Skincare has always been a passion for Tara Tersigni, a Bobbi Brown Cosmetics alum and former Yahoo Beauty managing editor. But she was surprised to see bronzing drops produced by skincare companies Glow Recipe and Drunk Elephant on her seven- year-old daughter’s Christmas wishlist last year. “She’s not even allowed to be on social media,” Tersigni says. “But sometimes, all it takes is one big sister or peer on the block [to stir an interest.]”
Indeed, a widespread fascination with skincare among younger kids (popularly dubbed the “Sephora Kids” phenomenon) has caught mainstream attention this year, prompting perplexed adult shoppers and media headlines to ponder why so many tweens are raiding the skincare aisles of the beauty retailer. But the numbers are beginning to paint a picture of this age group’s impact. US households with tweens made 6.3% more shopping trips per year to purchase skincare items than total households did, according to March 2024 data from the consumer intelligence reporting company NIQ. That same month, a report from YPulse (a Gen Z and Millennial market research company) estimated that nearly half (48%) of tween girls in the US and Canada use skincare products, outpacing their use of cosmetics (42%). And roughly 46% of parents reported buying skincare products for their Gen Alpha kids in an April 2024 survey published by Statista.
Though the youth demo’s general curiosity about beauty products is rather perennial, Gen Alpha stands out from past generations thanks to its combined spending power and its interest in high-end skincare brands (instead of the more obviously made-for-kids products). “This trend really started to take shape within the past year, peaked during holiday season 2023, [and] continues to move forward with force,” says Dr. Brooke Jeffy, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based dermatologist and founder of skincare brand BTWN. “Tweens just want to fit in, and skincare and certain products have become a status symbol,” she adds, noting that growing up with social media has been instrumental for this shift—be it the celebrity-powered Beauty Secrets series from Vogue (14.8 million subscribers) or the everyday “get ready with me” (GRWM) videos that often take viewers through a poster’s regimen of cleaners, serums and toners.
Room for disruption
Traditionally adult-skewing brands and stores have taken varying steps to navigate this sudden influx of Gen Alpha customers. Amid scrutiny, Drunk Elephant turned to Instagram in December 2023 to outline which of its products are and aren’t safe for kids and tweens. Personal care giants like Kiehl’s and Dove both rolled out online campaigns decrying Gen Alpha’s concerning glorification of anti-aging products, with striking images. (Kiehl’s, for instance, paired a visual of children playing in the mud with the tagline, “The only face mask kids should put on.”)
Jeffy, who is certified by the American Board of Dermatology, is just one of many dermatologists who have been sounding the alarm about the risks tweens are taking by adopting multi-step skincare routines that are unnecessary at best and damaging at worst, noting that these kinds of routines can trigger acne, redness, irritation and chemical burns—to say nothing of the less tangible and more harmful implications they can have on mental health and body image. One sobering stat from Dove’s campaign shared that roughly half of all young girls expect to worry more about their appearance as they age (as per a global survey of 9,475 girls ages 10 to 17 conducted by Edelman DXI).
But somewhere in between the vast extremes of the occasionally sketchy just-for-kids products and the ultra-expensive age-inappropriate brands, an opportunity has been brewing for skincare players to responsibly cater to tweens/teens, keeping the focus on self-care, while also providing the aspiration these young consumers crave.
That was one of the goals for Tersigni when she rolled out her brand YAWN, marketed as a non-toxic skincare/make-up line for kids ages three and up. YAWN doesn’t make promises of perfecting skin or eradicating blemishes, but instead focuses more on being an avenue of expression and play for kids, Tersigni explains. “It’s not about transforming yourself; it’s about having fun and feeling great with safe formulas.”
Launched in January, the fledgling skincare line includes a face-stick, a lip balm and a body balm, all priced between US$18 and US$24. These products are primarily about moisturizing and soothing the skin, while the face-stick is tinted with a very subtle hint of color for self-expression. Tersigni hired ABD creative director Simon Mortimer to design eye-catching pastel contain- ers for the products in an effort to meet Gen Alpha’s love for collectible and “aesthetic” packaging.
