Trend forecasting company WGSN has unveiled the Beauty Personas 2026 report. The report will examine what brands need to focus on, from business priorities to products, in anticipation of consumers’ demands.

Beauty Personas:

Facts and evidence will drive The Impartialists' beauty choices by consumers seeking performance-driven solutions.

• Buying priorities: these smart, efficient consumers believe in substance over style, unfulfilled by pretty packing or gimmicks. They are looking for the value-added, whether that be multiple functions, superior product performance or longevity. For this persona, quality is found in the safety and efficacy of the formulation.
• Evolution of: Skinimalist, Factivist, Skinics
• Largest generational impact: Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X
• Strongest regional impact: East Asia, US, Western Europe
• STEPIC forecasts: Human-Tech Symbiosis, AI for Good, Designed to Disappear, Long-Term Lifespans
• Big Ideas: Optimised Efficiency, Scaled to fit

The Autonomists are forging their own path and redefining beauty culture to support new voices and demands.

• Buying priorities: The Autonomists support brands that align with their values and take a stance on what they believe in, championing indies who opt out of industry systems to forge new, equitable ones. They are drawn to brands that design for need, taking into account the age and spending spectrums. This persona prefers products that reflect cultural fusions, address underserved needs and facilitate experimentation.
• Evolution of: Skinics, Chameleons, Preservationists
• Largest generational impact: Alphas, Gen Z, Zillennials, Millennials
• Strongest regional impact: All regions, particular focus on NAM, LATAM and APAC
• STEPIC forecasts: Rebellious Resistance, Fresh Perspectives, AI for Good, Bio-Industrial Revolution
• Big Ideas: New Pathways, Optimised Efficiency, Acceleration Point,

The Gleamers are led by intuition and emotion, seeking products and experiences that help them feel better and feel more. They are drawn to ‘glimmers’- moments of joy that feel like a treat - and find comfort in self-care that indulges their need for tactility and rest.

• Buying priorities: The Gleamers yearn for original experiences and products with emotional intensity. They are drawn to those that touch all their senses. They will invest in ‘luxury beautilities’ and products and accessories that uplift, enthral and shock them. They also need comfort and laziness, and make time for therapeutic rest.
• Evolution of: Skintentionals, Chameleons
• Largest generational impact: Zillennials, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers
• Strongest regional impact: NAM, Europe, APAC, India
• STEPIC forecasts: Glimmers, Fresh Perspectives, Old Answers to New Questions, Life-Stage Design, Fluid Ecologies
• Big Ideas: Design for need, Feel Appeal

The Synergists have a symbiotic relationship with tech and nature, and both are essential to their beauty and self-care routines. They embrace AI and bio-design to optimise results and as tools to advance inclusivity and sustainable practices.

• Buying priorities: optimised efficiency and precision personalisation are important purchase drivers, along with inclusivity and sustainable solutions. The Synergists’ beauty and wellness goals focus on longevity and ageing well, and they invest in advanced formulations and empathetic beauty tech that balances their physical and emotional needs. They are intentional about fun as part of self-care, incorporating multisensory experiences and stimulating products into routines.
• Evolution of: Techsperts, Re-gens
• Largest generational impact: Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers
• Strongest regional impact: NAM, Europe, APAC, India
• STEPIC forecasts: Human-Tech Symbiosis, AI for Good, Fluid Ecologies, Multisensory Interfaces, Bio-Industrial Revolution, Fresh Perspectives
• Big Ideas: Optimised Efficiency, Acceleration Point, Feel Appeal

WGSN's proprietary methodology, STEPIC is the lens through which it observes and synthesises the disparate factors that converge to become a trend.

For the full report, visit wgsn.com.