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A Who’s Who of TikTok’s Top 10 Indie Makeup Brands by Follower Growth Versus Engagement

A mix of celebrity- and artist-helmed brands, as well as "clean" makeup heavy hitters comprise TikTok's buzziest makeup indies, according to Dash Hudson.

Call it indie agility.

According to data from Dash Hudson, indie makeup brands are outpacing the total beauty industry in terms of engagement rate and follower growth on TikTok, averaging 4.4 percent by engagement and 25.5 percent by year-to-date follower growth.

Beauty overall, by comparison, nets out at 4.1 percent and 7.7 percent by the respective metrics.

It’s no surprise that many of the platform’s heaviest hitters — including Kosas, whose following has grown at a rate of nearly 40 percent this year, and Glossier, which has a 10.2 percent average engagement rate second only to Florence by Mills in indie makeup — are among the flurry of brands which are reportedly up for potential sale this year.

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As previously reported by WWD, Los Angeles-based Kosas has tapped North Point to navigate a sale; Glossier is working with Morgan Stanley; Rare Beauty, which ranks number-five by TikTok engagement, with Goldman Sachs and Raymond James, and Merit — which has seen 89.7 percent growth in its TikTok following this year — is also working with Goldman Sachs.

Makeup by Mario, which is the ninth-biggest indie by engagement, told WWD last month that it tapped investment bank J.P. Morgan to consider its options. The brand is projected by industry sources to be netting between $150 million to $200 million in annual sales.

There are also more nascent indies making a splash on TikTok: Violette_FR, whose founder Violette Serrat often takes to the platform to share French beauty tips — most recently how to “style” a red lip —is seeing rapid follower growth, as is Danessa Myricks Beauty and Patrick Ta Beauty.

Hailey Bieber’s Rhode also continues to make waves in the category.

“[Rhode] is a brand we’ve seen grow insanely fast through the last year,” said Quinn Yung, customer insights manager at Dash Hudson. The brand has a high TikTok engagement rate of 8.4 percent, with its top video this year — a behind-the-scenes compilation of Bieber’s shoot for Rhode’s summer lip tint shades — raking in more than 6.6 million views and 997,000 likes.

Like other top-performing celebrity brands, including Millie Bobbi Brown’s Florence by Mills, Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty and Ariana Grande’s R.e.m. Beauty, Rhode excels in leveraging a diverse network of retained creators, while harnessing the star power of its founder.

“These brands are bringing those parasocial relationships — which offer a very simple way for consumers to feel connected, even though they may be far apart — to their brand in a very authentic way,” said Jillian Robinson, Dash Hudson’s director of global communications and events. Florence by Mills, in particular, has long been engaged in the nano-influencer community, which further plays to this strength.

Other brands benefit from a quickness to jump on TikTok trends, including those that require a certain degree of commitment to the bit, like jumping into a body of water fully clothed (Summer Fridays), or preparing a makeshift “meal” of lip glosses after spending too much money on Prime Day (The Lip Bar).

“A lot of these brands have more creative freedom, and require less rounds of approval for content — this definitely pays off and can be seen in their growth,” Yung said.

The top 10 makeup indies on TikTok by average engagement rate in 2024, per Dash Hudson, are:

1. Florence by Mills

Florence by Mills Frosty Night Liquid Eyeshadow
Florence by Mills Frosty Night Liquid Eyeshadow courtesy

2. Glossier

  • Average engagement rate: 10.4 percent
  • Founder: Emily Weiss
  • Founded: 2014
Glossier Lip Line
Glossier Lip Line courtesy

3. R.e.m. Beauty

  • Average engagement rate: 10.2 percent
  • Founder: Ariana Grande
  • Founded: 2021
R.e.m. Beauty Essential Drip Glossy Balm
R.e.m. Beauty Essential Drip Glossy Balm courtesy

4. Rhode

  • Average engagement rate: 8.4 percent
  • Founder: Hailey Bieber
  • Founded: 2022
Rhode Pocket Blush
Rhode Pocket Blush courtesy

