World Data Lab

15/04/2026

Gen Z will spend more on beauty than Gen X did at the same age ($270 vs $205).

But beauty is actually a *smaller* share of their total spending (0.47% vs 0.53%).

The real question for beauty brands isn't who's buying, it's who has the capacity to trade up to luxury, and isn't yet.

661 million affluent consumers drive 95% of global beauty spending. They have up to ~$23.6k in discretionary income. They currently spend just $650 on beauty. That gap is the opportunity.

On April 22, we're breaking down what sits inside it:

→ How to measure consumer potential, not just current spend
→ Where the real international expansion opportunity is — and where it's overestimated, down to the ciry level
→ How the identity of the affluent beauty consumer is shifting through 2030, broken down by generation, ethnicity, and gender

Register here: https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0twK0p0

14/04/2026

Which countries have the most "aging" consumer markets in 2026?

Explore the full dataset on https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0ttrG50

13/04/2026

The average affluent consumer has $23,593 in discretionary spend. A luxury beauty bundle costs $5,420: 8x what they actually spend on beauty.

So who's buying luxury, and why?

The answer changes by gender, age, and nationality - and the next beauty capitals aren't where you think.

We're breaking it all down on April 22. Free webinar. Register here 👇
https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0tqMB-0

10/04/2026

In 2026, just 10 countries account for 65% of total beauty spending worldwide. The US alone represents $142B, more than China ($104B) and nearly six times Italy's $16B market.

The remaining 35% — $222B spread across the rest of the world — is where the next wave of growth is building.

Knowing where beauty dollars are concentrated today is only half the story. Our webinar explores where they're heading next.

📅 Join us: Beauty in the Eyes of the Spender: Decoding the Space between Mass Market and Luxury
👉 Register here: https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0tmXGh0

09/04/2026

What does it take to build one of the most trusted brands in the world?

In this episode of Data Talks, Wolfgang Fengler sits down with Ram Raghavan, a senior leader at Colgate-Palmolive, to explore how a 200+ year-old company continues to innovate, scale globally, and stay deeply connected to consumers.

From selling toothpaste store-to-store in India to leading global strategy, Ram shares the lessons behind a 30-year career—and why purpose, culture, and understanding human behavior are the real drivers of success.

Watch the full episode at https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0tkTzp0, or listen here https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0tkScL0.

In this episode of Data Talks, Wolfgang Fengler speaks with Ram Raghavan, senior leader at Colgate-Palmolive, about what it takes to build a globally trusted brand with purpose at its core.With nearly three decades at Colgate, Ram shares his journ...

08/04/2026

Beauty budgets don't follow a universal aging formula.

In the US, the share of wallet spent on beauty grows with age — from 1.72% at 20 to 1.94% at 60. In India and Japan, it moves in the opposite direction. In Italy, it rises steadily across all age groups.

Same product category. Four different stories.

Our latest research unpacks how beauty spending patterns vary by country, age, and income — and what that means for brands trying to reach the right consumer at the right moment.

Join our webinar: Beauty in the Eyes of the Spender
👉 Register here:https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0thsH90

07/04/2026

About 57% of young Africans are employed, compared with 48% of young people in the rest of the world.

But African countries with high youth employment shares tend to have higher rates of working poverty, suggesting that young people in the region are not earning enough to improve their lives.

Read our latest article on the World Economic Forum, written by Ivy Nyayieka and Samuel Nzaramba:

African countries with high youth employment tend to have higher rates of working poverty, suggesting that young people in the region are not earning enough to improve their lives.

01/04/2026

Most beauty market data tells you what consumers spent. It doesn't tell you what they could spend, or where the real growth is coming from.

We've been modelling the global luxury beauty market by consumer segment, city, generation, ethnicity, and gender.

Joining us April 22 for a free webinar where we break it all down.

Register: https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0t7rSc0

31/03/2026

We're excited to welcome Luis Wenus as an advisor to World Data Lab!

Luis is the Co-Founder & CEO of Nolla Health, building AI-powered personal doctors for everyone — starting with dermatology. Before that, he was one of the first five employees at Worldcoin, where he led global market operations and helped scale to over 2 million users worldwide.

Welcome aboard, Luis!

30/03/2026

Everyone spends on beauty. The interesting question is who has the capacity to trade up to luxury, and whether they're actually doing it.

Affluent consumers are growing globally. Whether that growth is translating into luxury beauty spend — and where — is exactly what our next webinar unpacks.

→ The core middle vs affluent split, and what it means for beauty strategy
→ Where 18 million new affluent consumers will emerge in China alone by 2030
→ How gender, ethnicity, and geography shape who the luxury beauty buyer actually is
→ Which cities are the next bets for beauty expansion

Register here:https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0t3VK00

27/03/2026

Listen to our full podcast with Indermit Gill, Chief Economist of the World Bank Group, here: https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0t1zdP0

26/03/2026

In this episode of Data Talks, Wolfgang Fengler sits down with Indermit Gill, Chief Economist of the World Bank, for a wide-ranging conversation on the forces reshaping the global economy.

From the middle-income trap and India’s growth potential to Europe’s economic model, oil shocks, trade barriers, and the promise of AI, Indermit brings sharp insight to one of the biggest questions of our time: what will define the next era of global development?

Together, they explore why some countries rise while others stall, what today’s global crises mean for growth and inflation, and how better data and new technologies could transform the future of public services in developing economies.

At a moment of deep uncertainty, this episode offers a timely look at the world economy at a turning point.

In this episode of Data Talks, Wolfgang Fengler sits down with Indermit Gill, Chief Economist of the World Bank, for a wide-ranging conversation on the force...