Emerging Beauty Service Trends in the United States

In cities like New York, time is money. In recent years, numerous businesses have emerged to meet the need for a faster lifestyle and to maximize daily efficiency

This trend has significantly impacted the beauty industry, which plays a particularly relevant role. Over the past decade, beauty and cosmetic services in the United States have experienced consistent growth, becoming deeply integrated into the daily habits of Americans.

The Rise of Beauty Bars in New York City: Dry Bars and Makeup Bars

The philosophy behind these "beauty bars" combines a focus on a single service to achieve specialization with a tendency to simplify procedures, allowing them to be offered at prices lower than the market average.

For example, The Drybar specializes exclusively in blowouts at a standard cost of $40, offering a significant saving compared to the $60 typically charged by traditional American beauty salons.

Among the various trends in the U.S. beauty and cosmetic services sector, makeup bars have also emerged. An interesting case is Pucker, a makeup bar that opened in 2014 in the Soho district of New York.

The idea for Pucker originated from the collaboration between makeup artist Julio Sandino and Hiyam McKelvey. After experiencing Julio's beauty services at a party, Hiyam felt so attractive and beautiful that she decided to find a way to make these incredible makeovers easily accessible in a city like New York, aiming to eliminate the awkwardness often felt when receiving makeup services in a large American department store.

From Problem to Opportunity: At-Home and Office Services

A novelty launched in the latter months of 2014 is Glamsquad, founded by Victoria Eisner after she struggled to secure a beauty appointment in New York on New Year's Eve.

Victoria had managed to organize everything else for the evening through on-demand booking services—from renting a dress via Rent The Runway to arranging transportation with Uber—but couldn't find a service that allowed her to easily and promptly book makeup and hairstyling.

Glamsquad operates very simply. After creating a profile and linking a credit card to the account, users can select the date and time they wish to receive beauty or cosmetic services. Functioning similarly to Uber, the Glamsquad app suggests a stylist who will arrive at the user's home (or office!) with all the necessary materials to perform the requested service.

"People are ordering their food, groceries, transportation, babysitters... all directly from their mobile phones. Why shouldn't they also be able to order beauty or cosmetic services and have a makeup artist come to their home or office?" This question led Alexandra Wilkis Wilson to co-found Glamsquad.