Celebrities Gained Even More Beauty Industry Influence in 2024, Data Shows
The data is in — and so is the era of the A-list makeup influencer.
Traackr’s annual ranking of the top beauty influencers of the year shows that in makeup and cosmetics in particular, celebrity prominence rose year-over-year by VIT (Brand Vitality Score) driven for brands in the category.
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In most cases, this is thanks to momentum driven for stars’ own lines: for instance R.e.m. Beauty founder Ariana Grande — who in 2023 did not make the top 10 — rose to the number-one spot in 2024, overtaking Kylie Jenner who came in at number two.
This comes after much buzz for R.e.m.’s November “Wicked” collaboration, timed to the release of the film adaptation starring Oscar-nominated Grande as Glinda the Good Witch. 2024 also marked the brand’s first full year under Grande’s ownership after she purchased the brand’s assets from former parent company Forma Brands in early 2023, and later that year scored a minority investment from Sandbridge Capital.
Kim Kardashian, too, entered the top 10 in 2024 following her reentry to color cosmetics via Skkn by Kim in January. (Previously, the founder shuttered her KKW Beauty and KKW Fragrance lines in 2020, three years after their debut). In one year, the line — which shares a similar minimalist, neutral-toned M.O. to Jenner’s eponymous brand — has garnered an Instagram following of 5.6 million.
Millie Bobbi Brown, founder of Gen Z-loved Florence by Mills, similarly cracked the list this year, while celebrity makeup artist/Makeup by Mario founder Mario Dedivanovic climbed up a spot in the ranking versus the year prior.
As far as traditional content creators go, Mikayla Noguiera (@MikaylaJMakeup) and Shima Katouzian (@HeroSheemaz) were the sole rankees representing for the group, coming in eighth and 10th place by VIT (which represents engagement and reach driven for brands), respectively.
Compared to other beauty categories, makeup is particularly celebrity-driven; Traackr’s top “skinfluencer” list for 2024 features a comparatively sporadic four celebrities, led by Kylie Jenner and Paris Hilton, while hair care features three, with Beyoncé at the top spot thanks to her launch of Cécred, and Kendall Jenner and Taraji P. Henson also appearing.
The top 10 makeup and cosmetics influencers of 2024 by VIT driven in 2024, per Traackr.
1. Ariana Grande
VIT: 510,000
2. Kylie Jenner
VIT: 486,000
3. Kim Kardashian
VIT: 423,000
4. Selena Gomez
VIT: 232,000
5. Jennifer Lopez
VIT: 232,000
6. Mario Dedivanovic
VIT: 177,000
7. Jeffree Star
VIT: 136,000
8. Mikayla Noguiera
VIT: 81,800
9. Millie Bobby Brown
VIT: 72,100
10. Shima Katouzian
VIT: 71,100
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