Why Are Barrette Sales Spiking? Thank Ozempic.

Welcome back to Haul of Fame, your must-read beauty roundup for new products, new ideas and LED light fantasy spas.

Included in today’s issue: Alix Earle, Amika, Ammortal, Apotheke, Aritzia, Beauty Creations, Billie Eilish, Carolina Herrera, Diana Madison, Dove, Eight Saints, Eva NYC, Fenty Beauty, Fumum, Hotel Lobby, Humanrace, Kenra Professional, Maybelline, Moroccanoil, Nike, One/Size, Pat McGrath Labs, Patrick Ta, POV, Rare Beauty, Vaquera, Saltair, Salt + Stone, Simihaze Beauty, Stripes Beauty, Supergoop, Tarte, Technogym, Tom Ford Beauty, Urban Decay, YSL Beauty and private equity cookies.

But first…

Does your brand make little branded hair clips? Maybe it should start — even if it’s got nothing to do with hair.

Witness Augustinus Bader, the luxury skincare giant that packed its Dua Lipa collaboration with barrettes this fall in its signature cerulean blue. Balenciaga and Miu Miu have their own logo clips for $475 and $460 respectively. Backstage at campaign shoots for brands like MAC and Victoria’s Secret, the hair clips are part of the behind-the-scenes look — with the added benefit of a brand logo in every image.

For these little (and cheap!) snap clips, sales are rising along with visibility. The hair giant Goody confirmed a strong surge in searches for the tiny barrettes on its e-commerce channels. J.J. Martin, the founder of La Double J, said interest in her designer barrettes has grown “like gangbusters,” with “very strong interest” around her clips during this holiday season. Likewise, Emi Jay founder Julianne Goldmark says her brand’s tiny clips “have been one of our strongest growth stories this year, up 49 percent year-over-year.” They’ve been seen on Gen Z stars like Tate McRae and Kylie Jenner, but Goldmark says her main sales surge has come from social sharing of “real” shoppers embracing them. Why the swap from claw clips to these little guys?

Well — sorry — it’s Ozempic.

Here’s what’s happening: 1 in 8 American adults now take GLP-1s like Ozempic and Mounjaro, which each boast the proven side effects of thinning and shedding hair, especially for the 40 percent of those using the drug “off-label” — that is, for cosmetic reasons and not because of doctor-treated obesity. There are other reasons, too — proven postpartum hair loss, theories about COVID hair shedding, the simple fact that we’re all more stressed, which can cause hair follicles to freeze like a squirrel when it hears dogs barking. The popular claw clips of 2023 can’t grab the thinner, sparser strands in our ponytails and buns anymore. And even when the regrowth starts from hair gummies and minoxidil pills (a huge revenue driver right now), the baby hairs must be tamed. The clips become clutch.

I experienced this myself at the Cutler Salon in downtown New York, where a young hair stylist named Rivka grabbed a thicket of baby hairs at the back of my neck. “You have so much regrowth!” she exclaimed, after I told her I’d been taking Nutrafol to try and get back my crazy-stressed tresses. “But it’s gonna be a process. These wispy baby hairs, you’ll have them everywhere for a while.” She slid some Redken salon clips along my crown. “Very K-pop,” she said approvingly. “But everyone is using them because everyone is doing the regrowth thing.” Rivka called the tiny hair clips “the new scrunchie.”

Flyaway sticks and smoothers are experiencing something of a renaissance, too, with in-the-know haircare brands like Briogeo and Chris Appleton introducing their own hair tamers — some packaged like deodorant sticks, others in mascara-wanded tubes — to tame stick-up strands in sleeker ‘dos. On Dec. 29, Ceremonia will release Pequi Flyaway Gel, an $18 formula with pequi oil and açaí extract that founder Babba Rivera “personally found a need” to create because of her own hair’s compliance issues. (She said she knew the formula was correct when someone asked her on the subway what was in her hair!)

These flyaway formulas take time to develop, test, execute and package. But if “growth stage hair” becomes its own beauty term — and if Hers minoxidil gummies keep selling out, that’s the bet — then they might be a worthy investment for a haircare brand portfolio.

As for everyone else? The clips are cute and easy. Mock up one with your logo and see if it sticks.

What else is new …

Skincare

Congrats to Dune Suncare, which got a minority investment from the outdoor retailer REI on Dec. 5. Dune was founded by surf lovers Mei Kwok and Emily Doyle and began popping up in local Montauk surf shops in 2024. The partnership helps REI with two big factors — authenticity and female visibility — but obviously it helps Dune a little more, because: cash.

Calabasas is coming for your treadmill. Technogym released a series of “Sand Stone” workout machines on Dec. 8 made with natural mica and 30 percent recycled materials, along with natural beech and ash wood accents. For those obsessed with the “clean” desert aesthetic of the Kardashian empire, this is a flex.

