The BeautyMatter Awards have become a benchmark for excellence, and the ultimate accolade for businesses operating across the global beauty ecosystem, from the largest multinationals to high-growth indies and from brands to suppliers. We provide a level playing field for recognition based purely on the merit of the entry. At BeautyMatter, it's not a popularity contest, and you cannot buy your way to a win. Finalists and winners are selected based solely on the quality of their entries.
For that reason, we made a foundational commitment that judging would be transparent and done by a panel of independent judges selected for their diversity of experience, deep category knowledge, and insatiable curiosity. Every award was judged solely on the quality of the information and assets provided for relevancy, impact, and innovation. To maintain the integrity of the process, judges are committed to confidentiality and recusing themselves from judging any awards if they have an affiliation with any entrants.
“In a world that has become increasingly transactional, we remain committed to recognizing good work based solely on merit,” said BeautyMatter founder and CEO, Kelly Kovack. “When someone is recognized as a BeautyMatter Award finalist, it’s because they put in the work to be the best.”
Congratulations to the individuals, brands, and businesses who raised the bar this year with their extraordinary work. Meet the 2025 BeautyMatter Award Finalists listed by category in alphabetical order:
Person of the Year: Person who has made an outstanding contribution to the business of beauty and has been a catalyst for the overall advancement of the industry.
Changemaker of the Year: Person who has profoundly changed the business of beauty by bringing about positive change linked to equity, health, climate, or sustainability.
Entrepreneur of the Year: An entrepreneur who has built a business that matters through inspired innovations, demonstrated vision, leadership, and success.
Innovator of the Year: Person who has made meaningful contributions to the business of beauty by pursuing and executing novel thinking, challenging the status quo, and/or using creative problem solving to move the industry forward.
Marketer of the Year: Recognizes a marketing professional who has demonstrated exceptional leadership, creativity, strategic vision, and impact in driving brand growth and engagement.
Product Developer of the Year: Recognizes a product developer who has made a significant contribution through innovative product creation, formulation, or design that raises the bar.
Investor of the Year: Recognizes an investor who has demonstrated visionary leadership through investments made and their contribution to the industry.
CEO of the Year: Recognizes a CEO who has demonstrated visionary leadership, driving the success and growth of their company while fostering a strong culture and strategic direction.
CFO of the Year: Recognizes a CFO who has shown exceptional financial stewardship, strategic insight, and leadership in driving company success and managing financial growth.
COO of the Year: Recognizes a COO who has excelled in operational leadership, optimizing processes, driving efficiency, and enabling business growth and success.
Best Public Relations Agency: Recognizes agencies for developing and executing best-in-class communication strategies across media and content platforms.
Best Marketing Agency: Recognizes agencies that excel in strategic thinking, creative execution of marketing initiatives across all platforms, driving brand awareness and revenue.
Best Creative Agency: Recognizes agencies responsible for crafting brand strategies and execution of design services.
Best Digital Agency: Recognizes agencies that provide best-in-class strategic direction, creative design, and technical development for screen-based products and services.
Best Social Media + Influencer Agency: Recognizes agencies responsible for the development of social media strategies, campaign execution, content creation, and connecting influencers with brands.
Best Brand Identity: Recognizes design, content, strategy, and execution tied to brand identity, website, packaging design, etc.; can be a business at any stage.
Best Product Collaboration: Recognizes unique partnerships or collaborations between any two or more brands, businesses, individuals, or organizations.
Best Product Packaging Design (Brands): Recognizes unique concept and execution tied to packaging design including concept, componentry, material selection, and decoration for a finished product; can be a new-to-market brand or relaunch.
Best Sustainable Packaging Design (Brands): Recognizes unique concept and execution tied to packaging design that addresses the full life cycle of the product, carbon footprint, and material selection/reduction; can be a new-to-market brand or relaunch.
Best Ad Campaign: Recognizes outstanding creativity, design, and execution in advertising campaigns across online and offline mediums.
