.
Correspondingly, from the performance of beauty retailers such as Sa Sa International, it can be seen that the offline "difficulty".
Recently, the performance report released by Sa Sa International showed that from January to March this year, the group's turnover fell 4.1% year-on-year to HK$1.041 billion, of which the group's offline sales fell 8.7% to HK$865 million.
During the period, the Group's turnover in Chinese mainland was HK$150 million, an increase of 18.2% over the same period last year. However, the number of stores operated by the Group in Chinese mainland decreased by five (-13.5%) compared to the same period last year, and offline sales decreased by 30.5% (in local currency) year-on-year to HK$41 million.
Some senior industry insiders said that if you want to get a share of the market in the future, you need to continue to make efforts in brand, channel, product, operation and other aspects.
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