This year, the British Beauty Council presented "The Power of Beauty'' for British Beauty Week, its most inclusive and accessible event to date. Attendees were given the opportunity to participate in panel discussions, insightful webinars, and much more, with over 80 different events taking place nationwide, with offerings from companies including Space NK, Meta, and Avon. There were also extensive opportunities to connect with leading industry names such as Boots and Superdrug, as well as indie disruptors like Arkive Headcare and Juni Cosmetics.

Events spanned many industry sectors, including fragrance, skincare, organic beauty, and nail art. This year's event aimed to inspire and educate beauty industry professionals across the UK to think about beauty in new ways while growing their community. "Beauty is powerful and is a remarkable way to connect with yourself and your community. We want businesses and consumers to celebrate the Power of Beauty in all its forms," says Millie Kendall OBE, British Beauty Council’s Chief Executive.

British Beauty Week included both future-facing talks as well as interactive in-store based exclusive offers and services for attendees, whether industry professional or beauty enthusiasts. The STEM Ambassador Summit was an insightful dive into the beauty, science, technology, and math professions. The event also showcased the highly anticipated British Beauty Council Future Talent Programme films, created in collaboration with STEM Learning, and featuring influencers such as Jamie Genevieve, The Welsh Twins, and The Plastic Boy. Together, the companies are hoping to inspire the next generation of beauty STEM talent.

The Importance of Head Care, hosted by Arkive Headcare founder and celebrity hairstylist Adam Reed at his Spitalfields salon in London, highlighted the importance of hair and scalp conditions, as well as mental health. The last point is an especially poignant touchstone for Reed’s brand, which emphasizes beauty practices as a means of self-care.

Given that 20% of time spent on Instagram is being used to watch videos, increasing to 50% across Facebook, Meta's Beyond Beauty: The Power of Video event provided insight on how to create the perfect reels and come out on top of the Instagram algorithm.

British beauty retailer Space NK hosted several exclusive events throughout the week. All participating high street branches showcased the British Beauty Week logo in their shop windows, encouraging consumers to get involved. Highlights from the partnership included: Paula's Choice Skin Scanning, a Hair Treasure Hunt with JVN Hair, Chantecaille Makeovers, and the testing of Rose Inc’s new Solar Collection.

Skincare lovers in London and Belfast were invited to discover the key benefits behind Dermalogica's HydraFacial skin treatment across the week. Consumers could book skin consultations and attend live demonstrations explaining the best way to achieve their healthiest skin yet.

Diptyque's London Brook Street boutique offered an exploration of the brand's timeless scents and newly launched fragrance refill service. Guests attending the event and purchasing refillable fragrances received a complimentary perfume refill, and the offer of a personalized illustrated Polaroid.

Urban Retreat in Knightsbridge allowed consumers to experience the power of makeup via one-to-one, express makeup appointments, enjoying the transformative and feel-good factor of personalized makeup application. Guests also had the opportunity to experience tarot readings with refreshments provided by prestigious vegan restaurant Holy Carrot.

This year's British Beauty Week went beyond the surface of aesthetic value, with topics covered that will benefit consumers, from mental health to STEM career futures.

“For me personally, seeing the industry come together at such a challenging time to celebrate what beauty means to Britain has been quite overwhelming,” Kendall tells BeautyMatter. “We saw Space NK activate all over the country with brands like Hair By Sam McKnight, By Terry, JVN, and Paula’s Choice. Weleda popping up to celebrate Skin Food in Covent Garden. Meta opened up their offices to share insights and learnings for brands and content creators, we launched our Future Talent Programme and started to make headway with a Plastics Summit dedicated to making real change for the better in terms of our industry’s environmental impact. So many brands came together, around 120 events in total across the week, from large and small brands, retailers and creators. It has really showcased 'The Power of Beauty.'”