Supplements and health are popular Christmas gifts

Santa might bring you some supplements this year.

Along with typical holiday wishlist items like clothing, perfume, and gadgets, the wellness category is poised to gain traction this shopping season and beyond, especially as retailers are trending toward it. ulta beauty and target Long before you start making New Year’s resolutions, free up some space on your shelves.

Beauty is always a top-performing holiday category. According to market research group Circana, November and December combined accounted for about 25% of annual spending on luxury beauty products, which includes brands typically sold in specialty beauty stores and department stores. According to Circana’s annual survey, Christmas shoppers say they plan to spend an average of $247 on beauty products when purchasing gifts this year, making it the fourth-highest spending category for the holiday.

However, the assortment in the beauty category has become more extensive with the addition of more health and wellness-focused items, including products that promise to improve nutrition, hydration and sleep.

Larissa Jensen, global beauty industry advisor at Circana, said wellness has gained traction since the coronavirus pandemic as consumers prioritize self-care and feeling good “from the inside out.”

She said health-related products that are usually relegated to drugstore shelves are gaining traction, such as teeth whitening kits, vitamins, body deodorants and eye drops. Some products are now offered in more attractive packaging, gaining endorsements from influencers and celebrities, or moving into the beauty aisle as retailers seize the opportunity to merge beauty and health to become a one-stop shop.

Ulta Beauty, in particular, has created more space in its stores for wellness. The specialty retailer, which has more than 1,450 stores nationwide, has always carried several individual items related to wellness and “beauty from within,” said Laura Velez, vice president of wellness.

But as demand increased after the pandemic, Ulta began opening in-store wellness shops in 2021, devoting about 4 to 8 feet of shelf space to products such as probiotic gummies, sleep masks and aromatherapy oils. The company announced in August that it would expand the size of these wellness shops to up to 45 feet in about a third of its stores. Velez said the company has added nearly 30 new wellness brands to its stores, bringing the total to about 100 brands.

He said customers buying wellness products span a wide range of ages, but Ulta is seeing growth particularly among millennial shoppers and consumers with household incomes above $100,000. She said there is more interest in innovation, especially as customers seek solutions for important life stages that brands have traditionally overlooked, such as peri-pregnancy and menopausal needs.

This year, Ulta will carry several gift sets of wellness items, including an essential oil advent calendar from Sage Natural Wellness and a beauty sleep gift set from Kourtney Kardashian’s vitamin brand REM, she said. But she said she expects wellness to become a bigger part of holidays in the future as the category grows.

“It’s the perfect combination of being able to give others the gift of relaxation during the holiday season in a very noble way that frankly hasn’t existed on the market before,” she said.

One of the brands in Ulta’s Wellness Shop is Neom Wellbeing, a UK-based company that sells home fragrances and body care items. Neom sells online through Amazon and its website, with many top sellers focused on improving sleep.

Neom’s general manager for the U.S., Amanda Kahn, said the company’s early sellers this holiday season were fillers under $20. She says wellness items that are also practical are appealing as shoppers look for value due to inflation.

“This feels very gift-friendly while also offering benefits that are available to everyone,” she said.

Bath & Body WorksBest known for its scented soaps, candles, and lotions, the company also launches more wellness-focused items. For example, earlier this month, the company launched a new wellness fragrance collection called Water Winter Mint, which combines peppermint and alpine water scents with ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and shea butter.

Christy Lewis, the company’s senior vice president of merchandising, said more customers are turning to mall staples for body care products and gifts that uplift their mood and address health-related issues such as dry skin and trouble falling asleep.

Bath & Body Works plans to continue expanding its aromatherapy line and ingredient-driven products, she said. We have developed aromatherapy body products using natural essential oils and launched a holiday collection with scents of eucalyptus pine and vanilla nutmeg.

“We’re seeing, especially in November and December, that consumers are not only actually buying it for themselves, but they’re also buying it as a gift for the holidays because who doesn’t want stress relief or sleep,” she said.

Nutrition and health are also trending categories at Target, Chief Commercial Officer Rick Gomez said during a tour of the store in the Minneapolis area in October. He said wellness cuts across many of the categories Target sells, including private label Joylab, which offers workout gear in bright colors and floral prints, Khloe Kardashian’s cloud protein popcorn, beauty kits and skin masks.

Some of those items are also suitable as gifts, he said. Gomez said she bought the protein powder for her nephew as a gift.

Wellness could further increase Target’s square footage next year, he added. Gomez said this is one of the ideas Target is considering as its contract with Ulta Beauty ends in August and hundreds of branded beauty stores close.

Grüns are one of the wellness items on the shelves at Target. Superfood Green Gummies are a healthier version of adult fruit snacks, but with a nutritional value similar to green powder, said founder and CEO Chad Janis. Its name is inspired by the German word “grün”, meaning green.

retailers, including Walmart; Sprout Farmers Market and Sam’s Club sells the gummies and has expanded to other product lines for children and immune support since its founding in 2023.

Sales of vitamins and supplements tend to spike around the New Year, and Janis said he expects the company’s gummies to become gifts and stocking stuffers. They sell holiday-themed items such as Grinch-inspired Sour Punch flavors and holiday-themed Target Packs.

Walmart also carries some wellness items for the holidays, as Millennial and Gen Z shoppers are looking for self-care and wellness items year-round. Examples include vitamin maker Olly’s body wash gift set and Vallière’s vitamin patches, which look like stickers or temporary tattoos.

Beyond the beauty aisle, retailers are leaning into wellness as a gift category. best buywhich sells the Oura ring and demos a health-tracking wearable. kohlswe carry items such as massage guns and portable ice baths.

Circana’s Jensen said there could also be an increased focus on wellness this holiday season, with shoppers buying gifts for friends and family while also buying items for themselves.

“I’ll give you a little ornament with a lip gloss on it, and I’ll give you a teeth-whitening product,” she said.

But Jensen said he expects wellness to become more prominent on holiday wish lists in the coming years because of its high price point and wide acceptance. She compared it to anti-aging skin care products and gift sets.

She said it was once considered taboo, but now it’s a sought-after item.