Dewscreen is a hydrating primer with SPF 50 and a glowy finish. It’s Supergoop’s first entrant into the “grippy primer” category and hit shelves on Dec. 8. And speaking of sticky face balm, Maybelline used its own sticky formula to paste its New York City ads. (They read, “This poster was pasted up with Grippy Serum Primer” in big pink bubble letters.) Smart and funny.

Saltair is back to its mile-a-minute debuts. On Dec. 9, the brand from influencer Iskra Lawrence introduced its Driftwood scent in a body oil, plus a hair and body mist. Both have bergamot, sage and a “driftwood” accord.

Matcha supremacy continues. On Dec. 9, Diana Madison Beauty launched Matcha Eye Collagen Gel Patches. Of course they are green.

Pharrell Williams’ Humanrace launched a partnership with Lore Bathing Club, the buzzy New York bodycare center that has Humanrace products “in residence” for the month.

Honey, I shrunk the skincare! Mikayla Noguiera’s POV Beauty made minis of its five best-selling products — Amp It, Drench It, Drip It, Whip It and Glaze It — on Dec. 9 and packed them into an $80 bundle for the glow-curious among us.

Eight Saints introduced Tide & True, a peptide eye serum, on Dec. 10. It has a hyaluronic acid, reishi mushroom and MSM formula, all packed in a fat tube with a little rollerball tip.

On Dec. 10, Stripes Beauty added Rich & Tight Body Butter, a $68 tub of thick cream that’s described as “wrapping yourself in a blanket of suede and soft musk.” (I prefer my Lola x Aviator Nation blanket, but okay?)

Urban Decay is the proud parent of Tube Job, a mascara in five shades including black, dark brown, reddish brown, taupe and bleach blonde. (Let’s see how this goes.) Tube Job arrived on Dec. 10 as part of Urban Decay’s first-ever TikTok Shop. It’ll be in retail stores by Dec. 22.

Dove is bringing back its collaboration with Crumbl, the viral bakery funded by TSG Consumer Partners. (They also own Phlur.) New “flavours” of soap include Tres Leches, Confetti Cake and Strawberry Crumb Cake. The line hits shelves on Dec. 10 with the tagline “your skin deserves seconds,” which is cute.

Makeup

If you still haven’t recovered from the loss of Marc Jacobs Beauty’s Highliner gel pencils, check out TikTok Shop. On Dec. 4, it began selling Fenty Beauty’s Fine Linez, a waterproof gel pencil in electric blue, deep brown and an onyx shade called “Cuz I’m Black,” which is pretty great. They’re sold in a bundle with mascara for $26 before the full line of eye pencils drops in early January. Yes, I’ll remind you then.

Simihaze Beauty has expanded into India. The line by California-based, Dubai-born twin influencers Sama and Haya Khadra began selling through Chennai, Bangalore and Kurla this month.

One/Size has a Brown Sugar version of its On Til Dawn Waterproof Glitter Setting Spray hitting shelves on Dec. 7. It’s a Sephora exclusive and has a very “toasted marshmallow” kind of glaze.

More shine spray: After Sydney Sweeney wore Eva NYC’s silver glitter body spritz to the Met Gala, demand shot up. On Dec. 9, the brand introduced a gold version for $15. Whether Sweeney still has the consumer sway she did even six months ago is an urgent question, though even those quick to pounce on the box office anemia of her new film Christy shouldn’t be too cocky. Girls buy a lot more cosmetics than movie tickets, and they buy them more often.

On Dec. 9, Pat McGrath Labs re-released its Xtreme Black Matte Velvet liquid liner. I don’t know, guys, between this and the Gap cat eye, it seems like we’re about to get a Lauren Conrad makeup revival …

Tarte’s Blush & Glow Duo hit shelves on Dec. 10. It’s a 2-in-one powder and cream compact that lets you choose whether to go matte or satin with your blush finish, and costs $38. More releases: Maracuja lip liner with peptides plus a Maracuja lip gloss with a brush applicator, so if you’re a Y2K babe missing Stila Lip Glaze, well … now you know.

YSL Beauty released a partnership with the psychotherapist Dr. Sara Kurubic for their “Abuse Is Not Love” initiative, which aims to highlight domestic and gender-based violence. Debuting on Dec. 11, the campaign includes a report of statistics, warning signs, and next steps for those in distress.

Beauty Creations added 18 shades to its Riding Solo eyeshadow palette series, including shimmer-infused jewel tones like magenta and teal, neutrals and metallics. The magnetic, stackable compacts are $6 each.

