Dive Brief: 

• Sephora is asserting itself as a top skin care destination with a new campaign entitled “Skin Obsessed,” according to details shared with Marketing Dive.
• Key to the campaign are two 30-second spots that are directed by award-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi and tap into the realities faced by consumers, from navigating complex skin care routines to searching for reliable products.
• The campaign, made with creative agency TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, will span connected TV, online video, paid social and streaming audio. The effort arrives as Sephora continues to be a point of growth for parent LVMH, though the beauty retailer has seen some challenges in the U.S. around its e-commerce business. 

Dive Insight:

Sephora is staking its claim in the growing skin care industry with a new campaign playing to the realities of navigating complex routines and endless online advice. The global skin care market is projected to grow from $122.1 billion in 2025 to over $194 billion by 2032. The focus on relatability and approachability is also a signal of how legacy beauty brands like Sephora are attempting to strike a chord with target consumers. 

The “Skin Obsessed” campaign includes two spots, “Security” and “The Hunt.” The first follows a traveler at TSA, who is held up due to an endless supply of skin care products before a Sephora storefront appears to help the traveler put together a carry-on-friendly routine. The second spot sees a woman scrolling through online product reviews while trying to decide on a skin care routine, before Sephora again steps in to do the heavy lifting.

The spots were directed by filmmaker Waititi, who has directed movies including “Thor: Ragnarok” and “Jojo Rabbit” and a number of brand commercials, including recent Super Bowl ads for Homes.com, Mountain Dew and Lay’s. The campaign includes a series of 15- and 30-second spots along with bespoke short-form social assets.

The skin care space has attracted a number of marketers recently. Last fall, E.l.f. Skin, the beauty marketer’s skin care line, launched its largest brand campaign to date, “Divine Skintervention,” starring actor-comedian Megan Stalter (“Hacks”). Prior to that, Dove teamed with Drew Barrymore to combat a social media trend that has seen young girls flock to anti-aging skin care products from brands like Drunk Elephant.

Beyond its recent campaign, Sephora has also been active this year with the premiere of its first international film, “Beauty & Belonging,” focused on highlighting diverse perspectives on beauty, a move that comes as a number of others retreat from diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Last March, the retailer partnered with Latin culture publisher Remezcla on the launch of a new editorial vertical focused on beauty.

Sephora continued to grow in the first quarter of 2025, driven by the success of an exclusive brand curation strategy that has allowed it to align itself with popular product lines like Selena Gomez’ Rare Beauty. However, Sephora’s e-commerce business in the U.S. has tracked less momentum recently, a roadblock attributed in part to Amazon’s aggressive pricing that often matches or beats Sephora’s pricing. Amazon’s revenue was up 10% year over year in Q4 2024 to $187.8 billion.

Despite Sephora’s growth, parent LVMH saw organic revenue decline 3% year over year to $21.9 billion during the first quarter, a decline attributed to double-digit softness in Asia and a 3% decline in the U.S.