Top 5 Cosmetics &Toiletries Trends of 2022

The cosmetic world continues to take winding and unexpected terms. With much influence stemming from large events and social media, 2023 is likely to see the rise and fall of many trends, and perhaps a few entirely new ones as well.
The cosmetic world continues to take winding and unexpected terms. With much influence stemming from large events and social media, 2023 is likely to see the rise and fall of many trends, and perhaps a few entirely new ones as well.

The beauty landscape is constantly evolving, with topics rising and dropping in popularity on a near-daily basis. This year saw many discussions in sustainability, sun care, skin care and regulations, with a few buzz words firmly at the tip of everyone's tongues. 

On the basis of analytics and research into our own website, the top five Cosmetics & Toiletries (C&T) trends of 2022 were as follows:

5. Clean Beauty

While the term continues to grow in popularity, this year presented the need for a more concrete definition of clean beauty, especially as it came under contention in the latter half of 2022, largely in regard to the "Clean at Sephora" lawsuit. At the SCC 76th Annual Meeting, there was much discussion about the suit and how it would resolve. 

Despite this, clean beauty has been popular in recent years due to a surge in consumer interest in terms of what goes into the products they use on a daily basis, be it for issues of safety (for humans and the environment) or ethics. This has extrapolated into areas of transparency and sustainability and related certifications.

4. CBD

It is no surprise that CBD continues to expand in the beauty space, especially with the push from celebrities like the American musician Travis Barker, who launched his own skin care line containing CBD. The ingredient and related products also proved to be a hot topic at many major events this year, one example being the CBD Soothing Nano Strips touted at Beauty Accelerate in September.

Even the regulatory space has seen updates regarding the ingredient, and research into cannabidiol, cannabinoid skin care and the like is ongoing. This ingredient, its derivatives (CBN, CBG, etc.) and even alternatives will CBD-like effects will continue to rise in popularity as more research is conducted in terms of its physical and psychodermatological effects. This even plays into rising self-care trend, which according to Pinterest has made "showers the new baths."

3. Sunscreen

Between research on the alleged destruction of coral reefs by organic sunscreens, the search for new ingredients, gadgets developed for UV filters and lawsuits on the topic, sunscreens have had an explosive year. Sun care in general has an expected growth of 7.3% CAGR from 2022-2027, according to Research and Markets projections. Further, there is spiked interest in SPF in other product categories as well, which has also pushed sunscreen to the forefront of trending terms this year.

2. Acne

Acne is a trend that never seems to go away. It is not new, by any means, yet it is consistently prevalent and maintains a significant following in research and product development. The year 2022 saw more ingredient and device launches for this skin condition, such as the Nu Skin ageLOC LumiSpa iO System or Laboratoires Expanscience's Calybiota Bio.

Perhaps as one of the most consistently trending topics, acne and even skin health will continue to pave the path of ingredient development and research in the coming years. In fact, a more recent approach to acne (and scalp and skin health) brings us to the #1 trending term in 2022 ...

1. Microbiome

During the first day of SCC 76, microbiome seemed to be the only topic on everyone's minds. The expansive area has only recently surged in popularity, as there is still much to learn. Studies of the microbiome continue to develop the topic and will create more space for ingredient and product development moving forward.

Honorable Mentions

Although the following trends didn't fall within our top five, they are notable and surged significantly in 2022.

Hair Care and Health

Hair — or more specifically, the skinification of hair  has been a major force in beauty. With traditional skin care ingredients such as collagen and hyaluronic acid permeating the hair care space, the market has experienced many topical and nutricosmetic product and ingredient launches; Nutrafol's Collagen Infusion and Bloomage Biotech's Hair Nourishing Shield are just a few examples. This was also a featured topic during Beauty Accelerate, presented by Lavinia Popescu, chief scientist for Olaplex. The skinification of hair and other hair health-related products and ingredients will continue to stir the hair care market, especially as consumers turn their interests toward scalp health and care.

Multifunctionals

Multifunctionals continued to explode in demand and popularity in 2022, with many new products and ingredients coming to fruition. This trend additionally held a large presence at in-cos Asia and Beauty Accelerate. Whether for efficiency and convenience or a minimalistic consumer mindset, the "less is more" approach to formulation and skin care regimes will continue.

Future Predictions

These trends have seen promising growth, and may expand in the near future.

Halal Products 

With halal cosmetics projected to reach $83.76B by 2030, we would not be surprised to see it surge in popularity. The increased demand for halal products from the expanding Islamic population is the main factor driving the market for halal cosmetics. This market has gained prominence as a result of a growing Muslim population and increased concerns about the safety of skin care products.

Products for Men

Men's cosmetic products always seem to be on the cusp of a boom. A recent FMI analysis predicted the global men’s skin care product market will reach U.S. $28.34 million, witnessing an exceptional double-digit CAGR through 2029. Companies like Kao are also producing skin care products for men, primarily marketed toward Gen Z, helping the trend to grow further.

Conclusion

The cosmetic industry continues to take winding and unexpected terms, with much influence stemming from industry events and social media. Extensions from current trends — e.g., transparent and sustainable from clean beauty, or scalp health from the skinification of hair — will likely spin off into many entirely new ones.

Thank you for your continued support and engagement, and we hope to see you in 2023!

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