Best Spatial Design: Recognizes unique concept, design, and execution of a permanent physical space, such as a retail store, salon or spa.
Best Gift Set Concept: Recognizes innovative gift sets, advent calendars, and collections that combine creative design, unique product pairings, and exceptional consumer appeal.
Best Impact Initiative: Companies who are involved in the creation, marketing, and selling of beauty and wellness products or services that implement initiatives that provide measurable impact on DEI or ESG.
Best Supply Side Impact Initiative: Suppliers that provide goods or services to brands or retailers in the beauty and wellness sector that have rolled out initiatives that provide measurable impact on DEI or ESG.
Best Sustainability Breakthrough: Recognizes a pioneering innovation advancing sustainability through materials, processes, or practices that significantly reduce environmental impact.
Best Impact Facilitator: Technology provider (app, platform, SaaS) that provides tools to manage programs, enable transparency, quantify impact, or validate claims related to DEI or ESG initiatives.
Best Product Launch Campaign: Recognizes design, content, strategy, and execution tied to a product launch; can be a new-to-market brand or relaunch.
Best Event: Recognizes the concept and execution of a digital event, live event, or event series as an extension of a brand or business.
Best Performance Marketing Campaign: Recognizes strategy initiative/activation and execution tied to a performance marketing campaign.
Best Content Activation: Recognizes unique concept and its execution tied to the creation of a new content initiative by a brand or business to engage or communicate with its audience.
Best Community Engagement: Recognizes the building, nurturing, and activating communities attached to brands or businesses.
Best Use of Social Media: Recognizes strategy, initiative/activation, content creation, and execution tied to the use of social media.
Best Influencer Campaign: Recognizes unique relationships, effective partnerships, or initiatives in the realm of the creator economy.
Best New Category Launch: Recognizes design, content, strategy, and execution tied to a new product category launch.
Best Strategic Collaboration: Recognizes unique relationships, effective partnerships, or effective initiatives across the beauty and wellness landscape and value chain.
Best Loyalty Program: Honors a standout loyalty program that drives customer engagement, brand loyalty, and repeat business through innovative rewards and experiences.
Best Virtual Activation: Recognizes unique concept or initiative and its execution creating new immersive experiences, services and products in the Metaverse/Web3 or gaming platform.
Best Pop-Up: Recognizes unique concepts from design through execution for a short-term beauty or wellness pop-up retail concept.
Best Retail Activation: Recognizes unique training, visual merchandising, activations, events, or activities carried out by brands to support brick-and-mortar retail partners.
Best Amazon Storefront: Recognizes an Amazon storefront that effectively showcases products, drives sales, and builds brand awareness.
Best Service Concept: Recognizes a stand-alone or chain concept providing beauty and/or wellness services and/or treatments.
Best Indie Retailer: Recognizes an independent online or offline retailer that excels in a unique merchandise assortment and delivering an exceptional customer experience.
Best TikTok Shop: Recognizes a TikTok Shop that successfully leverages the platform to drive sales and engage customers.
Best Technology Solution Provider: Recognizes businesses that provide technology to help beauty and wellness companies run their operations more efficiently from sourcing through supply chain to managing and training retail support staff and everything in between.
Best Logistics Solution: Recognizes companies that provide third-party logistics services as outsourced services related to distribution, warehousing, and fulfillment.
Best Ingredient Supplier: Recognizes companies that provide raw material ingredients used in formulating beauty and wellness products; may include active ingredient, fragrance, flavor, or pigment suppliers.
Best Contract Manufacturing: Recognizes companies that provide services related to the production, formulation, and filling of beauty and wellness products.
Best Packaging Supplier: Recognizes companies that create and manufacture packaging; may include componentry for primary and secondary packaging, GWPs, gift sets, or sampling.
Best Business Service Provider: Recognizes a business service provider that delivers exceptional support, solutions, and value to industry. Examples include law firms, accounting, regulatory, banking etc.
