Vitamin C Searches Up 35X, Men's Skincare Growing 1.3X: What Beautyverse reveals about India’s beauty shift

There was a time when beauty shopping meant walking up to a counter, testing a lipstick on the back of your hand, asking for a shade recommendation, and hoping the product looked just as good when you got home. This world has not disappeared but has simply moved into a more layered, more social, and far more performative space.
 

Today, a beauty purchase in India may begin with a creator’s morning routine, a celebrity’s vanity reveal, a friend’s reel, a dermatologist-led explainer, or a trend that travels from Seoul, Paris or Dubai to a young shopper’s phone in Jaipur, Kochi, Indore or Guwahati. Beauty is a conversation, backed by the commerce of influence.
 

Amazon India’s Beautyverse 2026, its third and biggest edition yet, captured this shift at scale. The event brought together over 2,500 attendees, more than 1,500 creators, 70-plus brands, over 10 expert-led workshops, and celebrities including Ananya Panday, Shilpa Shetty, Sonakshi Sinha, Karisma Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez and Mira Kapoor. But beyond the glamour, the event pointed to a larger change in how India now discovers, trusts and buys beauty. Brand founders and leaders such as Stuti Kothari of WishCare, Varun Alagh of The Derma Co., ITC’s Sanjay Srinivas, and HUL’s Pratik Ved.

“Beauty is sensorial and discovery-driven,” Siddharth Bhagat, Director – Beauty, Amazon India tells Business Today. “Customers want to touch, test, and learn from experts and creators.” He explained why beauty events are becoming more than brand showcases and are turning into cultural spaces, where shoppers want to feel part of a trend before they buy into it.
 

The strongest sign of this shift is the growing role of creators. They are the new interpreters of beauty. From decoding ingredients, demonstrating textures, normalising routines, and making products feel less intimidating, for younger shoppers especially, a creator’s recommendation often sits somewhere between a friend’s advice and a beauty editor’s verdict. Thus, at Beautyverse, creators were the nucleus of the shopping journey.
 

Bhagat says celebrity brands led by celebrities and creators are becoming increasingly important because “they bring authenticity, relatability and strong community engagement”. But he adds an important caveat that influence works best “when backed by strong product performance and credibility”. In other words, beauty culture may be powered by social media, but repeat purchases still depend on whether the serum works, the lipstick lasts, or the fragrance feels worth the price.
 

The Indian beauty shopper has also become more informed. Ingredient-led beauty is no longer a niche behaviour. Searches for Vitamin C-linked products on Amazon India have surged 35X year-on-year, while Retinol searches are up 8X. Bhagat says customers are “engaging more deeply with ingredients, formats and product education both on-ground and online”. This marks a move from impulse-led beauty to routine-led beauty.
 

Customers are now building full routines rather than buying one-off products, be it in skincare, haircare or grooming.  Active skincare, science-backed beauty, hair growth serums and men’s skincare are all gaining momentum. Men’s skincare alone has grown 1.3X year-on-year, led by cleansers, moisturisers and serums. Searches such as “face wash for men” and “face serum for men” have grown 4X year-on-year on Amazon India.

Premium beauty is also being rewritten as it is no longer simply a metro indulgence. As per Amazon India's data, premium beauty is growing at around 1.5X year-on-year, and over 50% of this demand now comes from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Bhagat calls this proof that premiumisation is becoming “a nationwide trend, not just a metro-led one”. 
 

When it comes to beauty purchases, impulse alone is not driving customers. They are studying ingredients, comparing formulations, reading reviews, following creator recommendations and looking for products that fit their routines more precisely. “We’re investing in technology to make premium beauty discovery more intuitive and personalised,” says Bhagat. From Virtual Try-On, SkinCare Advisor, Amazon Lens AI and Rufus, Amazon’s beauty tools are designed to help shoppers move through an increasingly crowded beauty landscape with greater ease.
 

Global influences are also shaping this new beauty mood. K-beauty and French pharmacy skincare have nearly doubled year-on-year, while Middle Eastern fragrances are among Amazon India’s fastest-growing premium beauty segments, growing nearly 3X year-on-year. The Indian consumer is experimenting more freely, borrowing from global trends but adapting them to personal routines, budgets and identities.
 

Bhagat describes Beautyverse as “an extension” of digital beauty discovery, not a move away from it. He noted how Beautyverse clearly reflected how Gen Z is shaping discovery, trends and conversations within beauty today. While premiumisation is being driven by multiple cohorts, Gen Z is playing a key role in discovery — engaging deeply with trends, creators and new formats. “Beauty today is no longer a linear journey; it is driven by content, conversation, and continuous discovery,” he adds. 

That may be the clearest description of India’s beauty moment. A lipstick is no longer just a lipstick; it is a shade match, a reel, a review, a routine, a mood and sometimes even a small act of self-expression. Beauty’s purchase process now begins much earlier as these products are being watched, discussed, tested, recommended and desired.