The UK beauty sector grew four times faster than the national economy, reaching £30.4 billion in 2024
The UK beauty and personal care industry made a total contribution of £30.4bn to GDP in 2024, representing a 9% increase on revised estimates for 2023.
This growth was more than four times faster than that of the overall UK economy, which grew by 1.1% after adjusting for inflation.
The findings come from the Value of Beauty 2025 report, published by the British Beauty Council in collaboration with Oxford Economics.
The annual report provides a detailed breakdown of the beauty industry’s economic impact, employment figures, tax contributions and export performance.
How beauty services contributed £5.9 billion to UK GDP in 2024
Over half (52%) of the industry’s total GDP contribution in 2024 (£15.9bn) was generated directly by the industry itself.
The beauty services sub-sector, which includes businesses such as salons, spas and clinics, contributed the largest share of this amount, generating £5.9bn in Gross Value Added (GVA) in 2024.
This positions beauty services ahead of other sub-sectors such as the retail, manufacturing and wholesale of beauty goods.
The remaining GDP contribution came from supply chain activity (£6.2bn) and the spending of wages by industry and supply chain workers (£8.4bn).
The beauty industry’s direct GDP contribution in 2024 also exceeded that of the sports, amusement and recreation sector, as well as industries such as travel agencies, publishing and postal services.
UK beauty industry direct employment hits 496,000 in 2024
In 2024, the personal care industry directly employed 496,000 workers, an 11% increase compared to revised estimates for 2023.
A direct job in this context refers to a worker employed within a business that forms part of the personal care industry itself, such as a salon, spa, aesthetics clinic, beauty retail outlet, manufacturer or wholesaler.
Of these direct jobs, 266,000 workers were employed specifically in beauty services, including professionals working in salons and treatment-based businesses.
When including indirect employment (jobs supported in the industry’s supply chain) and induced employment (jobs supported by the wage spending of beauty professionals), the total number of UK jobs supported by the personal care industry in 2024 reached 697,000.
UK beauty sector employment forecast and trends for 2025
In 2025, the total number of jobs supported by the personal care industry is forecast to decrease slightly to 681,000.
However, this decline is not due to reduced demand. As the report explains: "The forecast drop for 2025 is driven by higher forecast productivity for workers in the beauty services sub-sector. Higher productivity implies that it takes fewer workers to deliver the same amount of Gross Value Added."
This means that the expected reduction in employment is the result of increased efficiency in how services are delivered, rather than a downturn in the industry.
UK beauty industry tax contributions total £8.6 billion in 2024
The report estimates that the personal care industry supported a total of £8.6bn in tax revenue to the UK Treasury in 2024.
Of this, £4.6bn was generated directly by the industry, while £1.6bn came from its supply chain and £2.4bn from wage-related tax contributions.
To put this in context, the direct tax contribution of £4.6bn is equivalent to 0.4% of the UK’s total planned public sector spending for 2024-25, and 34% of the budget allocated to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
For 2025, total tax contributions from the industry are expected to rise to £9.4bn, with £5.1bn generated directly.
UK consumer spending on beauty products and services increases 8% in 2024
UK households increased their spending on personal care products and services by 8% in 2024, helping to drive overall GDP growth.
However, this rate is expected to moderate in 2025, with forecast growth of 3% in consumer spending for the coming year.
As a result, the total GDP contribution of the personal care industry is expected to rise to £31.5bn in 2025, compared to £30.4bn in 2024.
UK beauty and personal care exports reach £4.3 billion in 2024
UK exports of beauty and personal care products totalled £4.3bn in 2024, accounting for 1.3% of total UK goods exports.
However, export volumes have declined in recent years. After adjusting for inflation, the report notes: "UK exports of personal care goods have decreased by 10% in inflation-adjusted terms since 2021, contributing to a longer-term trend of falling export volumes since the mid-late 2010s."
Much of this decline is linked to reduced trade with European countries following Brexit.
Export volumes to the EU single market have fallen at an average rate of 5.9% per year since 2021, while exports to non-European markets have dropped 4.4% annually.
Despite this, Europe remains the largest market for UK beauty exports. In 2024, 70% of UK beauty and personal care exports went to the European single market – significantly higher than the 47% share seen across all UK goods exports.
The top five destinations for UK beauty exports in 2024 were:
- Ireland – £625m
- Belgium – £432m
- USA – £371m
- Germany – £341m
- Netherlands – £277m
Summary: key statistics from The Value of Beauty 2025
|
Metric |
2024 value |
2025 forecast |
|
Total GDP contribution |
£30.4 billion |
£31.5 billion |
|
Direct contribution to GDP |
£15.9 billion |
£16.4 billion |
|
Jobs supported (total) |
697,000 |
681,000 |
|
Direct employment |
496,000 |
N/A |
|
Beauty services employment |
266,000 |
N/A |
|
Total tax revenue supported |
£8.6 billion |
£9.4 billion |
|
Direct tax contribution |
£4.6 billion |
£5.1 billion |
|
Exports of beauty products |
£4.3 billion |
N/A |
|
Growth in consumer spending |
+8% |
+3% (forecast) |
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