5. Rare Beauty

  • Average engagement rate: 7 percent
  • Founder: Selena Gomez
  • Founded: 2019
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush courtesy

6. Summer Fridays

  • Average engagement rate: 7.6 percent
  • Founders: Marianna Hewitt and Lauren Ireland
  • Founded: 2018
Summer Fridays Dream Lip Oil
Summer Fridays Dream Lip Oil courtesy

7. The Lip Bar

  • Average engagement rate: 6.4 percent
  • Founder: Melissa Butler
  • Founded: 2012
The Lip Bar The Prototype Botanical Lip Oil
The Lip Bar The Prototype Botanical Lip Oil courtesy

8. Patrick Ta

  • Average engagement rate: 6.3 percent
  • Founder: Patrick Ta
  • Founded: 2019
Patrick Ta Major Glow Highlighter Duo
Patrick Ta Major Glow Highlighter Duo courtesy

9. Makeup by Mario

  • Average engagement rate: 5.7 percent
  • Founder: Mario Dedivanovic
  • Founded: 2020
Makeup by Mario SoftSculpt Bronzing & Shaping Serum
Makeup by Mario SoftSculpt Bronzing & Shaping Serum courtesy

10. Danessa Myricks Beauty

  • Average engagement rate: 5.6 percent
  • Founder: Danessa Myricks
  • Founded: 2015
Danessa Myricks Lowlighter Soft Glow Highlighter
Danessa Myricks Beauty Lowlighter Soft Glow Highlighter courtesy

The top 10 makeup indies on TikTok by follower growth in 2024 are:

1. Rhode

  • Following growth rate: +136.1 percent
  • Follower count: 891,700
  • Founder: Hailey Bieber
  • Founded: 2022
Rhode Pocket Blush
Rhode Pocket Blush courtesy

2. Merit

  • Following growth rate: +87.9 percent
  • Follower count: 179,900
  • Founder: Katherine Power
  • Founded: 2021
Merit Signature Lip
Merit Signature Lip courtesy

3. Summer Fridays

  • Following growth rate: +85.4 percent
  • Follower count: 341,000
  • Founders: Marianna Hewitt and Lauren Ireland
  • Founded: 2018
Summer Fridays Dream Lip Oil
Summer Fridays Dream Lip Oil courtesy

4. Violette_FR

  • Following growth rate: +55.6 percent
  • Follower count: 102,100
  • Founder: Violette Serrat
  • Founded: 2021
Violette_FR Bisou Balm
Violette_FR Bisou Balm courtesy

5. Patrick Ta Beauty

  • Following growth rate: +49.5 percent
  • Follower count: 297,000
  • Founder: Patrick Ta
  • Founded: 2019
Patrick Ta Major Glow Highlighter Duo
Patrick Ta Beauty Major Glow Highlighter Duo courtesy

6. Tower 28 Beauty

  • Following growth rate: +46.6 percent
  • Follower count: 239,100
  • Founder: Amy Liu
  • Founded: 2017
Tower 28 Beauty MakeWaves Lengthening + Volumizing Mascara

7. Refy Beauty

  • Following growth rate: +42.1 percent
  • Follower count: 231,200
  • Founders: Jessica Hunt and Jenna Meek
  • Founded: 2022
Refy Face Primer Blur and Hydrate

8. Kosas

  • Following growth rate: +39.9 percent
  • Follower count: 276,100
  • Founder: Sheena Zadeh
  • Founded: 2015
Kosas Blush is Life
Kosas Blush is Life courtesy

9. One/Size

  • Following growth rate: +35.7 percent
  • Follower count: 405,600
  • Founder: Patrick Starr
  • Founded: 2020
One/Size Ultimate Blurring Setting Powder
One/Size Ultimate Blurring Setting Powder courtesy

10. Westman Atelier

  • Following growth rate: +33.6 percent
  • Follower count: 55,700
  • Founders: Gucci Westman and David Neville
  • Founded: 2018
Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks Lip + Cream Blush Stick
Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks Lip + Cream Blush Stick courtesy

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