Beauty industry deal activity during the second quarter was surprisingly robust. The BeautyMatter Deal Index tracked a total of 92 deals during the quarter, an 8.9% decline versus Q2 2021. Beauty deal activity in the first half of the year was down 2.9%. In the context of total global deal activity during the first half of 2022, the beauty industry has fared quite well. According to EY, global deal volume was down 18.0% in the first half versus last year, making beauty’s 2.9% decline seem negligible.Growth investments (seed, venture, minority stakes) dominated the second quarter, comprising 61.0% of deals. M&A (traditional mergers, acquisitions, and majority stakes) comprised only 37.0% of deals during the second quarter, down from 45.0% last quarter. Whereas growth investments continued to be buoyed by VC and PE firms with a longer-term perspective, eager to put capital to work, M&A deals were negatively impacted by rising costs of capital, extreme volatility in public debt and equity markets, and general cautiousness around economic headwinds affecting the industry. 41.0% of M&A deals during the quarter involved the supply side, a corner of the beauty industry that is typically more asset and technology intensive and, therefore, a bit easier to finance.