Vaquera’s new Nike collaboration doesn’t include makeup, except it sort of does. The maverick fashion brand covered The Air Max Dn8 sneakers in a red lipstick kiss print that designer Patric DiCaprio calls “playful and romantic … fashion fan fiction.” The actual shade is pretty close to the candy red shade that makeup artist Daniel Sällström used on Vaquera’s models in September.

Bakuchiol has moved into lip care. On Dec. 12, Patrick Ta Beauty debuted its new Major Moisture balms in five neutral shades — well, four along with a clear — for $25 each. The formula includes peptides and bakuchiol, often called “nature’s retinol,” and the marketing campaign has the glosses stuck into belt loops and through a stack of gold rings, as if the makeup itself is an accessory.

Meanwhile, Selena Gomez is launching Rare Beauty’s first lip butter balm, Find Comfort, on Dec. 13. It comes in four shades and doubles as an overnight mask, which is interesting — we’re taught to take off all colour cosmetics before bed, but now one is explicitly saying we can wear it to bed.

Haircare

Amika hit Ulta on Dec. 9 with 49 items, including its best-selling Perk Up dry shampoo in regular and travel sizes.

Over at Sephora, Kenra Professional entered its online stores on Dec. 9 with 55 items, including its Volume Spray 25. (The brand claims it sells one can every six seconds. Math is amazing!)

It’s a Carrie Bradshaw Christmas. On Dec. 8, Alix Earle debuted “Soft Angel Blonde,” a hair colour by colourist Jacob Schwartz and Schwarzkopf Professional including Igora Vario dye and gloss … and leaving about a full inch of dark roots at the crown.

Fragrance

Anthropologie welcomed Hotel Lobby candles on Dec. 5 with exclusive home fragrances Mahjong and Needlepoint, which claims to have notes of “lipstick” and “the soft whisper of a powder compact.” If you’d rather smell like your favourite hair stuff instead of makeup, Moroccanoil just infused its signature fragrance in an Apotheke candle for $30.

Tom Ford Beauty is gonna Fig-ure it out. On Dec. 6, the brand debuted Figue Érotique, an amber fragrance with bergamot, ylang ylang and an exclusive Kadota fig accord. The $405 bottle has a deep purple-red cast, as if it’s already kind of drunk. Fabulous (and $405).

It’s kind of amazing there isn’t more tarot imagery in fragrances. Melanie Martinez is wading into the theme with a Debut Collection Set of four fragrances based on the minor arcana suites, including Air of Clarity (swords), Earthy Abundance (pentacles, but they’ve recast it as “coins” because … satanic panic?), Fiery Passion (wands), and Water of Intuition (cups). They hit shelves on Dec. 9.

Florals for shoes? Groundbreaking. On Dec. 9, Carolina Herrera unveiled Good Girl Jasmine, a fragrance spinoff that adds a giant white blossom to the brand’s spike heel bottle. Karlie Kloss remains the face of the brand, which has emerged as a “style safe space” for both conservative and liberal shoppers and their daughters, who have helped make Good Girl the number one fragrance in the world.

Ouai wants to get out of here. On Dec. 9, Jen Atkin’s flagship brand dropped two hair and body mists — Ibiza and Santorini — inspired by the deep wish to take a full December vacation. Ibiza is more gourmand-forward with vanilla, rum and cinnamon, while Santorini blends citrus with honeysuckle, musk and amber. Both are $28.

Welcome to the world, Fumum! On Dec. 9, the brand by video artist Damoon Parsa and PR director Meghan O’Donnell debuted with its first six fragrances, which retail for $55 each and come in shiny tubes with space-bubble lettering. There were originally 12 scents in the collection, but after feedback and real talk from friends, the couple scaled back their launch to focus on the ones that others liked — a nice reprieve from the “go with your gut at all costs” approach that makes many entrepreneurs stumble.

Billie’s getting bigger! On Dec. 11, Eilish Fragrances hit Sephora.com after years of sticking with Ulta Beauty and its Target outposts. Both the original fragrance and its sequel — functionally titled Eilish No. 2 — will be available.

After Aritzia sold out of its Salt & Stone collection in October, the brands realised they could go even bigger. Starting Dec. 11, that includes a restock of the Lily & Yuzu body wash, deodorant and body mist, plus a corresponding scented candle exclusive to the stores.

And finally…

As people scramble to spend their healthcare deductibles before year’s end, skin gizmo companies are bragging that their face gadgets are “HSA eligible.” That means FlexBeam’s $450 portable red light beam and Dr. Dennis Gross’s $450 robo-mask could count as healthcare, at least with a gentle note from your dermatologist. Ditto the Robb Report’s $200,000 custom red light therapy chamber, which was created by Ammortal as part of its holiday gift catalogue and billed as a “five-in-one wellness device” for skincare, muscle recovery, and stress relief. Let’s see if we can book a session on ZocDoc.

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