consumers

The Ordinary, Deciem’s flagship brand, went from disruptor to industry giant. Co-founder Nicola Kilner shares how the company stays true to its founding ethos, even after an acquisition and amid growing competition, for The State of Fashion: Beauty Volume 2.

As inflation persists and consumer confidence remains low, brands face a critical challenge: how to sell to a more cautious, value-driven shopper without diluting their cachet. From smarter pricing strategies to sharper audience targeting, executives must recalibrate fast to stay competitive in a volatile economy.

Retailers will need to prepare for the $11 billion summer shopping season without fully understanding what tariffs will be in place, or how much parents and students are willing to spend.

Over the last decade, an avalanche of brands with public-facing founders emerged. While a prominent founder can propel growth, customers use other factors to assess whether a brand is suited to their needs, according The State of Fashion: Beauty Volume 2.

The Lady Gaga-fronted line went through a renaissance, changing its product offering, distribution and overall look and feel to better connect with customers. CEO Ben Jones tells The State of Fashion: Beauty Volume 2 how the brand pulled it off.

Turkish fast-fashion giants LC Waikiki, Koton and DeFacto have rolled out hundreds of stores in high-growth, high-risk frontier markets like Albania, Uganda and Mongolia where rivals H&M and Zara have little or no presence.

The Italian cosmetics giant has deftly engineered a premiumisation strategy, and has elevated its distribution, product selection and points of differentiation, heavily reducing discounts and promotions in the process. Chief executive Simone Dominici explained how it deployed its strategy in The State of Fashion: Beauty Volume 2.

As the popularity of alternative social media platforms like RedNote grows outside of China, domestic beauty brands like Florasis and Judydoll are reaping the benefits.