Dietary supplement brands are increasingly entering the retail beauty space, and Ulta Beauty is leading the charge. With recent in-store and online launches from Nutrafol, ARMRA and Ritual, the retailer is demonstrably deepening its commitment to the “beauty-from-within” category.
This shift comes as data from Mintel and BEAUTYSTREAMS indicate strong growth in the global supplement and nutricosmetics markets, driven in part by rising interest in ingestible products for skin, hair and holistic health. Together, these developments underscore how beauty retailers are evolving into wellness destinations and why stakeholders in the supplement industry are capitalizing on this opportunity.
How consumer wellness trends are fueling beauty retail expansion
According to Mintel data provided to NutraIngredients-USA, 69% of U.S. consumers who take vitamins, minerals and supplements (VMS) for beauty-specific purposes do so regularly to enhance their appearance. Additionally, 34% of regular VMS users cite “beauty health,” such as skin and hair wellness, as a core motivator.
Among female VMS users, that figure rises to 42%, compared to 26% for men, and these preferences are helping to reshape the landscape of supplement use and retail placement.
The broader VMS category reflects this upward trend in consumer interest. Mintel estimates valued the U.S. VMS market at $37.4 billion in 2024 and projects it will grow to $41.1 billion by 2029, driven in part by beauty-linked motivations and the continued blending of wellness and personal care routines.
BEAUTYSTREAMS also noted this momentum at a global level.
“The global nutritional supplements market size was valued at $481.28 billion in 2024 and is projected to rise from $510.40 billion in 2025 to $816.57 billion by 2033,” Eleonora Mazzilli, trend localization & business development director for North America at BEAUTYSTREAMS, told NI, citing Straits Research.
She added that the nutricosmetics segment alone is forecast to grow from $7.78 billion in 2025 to over $13 billion by 2032.
While online platforms, pharmacies and grocery retailers still dominate distribution, “beauty stores are quickly becoming a key retail platform for ingestible beauty, particularly among younger, wellness-conscious consumers,” she said.
She also emphasized that this shift is being driven by consumers’ desire for personalized, lifestyle-oriented solutions.
“Supplements are evolving from general health products into targeted, beauty-driven tools that support both appearance and inner well-being and are now being incorporated into skin care, hair care and scalp care routines, often as part of a more holistic approach,” she said.
According to Mazzilli, products that address concerns such as skin radiance, scalp microbiome balance, healthy aging and stress management are especially well-suited to beauty retail environments, which prioritize curated, sensorial experiences.
“The shift toward beauty and wellness integration, combined with the sensory appeal of new formats and the science-backed promise of targeted outcomes, is helping make beauty retailers a natural home for supplements,” she added.
A closer look: Nutrafol, ARMRA and Ritual launch at Ulta Beauty
A series of recent brand launches at Ulta Beauty exemplify this shift. Dermatologist-recommended hair growth supplement brand Nutrafol, for example, will roll out in select stores on Aug. 3, following an online launch earlier this month.
“We’re thrilled to bring Nutrafol to Ulta Beauty shelves, empowering customers to take action on their hair goals with clinically backed formulas and real education,” Angela Hildebrand, chief commercial officer at Nutrafol, told NI.
“Ulta Beauty is the right fit for Nutrafol because of its deep commitment to education, accessibility and in-store experience, [as] its environment allows us to introduce our science-backed approach to hair wellness in a way that feels both approachable and trusted.”
The brand’s launch includes best-selling products such as Nutrafol Women, Nutrafol Postpartum, alongside topical offerings like Nutrafol Hair Serum and Shampoo.
Another major entrant is ARMRA, a physician-founded brand of bovine colostrum supplements. As confirmed in the company’s press release, ARMRA’s nationwide retail launch, which took place earlier this month, included its ingestibles at all 1,400 Ulta Beauty locations and online.
The brand, which was previously DTC-focused, is now positioned in The Wellness Shop, a curated space within Ulta dedicated to holistic well-being.
“ARMRA has always been about rewriting the rules by returning to nature’s original source code,” said Dr. Sarah Rahal, CEO and founder of ARMRA, in a media statement. “Bringing ARMRA into Ulta Beauty’s wellness assortment opens the door for more people to reclaim their inherent brilliance, not just on the surface but woven through every cell.”
Rounding out the recent launches is Ritual, which joined Ulta Beauty’s wellness assortment earlier this summer, and its entrance into the beauty retail market underscored the increasing demand for ingestibles with traceable, science-backed ingredients that offer both beauty and health benefits.
With robust consumer interest and continued retail investment, the push from supplement brands into the beauty space shows no signs of slowing, offering new growth opportunities within a traditionally cosmetic-driven marketplace.
