The 10 best beauty collaborations of 2024 from Elf, Tan-Luxe and more

July 17, 2024

Beauty collaborations are currently experiencing a major moment.

With more diverse players – from Elf Beauty to Augustinus Bader – investing in the space, co-branded beauty products are seeing record levels of sales for brands looking to capitalize on the culture and create a buzz.

There are seemingly unusual collaborations, such as Elf’s recent gothic-punk makeup collection with fast-growing bottled water maker Liquid Death, or the numerous “Bridgerton” collaborations ahead of the show’s third season premiere in May from brands like Lush, Pat McGrath Labs and Beekman 1802.

“Brands often see these collaborations as a way to engage existing fan bases,” says Alex Rawitz, head of research and opinion at CreatorIQ. He adds that such limited-edition collections often include eye-catching packaging and multiple products. “They’re a chance to gain traction in different product categories… and (they) are one of the most effective ways for a brand to generate buzz on social media.”

Countless pop culture institutions, from TV shows to current celebrities, can serve as mutually beneficial collaboration partners. Tan-Luxe has chosen the latter with its new Paris Hilton collection, which was presented and co-developed by the celebrity herself and has generated $3 million in earned media value since its launch in April, ranking it first in beauty collaborations at EMV this year. Hot brands outside of beauty—a water company popular with podcast hosts, for example—can also reap significant rewards.

For example, 68 percent of consumers who purchased Elf’s Liquid Death collaboration were first-time Elf buyers, the brand reported. The collection also sold out within 45 minutes.

“Elf is generally an old hand at these kinds of collaborations, so part of the success of this collaboration is probably due to the brand having the existing infrastructure for this type of thing,” Rawitz said, noting that previous collaborations have been done with Dunkin’, Chipotle and American Eagle.

“It’s not that beauty consumers live exclusively in the beauty silo and don’t have other pop culture interests – there are opportunities for this kind of cross-pollination,” Rawitz said, adding that such collaborations often open doors in influencer marketing as well. “You can generate a lot of natural excitement among creatives who are fans of the pop culture institution you’re working with and who never imagined those two worlds would collide in this way.”

OIive & June turned to author Colleen Hoover—arguably the most talked-about author on TikTok’s niche reading community, or “BookTok”—to create a limited-edition collection of stick-on nails inspired by her viral series “It Ends With Us,” ahead of the August release of the film starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.

With both beauty and books dominating TikTok—the categories even share trends on the platform, as evidenced by January’s “Silent Reviews” trend—there are potential opportunities for “more literary crossover” in beauty collaborations, says Rawitz, also pointing to the success of Balenciaga’s Erewhon smoothie as a possible indicator that there’s an appetite for more fashion-beauty crossover, too.

“I am curious to see whether haute couture will become a little less demanding with its collaborations and try to use the same dynamic that is evident in the beauty (collaborations) sector,” said Rawitz.

EMV’s top 10 beauty collaborations in 2024, according to creatorIQ.