• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, February 8, 2018

Fueled by strong demand for its higher-end products, L’Oréal says its revenue in the fourth quarter climbed 5.5%, higher than observers expected. But sales of hair care in the U.S., where it just launched the new Elvive Hair Care line, are proving “less dynamic.” 

Net profits rose 15.3%, and e-commerce sales climbed 33.6%

Describing the growth of L’Oréal Luxe, which includes Lancôme, Giorgio Armani, Biotherm and Yves Saint Laurent, as “spectacular,” the Paris-based company says it’s also seeing momentum in skincare, both at L'Oréal Paris, which is rolling out its clay masks globally, and also at Garnier, which continues to win over consumers with its Micellar Cleansing Waters line.

Last month, L’Oréal launched Elvive, sold as Elseve in global markets, with a provocative ad campaign starring actress Winona Ryder. “Everyone loves a comeback,” the campaign says. “Damaged hair deserves one too.” This week, it released the second wave of creative, this one starring Camila Cabello, the musician who left girl group Fifth Dimension back in 2016.

L’Oréal, which also sells Garnier shampoos as well as professional products, is duking it out with the likes of Procter & Gamble, which owns Pantene and Head & Shoulders, as well as Unilever, which makes Dove, for the U.S. shampoo market. Mintel reports that overall sales in U.S. haircare have slowed, rising just 2.1% in its most recent report. 

Meanwhile, the NPD Group reports that after four years of softness, skincare is making a comeback for beauty marketers. The Port Washington, N.Y.-based market researcher says sales of prestige beauty products climbed to $17.7 billion in 2017, up 6%. Skincare jumped 9%, and accounted for 45% of the gains, followed by makeup, up 6%m, and fragrance, up 4%.

The gains in skincare led to $5.6 billion in sales, fed by the popularity of masks, which increased 32%; exfoliators, up 12%, and cleansers, up 6%. And while makeup’s growth was slower, it’s still the largest segment, with $8.1 billion in sales.