11% Fall of China Cosmetics Sales in May
- Chaileedo Press
- Jun 15, 2022
- 3 min read
The total retail sales of cosmetics in China in May reached 4.33 billion US dollars, down 11% year-on-year. Although the total retail sales of cosmetics in China rose month-on-month in May, it continued the negative growth of the previous month and basically fell back to the level of 2020. However, with the improvement of the epidemic situation in Shanghai and the promotion in 618, the Chinese cosmetics industry has gradually recovered.
On June 15, China Standard Time (all times in this article are China Standard Time), the National Bureau of Statistics of China released the retail sales data of consumer goods from January to May 2022. From January to May, the total retail sales of consumer goods in China were $2,554.732 billion, down 1.5% year-on-year; in May, the total retail sales of consumer goods in China was $499.179 billion, down 6.7% year-on-year.
China's National Bureau of Statistics said that since May, China's epidemic prevention and control situation has generally improved, so production demand has gradually recovered, employment prices have generally been stable, and major indicators have improved marginally, showing a recovery momentum in Chinese economy.
Specifically, from January to May, the total retail sales of cosmetics in China were $21.918 billion, down 5.2% year-on-year; the total retail sales of cosmetics in May reached $4.33 billion, down 11% year-on-year. Judging from the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China over the years, in May this year, although the total retail sales of cosmetics in China rose month-on-month, it continued the negative growth of the previous month and basically fell back to the level of 2020.
The beauty industry is often linked together, and each link has a deep influence on the other. The important position of Shanghai in China's cosmetics industry is self-evident. It has been deeply affected by the epidemic in the past few months, which has had an impact on the operation of China's cosmetics industry that cannot be underestimated.
During the epidemic, the reduction of passenger flow is the main difficulty for offline cosmetics stores in China. Under the control of the epidemic, it is not very convenient to travel to many places. So fewer and fewer people are coming to physical stores after the epidemic.
In addition, the stagnant flow of people is only one aspect, and the most important thing is the overall weak consumer market performance in China, which is a fatal blow to cosmetics consumption. In the entire Yangtze River Delta region, Shanghai is the most influential representative, but during the epidemic, department stores and supermarkets in Shanghai were basically at a standstill. In the neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, due to the impact of Shanghai and its own epidemic, the enthusiasm for consumption is also slowing down.
"The epidemic has affected 63% of the company's offline store business." On May 26, Huang Jinfeng, chairman and CEO of Yatsen, the parent company of Perfect Diary, said at a media communication meeting, "A more cautious judgment is that in the next six months, or even longer, our supply chain, logistics system and the overall economic environment may not so optimistic."
To sum up, it can be seen that brands, department stores, and supermarkets, all bear a significant impact on business such as rising costs, stagnant logistics, and sharply reduced passenger flow.
So, given the downturn in China's overall cosmetics consumer market in May, will June usher in a turnaround?
Let’s first take a look at the 618 promotions that various brands have placed high hopes on. On May 30, JD released the 618 pre-sale reports. According to the data, the pre-sale of JD beauty cosmetics surpassed the whole day of the first day of pre-sale last year in 3 minutes on the same day. The overall pre-sale order volume increased by 200% compared with the same period last year. Lancome, Estee Lauder, SK-II and other high-end beauty products are widely favored by the consumers, and the new high-end big names such as LA MER, Shiseido and YSL have performed particularly well.
In addition, starting from June 1, Shanghai has lifted the temporary traffic control measures in the region and restored normal traffic order; it has also canceled the whitelist system for companies to resume work and production, and other unreasonable restrictions on the resumption of work and production. The Action Plan for Accelerating Economic Recovery and Restructuring is also launched to promote the accelerated recovery and revitalization of Shanghai’s economy.
The most difficult time for Shanghai has passed. With the release of a series of positive signals, China's cosmetics industry is expected to pick up.
Comments