Last January, Cosnova USA CMO Jill Krakowski told Glossy that the quickly-growing German beauty company was targeting the $1 billion yearly sales threshold for 2024. On Thursday, Cosnova announced it had surpassed it at the end of the year.
As Europe’s best-selling color cosmetics brand by volume, according to Cosnova, the conglomerate’s U.S. strategy has everything to do with value and replenishment. Essence and Catrice are made up of affordable color cosmetics priced as low, or lower, than top sellers in the U.S. mass category.
For example, Essence’s best-selling Lash Princess Mascara, Banana Powder and Pure Nude Highlighter, as well as its 2024 lip oil and mascara launches, are each priced at $4.99. This compares to $7 for E.l.f’s best-selling Tubing Mascara, $9 for NYX’s Worth The Hype mascara, and $9 for ColourPop’s Act Natural Mascara. Maybelline’s iconic pink-and-green Great Lash is currently priced at $8.49, while L’Oréal’s cult Voluminous mascara goes for $9.99.
“We are happy that, over the years, we really managed to shift [our top categories] from eyeshadow, lipstick, lip gloss and nail polish to [what we call] ‘trust categories’,” Cosnova founder Christina Oster-Daum told Glossy this January. “[When a consumer] approaches a new brand, you might not jump into foundation or mascara as a first purchase, because this requires trust. [Instead] you might go for a color product like lip gloss. Only if a brand convinces you will you try a mascara or foundation.” Currently, Cosnova’s top two SKUs by volume are both mascara.
Stateside, Catrice and Essence are available direct-to-consumer and on Amazon. Essence Cosmetics is also available in-store and online through Ulta Beauty and Target. Essence is positioned as young and playful; Catrice is marketed as a pro-quality artistry brand.
“We’re about 10-15 years behind the [top mass beauty brands in the U.S. now], but with so much more potential,” CMO Krakowski told Glossy one year ago.
To grow this revenue to reach its billion-dollar goal for 2024, the company focused on increasing replenishment through building loyalty toward everyday product categories like mascara and foundation. Lip and face are the company’s fastest-growing categories.
Oster-Daum told Glossy that in Europe, a cheap pricepoint can help drive a sale, but the U.S. is too saturated with competing brands. And if a brand prices something too low, it won’t sell, either. This was a hard-won lesson.
“Back in 2008 [when we were targeting the U.S.], we thought, ‘The West is the West, it’ll all be the same,” Oster-Daum told Glossy. “We learned the opposite.”
“If a price is too low [in the U.S.], you really have to convince the consumer [to buy], while in Europe, [the consumer] will try it. If it’s not fulfilling their needs, it’s not a big loss [in their minds]. But if a product is really cheap in the U.S., the consumer thinks, ‘Can I really trust this brand?’” she said.
To help grow awareness and tell the brand story, a crucial part of overcoming this hurdle, the team used TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat through 2024. They added Chinese TikTok equivalent Douyen and Little Red Book to its strategy this year.
Oster-Daum believes the company may also have a leg up in 2025 due to looming tariffs. Whereas many value beauty brands are made in China, Cosnova makes 90% of its goods in Europe, with Italy being its largest producer. “The secret [of our pricing] is for sure the volume,” said Oster-Daum, adding that automation at European manufacturers has made costs lower than China once shipping, tariffs and related obstacles are factored in.
Cosnova was launched in 2001 and is based in Germany. The company credits Germany as its largest market, with the U.S. in second ahead of South Africa, Netherlands, and other Asian and Middle eastern countries. The company is privately held and has 900 employees. The U.S. team based out of New York includes 65 people.
