Higher footfall pushed Ulta Beauty‘s net sales to US$2.3 billion in its second quarter – up from $2 billion for the same period last year.

The better-than-expected results prompted the biggest speciality beauty retailer in the US to lift its guidance for fiscal 2022 to between US$9.65 billion to US$9.75 billion – up from its earlier estimate of between US$9.35 billion to US$9.55 billion.

All major beauty categories exceeded analysts’ estimates with Ulta Beauty experiencing some of its biggest gains in the prestige beauty category. According to a report from Placer.ai, the US market intelligence platform, foot traffic in Ulta Beauty stores trended upward in every month of the year to date, rising 12.6 per cent in June and 6.6 per cent in July.

As more US consumers headed back into stores this year, the comparison with three years ago is even more impressive. In July, for example, visits to Ulta Beauty stores increased 30.6 per cent by contrast to same month in 2019.

Strong consumer demand and broad-based momentum across our business continued as our teams executed our plans with excellence, said Dave Kimbell, CEO of Ulta Beauty.

“For the quarter, we delivered double-digit comparable sales growth across all major categories, demonstrating the strength of our mode and the commitment of our teams. As we look to the second half of the year, we continue to operate in a dynamic environment”.

Prestige beauty is also fuelling overall beauty growth in the UK. According to The NPD Group, sales of prestige beauty products in the first half of 2022 soared 23 per cent to AUD$1.57 billion.

An exciting prospect that could lure Sephora back into the British market say insiders. The French beauty chain first entered the UK market in 2000, but intense competition from Boots and other retailers saw the world’s largest specialist beauty chain shutter its stores in 2005.

The British beauty market is expected to reach US$17.32 billion by the end of this year, second only to Germany in Europe, and this glittering prize may encourage Sephora to re-enter the UK over the next year.

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