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Beauty just keeps delivering. In 2024 the UK beauty and personal care industry supported a total £30.4 billion contribution to GDP, up nine percent on revised 2023 estimates. Over half of that came from the industry itself at £15.9 billion, around 0.6 percent of the whole economy.
After inflation, beauty’s direct GDP contribution grew by five percent while the wider UK economy managed 1.1 percent. That gap is telling. Beauty is pulling ahead, while most categories are flat. If your eCommerce results seem low in a sector that’s growing faster than the economy itself, the problem is execution, not demand. And increasingly, execution comes down to whether your platform can support scale, unification, and efficiency.
This article takes a practical view. What to optimise now, what to measure next, and where to focus team energy over the next two quarters.
Growth that’s outpacing the economy
Consumer demand for personal care has been remarkably robust. Household spending on beauty services and products rose by 8% in 2024, even while many other discretionary categories struggled. Some might put this down to resilience, others to what’s been called the ‘lipstick effect’ in times of uncertainty. Either way, beauty has shown its ability to cut through.
The forecasts for 2025 are a little more modest, GDP contributions are expected to grow by 3% year-on-year. Slower, yes, but still ahead of broader consumer spending. For business leaders, the lesson here isn’t just about chasing growth but anticipating the plateau. The brands that plan for stabilisation, rather than assume perpetual acceleration, are more likely to build sustainable revenue models.
This is also where platform choice matters. A migration to Shopify, for instance, allows brands to consolidate online and offline operations, reduce technical overheads, and focus on customer experience instead of firefighting legacy systems. Beauty brands that align operational efficiency with consumer growth patterns will be best placed to capture value even as spending growth steadies.
The value of employment and skills in health and beauty growth
The sector directly employed nearly half a million people last year (496,000 to be precise). When you factor in supply chains and secondary impacts, that rises to 697,000 jobs supported in 2024. That’s more than telecommunications, more than publishing, more than agriculture.
Interestingly, 2025 is forecast to see a small dip in employment despite higher output. This is partly about productivity gains, especially in beauty services. Automation and digitalisation are playing their part too. For employers, the challenge is twofold: reskilling staff to meet evolving roles while ensuring the human touch (the core of the customer experience) doesn’t get lost in the shift.
Technology can either enable or hinder that balance. Shopify’s unified approach - where POS, eCommerce, subscriptions, and loyalty all feed the same system - gives staff the tools to serve customers seamlessly, whether in-store, online, or across regions. It reduces duplication and allows teams to focus on delivering the human connection that beauty customers still expect.
How exports can affect your beauty brand
Here’s where the picture turns. UK beauty exports reached £4.3 billion in 2024, with Ireland, Belgium, the US, Germany and the Netherlands the top destinations. But exports have declined 10% in real terms since 2021. The numbers point to a clear Brexit effect: sales into the European single market are falling at nearly 6% a year, and trade with the rest of the world hasn’t closed the gap.
For brands with international ambitions, this is more than an economic footnote. It’s a wake-up call. Innovation, quality and trust are the fundamentals of British beauty and continue to be strong, however, access remains a barrier. Decision-makers should be asking whether their distribution models, partnerships, and digital channels are truly fit for a globalised consumer base.
Here, Shopify offers a significant advantage. Multi-market expansion tools, localised storefronts, and international tax and duty management simplify cross-border trade. For beauty leaders, it means reducing friction in a part of the business that has been structurally constrained since Brexit.
What this means for retail leaders
For leaders and business owners within the health and beauty sector, there are three takeaways:
- Scale is no longer in question: The sector’s contribution rivals major industries. Investment cases should reflect that.
- Sustainability of growth matters: Planning for steadier, but still strong, consumer demand is essential.
- Exports need rethinking: Without strategic action, the UK risks losing ground internationally.
At Visualsoft, we see these trends daily in the digital performance of health and beauty brands. Those investing in enterprise Shopify solutions such as unified retail strategies through Shopify POS, and customer-centric eCommerce ecosystems are the ones translating sector growth into measurable, long-term revenue.
What we expect next
The report points to a moderated 2025. Total GDP contribution is forecast at £31.5 billion, a smaller step than last year. That suits focused operators. The real wins sit in the middle of the funnel with repeat behaviour, UX polish, and cross-sell, not just top-funnel traffic.
The key is unification. Beauty leaders who bring online and offline channels together, backed by a platform that scales globally, will find more opportunities to deepen loyalty and improve margins. Shopify makes that possible in ways traditional platforms simply cannot.
Looking to supercharge your business growth? Book a direct consultation with our health and beauty specialists today. Let’s turn market momentum into measurable eCommerce performance.
