Estée Lauder Raises FY27 Outlook as Fragrance Sales Jump 20%

Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) raised its fiscal 2027 outlook to 4–5.5% organic sales growth, up from a prior 3–5%, after net sales climbed 7% to US$3.7bn in fiscal Q1 2027. Fragrance did the heavy lifting: organic sales across the portfolio grew 20% during the quarter.

The company, which owns MAC Cosmetics, Jo Malone London, Clinique and Tom Ford Beauty, disclosed the results in a financial webcast on 2 November. CEO Stéphane de La Faverie said ELC's fragrance retail sales in Western Europe outpaced the wider industry by four times, and that the company feels "very good about the long-term opportunities in fragrances."

What's driving the numbers?

The fragrance surge sits squarely in the prestige tier. Le Labo and Kilian Paris both posted double-digit sales growth, with Kilian Paris boosted by The Cocktails collection, which launched in August.

Skin care, the category most relevant to Derm Field readers, grew 4% organically to $1,651m. La Mer's innovation carried part of that — notably the new The Concentrate Serum — but the standout was Deciem's The Ordinary. Two specific products did the work: Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner and the newly launched Lacto-PDRN 4% + B9 Eye Cream. Yes, PDRN has now crossed from clinic-only injectable territory into a mass-priced eye cream on the open shelf. That's a signal worth watching for anyone tracking where actives migrate next.

Make-up rose 1%, its second consecutive quarter of organic growth. MAC Cosmetics and Tom Ford were both up double digits, while the namesake Estée Lauder brand declined.

A company statement put the decline plainly: "Estée Lauder net sales declined, reflecting lower net sales in the face subcategory, including the timing of fiscal 2027 new product launches, partially offset by incremental sales from the next-generation of Double Wear Stay-in-Place Longwear Matte Foundation that launched in the second half of fiscal 2026."

Hair care was flat. The Ordinary's growth in the category was offset by a decline at salon-first brand Aveda.

What does this change for practitioners?

For dermatologists and aestheticians, the read-through is about the consumer active landscape. When an entry-prestige brand sells a 7% glycolic toner and a 4% PDRN eye cream at volume — and a parent company reports that brand "gaining in skin care, in volume and in value" — patients are arriving with stronger home regimens than ever. De La Faverie confirmed exactly that: "On a brand like The Ordinary, we are gaining in skin care, in volume and in value."

MAC's channel performance matters too. US sales on TikTok Shop have doubled since the brand's launch on the platform. That's where the skincare-curious consumer is browsing, and where ingredient claims circulate fastest — often ahead of clinical nuance.

'Beauty Reimagined' and the entry-prestige playbook

The turnaround behind these numbers is "Beauty Reimagined," the strategy de La Faverie launched to restore sales growth and rebuild profit margins in a fast-moving market. He said its impact is "becoming increasingly evident across our business" and that ELC has "moved beyond restoring growth," adding he is "very confident that the beauty category is remaining a very strong category in consumer goods in general."

The next phase is replication. ELC wants to export the playbook from its entry-prestige winners — MAC and The Ordinary — across the portfolio. "There is a lot of demand, a lot of growth at the entry of prestige, using this playbook to apply it to every single [one] of our other brands, [whether] it is on Bobbi Brown [Cosmetics] or on Clinique, on Estée Lauder, to really make sure that we are bringing the entire portfolio from volume to volume plus value going forward," de La Faverie said.

ELC also named Rachele Testa Schaefers as Executive Director, Global Communications, Make-up Brands, tasked to "create moments that drive conversation" and "relevance."

Expect the PDRN eye cream and the glycolic toner to keep moving volume in Q2 — and expect patients to ask about both by name.