• Boots reveals this year’s customer favourites including superfoods, hyaluronic acid and statement blush
• The top search terms on boots.com included ‘shampoo’, ‘sun cream’ and ‘lip balm’
16 December 2024: Superfoods, blusher, magnesium and hyaluronic acid have been revealed as some of the most in-demand products across beauty and wellness in 2024, according to Boots.
The UK’s leading health and beauty retailer, which stocks over 600 healthcare brands and over 500 beauty brands, has analysed search and sales data from across the year to reveal customers’ most-wanted purchases.
Grace Vernon, Head of Global Trends & Cultural Insights at Boots & No7 Beauty Company, said: “The lines between beauty and wellness certainly blurred this year, as we saw more product trends that spanned holistically across skincare, haircare, wellness and health. From supplements to skincare, shoppers are more conscious than ever with their purchases as consumers increasingly recognised that beauty is more than skin deep.
With 175 years of expertise behind us, Boots is uniquely placed to deliver on this trend. As we look to the year ahead, we are continuing to pack our shelves with exciting new products and brands, allowing us to stay ahead of the curve, cater to evolving consumer demands, and offer a diverse and dynamic selection of beauty and wellness.”
Beauty and wellness best-sellers revealed:
Superfood ingredients
In 2024, customers looked to powerhouse ingredients from the natural world for a beauty and wellness boost. Both mushrooms and super-greens emerged as breakout wellness categories at Boots this year, with best sellers including DIRTEA Lions Mane Focus Functional Mushroom (£34.99) and Rheal Superfoods Gut Feel (£25). Overall searches for ‘beauty supplements’ on boots.com saw a 15% increase YOY.
The demand for superfood ingredients translated to beauty shopping baskets too. Boots saw an uplift in demand for Korean skincare, known for its cutting-edge techniques and unique ingredients from nature, with formulas enriched with superfoods from ginseng to green tea and fermented beans. With over 769k #KBeauty posts on TikTok this year, Boots brought the best of Korean skincare straight to its shelves, introducing 10 new brands including Laneige, Beauty of Joseon, Anua, Skin1004, and Haru Haru Wonder.
Best-selling K Beauty brands (by volume) at Boots are Beauty of Joseon and Anua, with Beauty of Joseon Relief Sun: Rice + Probiotics (£15.50) taking the top spot for best-selling K Beauty product. The powerful SPF packed with rice extract and fermented probiotic complex promises to brighten and calm the skin.
Magnesium
With over a billion views for #magnesium on TikTok this year alone, magnesium continues to be the mineral of the moment. As well as being essential for bone health and teeth, magnesium can help turn food into energy, whilst supporting muscle function and energy levels. It flew off the physical and digital shelves at Boots, with Boots Magnesium 375mg (£3.25) supplements being a customer favourite this year. Volume growth within the category, which currently ranges from supplements to lotions and even spray formats, has seen a 50% increase YOY.
Blushes and balms
In makeup and cosmetics, blush reigned supreme throughout 2024, whilst lip balm was cemented as a handbag essential. From Sabrina Carpenter's iconic rosy cheeks to the natural flush of the ‘boyfriend blush’ and the summer-inspired ‘sunset blush’, the blusher possibilities were endless in 2024. As a result, searches for ‘blush’ on boots.com increased by 155% this year, whilst the total number of TikTok views for the hashtag #blush hit 8.6Bn.
This year saw lip balm become a beauty necessity too, with Google searches for the hydrating salve averaging 240k a month, up +38% in the past year. Boots met this demand with the launch of its viral Glossy Lip Balm (£3). Available in three flavours; Mint, Coconut, and Cherry, these pocket-sized wonders captured the hearts (and lips) of beauty enthusiasts nationwide, with one lip balm flying off the shelves every 30 seconds at launch.
Hydration
2024 saw a renewed focus on hydration in skincare, with the emergence of viral trends like ‘skin flooding’ taking centre stage. This technique, with over 216M views for the hashtag on TikTok this year, involves layering skincare products to achieve deeper and long-lasting hydration. Hyaluronic Acid, a holy grail ingredient for hydration, was the most searched skincare ingredient on boots.com in 2024. The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 (£8.80) was also amongst Boots top-selling premium skincare products (by volume).
Boots brought one of the biggest skincare brands of the year, Bubble, to over 380 stores across the UK in 2024. At launch, one Bubble product sold every minute at Boots. Bubble Slam Dunk Hydrating Cream Moisturiser (£16) was the best-selling product from the brand this year.
