E.l.f. to Exit China Market
SHANGHAI — E.l.f. Cosmetics, the American mass-market beauty brand known for its viral TikTok ads, announced that it will shut down its Tmall and Douyin Flagship Store on March 15 and exit the Chinese market on March 31.
“Since we entered the Chinese market, we have been attuned to the needs of our consumers and are committed to providing every eye, lip, and face with new and trendy makeup products,” the brand wrote in a notice on its Tmall homepage. “Unfortunately, due to global strategy adjustments and other objective factors, we will leave the China market.”
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At the time of the announcement, the brand had around 480,000 followers on Tmall and 48,000 followers on Douyin. Around 30 product listings remained on its Tmall and Douyin shop, selling at a steep discount.
Sales of popular items such as the Nude Rose Gold Eyeshadow Palette and the Baked Highlighter quickly sold out. On Douyin, the brand was still livestreaming a clearance sale on Monday night.
Despite the China market exit, almost all of E.l.f.’s products are sourced and manufactured in China, according to the brand’s financial report for fiscal 2022 published last May.
Consumers can still find many daigous (overseas shoppers who buy luxury goods for mainland Chinese) on Taobao selling the brand’s hit products, including the Power Grip Primer, which was featured in an ad during the Super Bowl featuring Jennifer Coolidge.
E.l.f. entered the China market via Tmall in 2018, before quickly expanding to Douyin and VIP.com.
The company became the latest beauty brand to retreat from the world’s second-largest beauty market amid fierce competition.
According to local media reports, Revlon announced it would be closing its Tmall flagship in mid-March, after re-entering the market two years prior.
Last month, Huda Beauty closed its Tmall flagship, prompting speculation that the brand has plans to leave the China market. Estée Lauder-owned Too Faced also shut down its Tmall flagship last July.
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