What is fueling the rise of global beauty brands on Myntra?

From MAC to Ouai and Laneige to YSL, international beauty brands are rapidly gaining ground on Myntra, with demand rising fastest from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Over the past two years, the platform has seen international beauty grow at twice the rate of overall online beauty, pointing to a strong shift in shopper preferences.

“Today’s customer is willing to pay for what they believe is great value. It’s aspiration and trust that lead to quality,” said Venu Nair, chief of strategic partnerships and omnichannel of Myntra. “Beauty has become a form of self-care, expression, identity—an opportunity to express yourself. This is something Gen Z is absolutely leading the way in.”

Myntra now has 20 million monthly active users in beauty, with global brands seeing growing traction both in metros and beyond. “Approximately half of international beauty customers are from non-metros today,” Nair said. “In the first quarter, we saw a 54% growth in monthly active users from non-metros for international beauty brands.”

This shift is supported by a curated selection of over 2,900 beauty brands and 150,000 styles, including global names like M.A.C, YSL, Estee Lauder, Clinique, and Paula’s Choice. “There is a set of customers who are specifically searching for international brands. They come in with the intent to buy these products,” Nair shared.

A major growth driver has been skincare. “In the first quarter, we saw 60% year-on-year growth in skincare,” he said. “K-beauty has grown 150% year-on-year, driven by Korean culture and a shift towards preventive skincare—sunscreens, serums, actives, barrier-repair formulas, and clean, science-backed ingredients.”

What’s also working is Myntra’s use of tech to enhance discovery and conversion. Tools like virtual try-on have doubled purchase rates, while skin analyser usage has led to a 60% higher conversion. Personalisation powered by AI ensures that product suggestions reflect each customer’s browsing and purchase history.

Myntra is also betting on speed. Its quick commerce play, M Now, is delivering global beauty brands in 60 minutes in Bengaluru, and recently expanded to Mumbai and Delhi in pilot phases. “Today on M Now, we’ve got brands like MAC, YSL, CeraVe, Prada, and Estee Lauder available within 60 minutes,” said Nair.

The response has been encouraging—a 6.5x spike in perfume sales on Valentine’s Day, and 2.5x growth in new customers. “Perfumes, lipsticks, and kajals are the top-selling products on M Now. Fragrances have become the biggest subcategory, driven by both personal use and gifting.” 

Despite quick commerce in beauty still being in early stages, Nair believes the headroom for growth is significant. “The desire for beauty and international brands is great. Speed is something the customer is demanding—and that’s what we’re catering to.”

The platform’s beauty business is one of its fastest-growing categories. While Nair did not disclose Myntra’s beauty GMV, he said the segment has doubled in scale in the last year. This comes amid increasing competition from Nykaa, Tira, and newer vertical players, but Nair’s outlook is clear: keep focusing on selection, service, and experience.