We kicked off 2023 following a decline in deal activity in the back half of 2022. The BeautyMatter Q4 2022 Deal Index tracked 79 deals, a 28.8% decline from Q4 2021 and a 12.2% and 9.2% decline from Q4 2020 and 2019, respectively.During the first quarter of 2023, the business of beauty remained remarkably resilient. However, it did not translate into beauty deal activity. During the first quarter of 2023, beauty deal volume fell 43.4% from the first quarter of 2022.The BeautyMatter Q2 2023 Deal Index, however, saw a 23.3% uptick in deal activity versus Q1, largely driven by increased activity in growth deals, which represented 55% of the total 74 deals we tracked during the quarter. Overall, the first half of 2023 was down 32.3% versus the first half of 2022. Although deal activity was down across the board, the biggest brunt of the decline in deals in the first half was seen in the earlier-stage, start-up side of the market. Two exceptions—both the fragrance and the professional categories showed growth.