Best Breakthrough Beauty Brand: Recognizes innovation by a beauty brand stemming from the creation of a product/service, consumer engagement, marketing or design; can be a new brand initiative from an existing brand or a new-to-market brand launch.
Best Breakthrough Wellness Brand: Recognizes innovation by a wellness brand stemming from the creation of a product/service, consumer engagement, marketing or design; can be a new brand initiative from an existing brand or a new-to-market brand launch.
Best Supplier: Recognizes innovation by businesses that support brands or retailers and creates a meaningful impact in the beauty ecosystem.
Best Breakthrough Technology (Supply Side): Recognizes the creation of a new technology or the innovative use of existing technology that created a material impact to a part of the beauty and wellness value chain.
Best Breakthrough Technology (Ingredient): Recognizes the creation of a new ingredient/technology or innovative use of an existing ingredient/technology associated with the formulation of cosmetic products.
Best Breakthrough Technology (Omnichannel): Recognizes the creation of technology (app, platform, SaaS) to enable the execution of omnichannel consumer experiences.
Best Breakthrough Packaging (Suppliers): Recognizes innovation by companies that create and manufacture packaging; may include componentry for primary and secondary packaging, GWPs, gift sets, or sampling.
Best Use of Technology (Brands): Recognizes the use of technology (app, platform, SaaS) by a brand or retailer to solve a pain point, create an experience, or provide transparency.
Deal of the Year: Recognizes the investors and advisors who have facilitated deals from complex corporate carve-outs to founders raising seed funding and setting the standard for the market.
Recognizes innovation in a finished product launched to market related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Product (Bodycare):
Recognizes innovation in a finished bodycare product launched to market either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Complexion): Recognizes innovation in a finished complexion product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Eye/Brow): Recognizes innovation in a finished eye or brow product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Lip): Recognizes innovation in a finished lip product launched to market related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Nail): Recognizes innovation in a finished nail product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Palette): Recognizes innovation in a finished palette launched to market related to new format, packaging design, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Color Cosmetics (Tool): Recognizes innovation in a finished color cosmetics tool related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Accessory/Tool): Recognizes innovation in haircare accessories or tools that enhance the hair styling experience through creative design or functionality.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Color): Recognizes innovation in a finished coloring product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Hair Styling): Recognizes innovation in a finished styling product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Treatment): Recognizes innovation in a finished haircare treatment product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Shampoo): Recognizes innovation in a finished shampoo product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Haircare (Conditioner): Recognizes innovation in a finished conditioner product launched related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Hybrid Product: Recognizes innovation in a finished hybrid product (any product that is multifunctional or combines efficacies from multiple product categories) related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or claims.
Best Breakthrough Wellness (Food + Beverage): Recognizes innovation in a food or beverage product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Wellness (Topicals): Recognizes innovation in a finished topical wellness product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Wellness (Supplements): Recognizes innovation in a finished supplement related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Wellness (Tool): Recognizes innovation in a finished wellness tool launched to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Product (Fragrance): Recognizes innovation in a finished fragrance product launched to market related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Product (Home Fragrance): Recognizes innovation in a finished home fragrance product launched to market related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Youth Product: Recognizes innovation in a finished product created specifially for use by children and tweens.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Scrub/Cleanser): Recognizes innovation in a finished scrub or cleanser related to formulation, delivery system, format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Moisturizer): Recognizes innovation in a finished moisturizer related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Eye/Brow): Recognizes innovation in a finished eye or brow product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Treatment): Recognizes innovation in a finished treatment product related to either formulation, delivery system, format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Acne): Recognizes innovation in a finished acne product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format , use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Skincare (Tool): Honors innovative skincare tools that enhance effectiveness through unique design or technology.
Best Breakthrough Men's Product: Recognizes innovation in a finished men's product launched to market related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Suncare: Recognizes innovation in a finished suncare product related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
Best Breakthrough Personal Care: Recognizes innovation in a finished personal care product launched related to either formulation, delivery system, new format type, use of technology, or sustainability.