Skin longevity
As predicted in the Boots Beauty Trends Report 2024, there was a shift towards skin longevity this year, with consumers making smarter choices for the future health of their skin. The most searched skincare products on boots.com included ‘sun cream’, ‘lip balm’ and ‘eye cream’. Shoppers were actively looking for products to support skin’s natural self-repair with No7 Future Renew Day Cream SPF40 (£34.95) cementing its place as the brand’s best-selling product of the year. The day cream forms part of the Future Renew range which is powered by No7’s world-first patent-pending super peptide blend, including a serum which is clinically proven to reverse visible signs of skin damage. Maintaining skin health and repairing past damage will remain a key focus in 2025, as customers prioritise their skin's well-being.
Honing in on haircare
Hair got a lot more personal in 2024 as customers sought out products that catered to their unique hair types and concerns. ‘Shampoo’ emerged as the most searched term on boots.com in 2024, with the best-selling premium shampoo lines being OUAI Detox Shampoo (£28), REDKEN Acidic Bonding Concentrate Shampoo (£25.70)*, and REDKEN All Soft Shampoo for Dry Hair with Argan Oil (£21.75). There was a significant focus on scalp health this year too, with Google searches for scalp serums averaging 30k a month, up +99% in the past year. The OUAI Scalp Serum (£48) was one of the best-selling premium scalp care products at Boots as shoppers looked for a product that helped balance and hydrate the scalp.
Gut health
Trends around nurturing the internal to boost elements of the external, with a growing recognition that what’s going on below the surface is just as important were outlined in the Boots 2024 Beauty Trends Report. Sales of gut-health supplements have risen by 15% YOY with best sellers including the affordable Boots Good Gut Live Friendly Bacteria (£10.50) and Optibac Adult Gummies (£12.99).
– ENDS –
For more information, please contact: media.enquiries@boots.co.uk.
[1] Best sellers in the mushroom and superfoods categories results based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 14th November 2024)
[2] Based on Boots.com search data 1st Jan 2024 – 19th November 2024
[3] Exolyt Global Data on #kbeauty from 1st January 2024 – 3rd December 2024
[4] Best-selling K Beauty brands based on Boots UK sales volume data (30th October 2024)
[5] Best-selling K Beauty product based on Boots UK sales volume data (30th October 2024)
[6] Exolyt Global Data on #magnesium from (1st January 2024 – 3rd December 2024)
[7] Best seller in the magnesium supplements category results based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 14th November 2024)
[8] Magnesium category based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 14th November 2024)
[9] Most searched terms based on Boots.com search data 1st Jan 2024 – 19th November 2024
[10] Exolyt Global Data on #blush from 1st January 2024 – 3rd December 2024
[11] ‘Lip balm’ Google search data taken from Glimpse is correct as of 03.12.24
[12] Glossy Lip Balm statistic based on Boots sales data 13th July 2024
[13] Exolyt Global Data on #skinflooding from 1st January 2024 – 3rd December 2024
[14]‘Hyaluronic Acid’ results based on Boots.com search data 1st Jan 2024 – 19th November 2024
[15] Top-selling premium skincare products based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 21st November 2024)
[16] Bubble skincare based on Boots UK sales volume data (5th Dec 2023 – 3rd Jan 2024)
[17] Most searched skincare products based on Boots.com search data 1st Jan 2024 – 19th November 2024
[18] Best-selling No7 product based on Boots UK sales volume data (3rd December 2023 - 3rd December 2024)
[19] Most searched terms based on Boots.com search data 1st Jan 2024 – 19th November 2024
[20] Best-selling premium hair lines based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 30th November 2024)
[21] ‘Scalp serum’ Google search data taken from Glimpse is correct as of 03.12.24
[22] Best-selling premium scalp care product based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 21st November 2024)
[23] Gut health category based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 14th November 2024)
[24] Best seller in the gut-health supplements category results based on Boots UK sales volume data (1st January 2024 – 14th November 2024)
About Boots:
Boots is the UK’s leading health and beauty retailer with over 52,000 team members and around 1,850 stores, ranging from local community pharmacies to large destination health and beauty destinations.*
Boots serves its customers and patients for life as the leading provider of healthcare on the high street and the UK’s number one beauty destination. It offers an unrivalled depth and breadth of products, which incorporates its extensive own brand range and innovative portfolio of brands, including No7, the UK’s No1 skincare brand, Soap & Glory, Liz Earle Beauty and Sleek MakeUP.
2024 marks the 175th anniversary of Boots. Founder John Boot opened a herbalist store in Nottingham in 1849 to offer an affordable alternative to traditional medicines. His son Jesse expanded the business to become a modern retailer and the biggest chemist in Britain and Jesse’s wife Florence was integral to establishing Boots as a beauty destination. Throughout its history, Boots has listened, learned and innovated and continues to challenge itself to improve its products and services every day.
Boots is part of Walgreens Boots Alliance, which is a global leader in pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing retail. More company information is available on boots-uk.com.
*Figures accurate as of 31 August 2024