The licensing opportunity
New York-based skincare brand and company Bubble—which has a strong following of Gen Z and Gen Alpha consumers—locked down its first-ever licensing deal this summer, teaming up with Pixar to launch an Inside Out 2 skincare kit in which each product is creatively branded with one of the movie protagonist’s emotions. Between 2022 and 2023, online searches for Bubble’s products spiked by a whopping 2,872% to 3.9 million (according to the Cosmetify Index 2023), with a youth-focused social media presence boasting 20 million TikTok likes. (While some are only for the 13-plus crowd, the company says most of its products are safe for everyone.) This Disney deal combined a trendy internet-loved skincare line with the feel-good ethos of a family feature film, representing exactly the kind of tie-in emerging brands want to explore.
Another success story is Starface (which is looking to rake in roughly US$90 million in annual revenue this year), with its popular patches and spot stickers that cover up pimples and absorb fluid to reduce inflammation. Seeing a way to broaden the scope of self-expression with kids brands, the company has struck licensing deals with Sanrio (Hello Kitty), Sesame Workshop (Sesame Street) and Nickelodeon (SpongeBob SquarePants). “Starface’s partnerships have been an interesting case study for YAWN to dive into in terms of licensing,” says Tersigni, who was among Starface’s early investors.
Toronto’s Matte Equation Cosmetics—another new skincare player on a mission to keep its line clean and sophisticated—has baked kids brand licensing into its strategy right from the start. Launched by corporate communications executive Matt Celestial, the company has already locked down a major deal with one such IP for its tween-friendly Timetable line that’s launching worldwide this month (with products priced between US$20 and US$34). Due to the nature of this deal, Matte was not at liberty to disclose the name of the brand at press time. “We are seeking out [more] licensing partnerships with kids IP owners, and are currently in talks with some of our favorite brands growing up,” says Celestial.
Beauty—which includes skincare—ranked as the second-most popular online shopping category with Gen Alpha in a spring 2024 report published by the content moderation company WebPurify. But despite these young consumers’ heavy participation in online culture, including shopping, there’s also value in reaching them in person. “I do think mall culture is coming back with these kids a little bit,” says Tersigni, hinting at what might be a long-term strategy for a broader YAWN world that’s a reinvention of Claire’s. “I’d love to go into room decor, stationery and all the things that kids use alongside beauty.” Her observation is echoed in new global Gen Alpha research (Razorfish and GWI report, June 2024) showing that 83% of this age group values brands that have physical stores.
Aging down with purpose
Much like Tersigni avoids appearance-based marketing, Celestial’s goal is to give young consumers a brand that can be their starting point for learning self-care and healthy skin routines. To achieve this, he consulted with industry experts and distilled the Timetable range to offer just a cleanser, a moisturizer and sheet masks. “We did explore pimple patches [initially], but one of our advisors felt strongly that we needed to encourage this age group to focus on skincare practices, rather than promising them no pimples,” he says. “We want to partner with brands that are able to inspire younger audiences to take care of themselves as a whole in the spectrum of well-being, from having great sleep practices, to eating well [and] moving their bodies.”
Well-being is playing a more prominent role in the youth skincare industry, though risks still loom for the youngest shoppers. Jeffy, who runs a TikTok account with 44,000 followers, frequently posts content to correct misinformation and inappropriate skincare practices that kids often post online. And in April, California assembly member Alex Lee introduced Bill 2491, which sought to block the sale of anti-aging skincare products to kids under age 13. (In the end, however, the bill failed to move forward.)
With plenty of prospects for licensing partnerships in this fast-growing sector, it’s vital that kids IP owners carefully vet the brands they choose to partner with to ensure they are truly age-appropriate. For example, brands that offer sun protection as part of their strategy to cater to tweens/teens are a green flag for Jeffy, who also outlines some concerns to watch out for. “I would be nervous if products contained active ingredients like vitamin C, retinol, niacinamide or abrasive scrubs,” she says. “This demonstrates to me that the company has no idea how to support young skin, and doesn’t know or care about the risk when using these ingredients on young, healthy skin.”
Featured image credit to Jen Steele / YAWN
This story was originally published in Kidscreen‘s Q4 2024 magazine issue.