L’Oréal Tightens Its Grip on UK Beauty Social Media — But Rimmel London Emerges as the Efficiency Leader

The UK beauty influencer economy closed out 2025 with a clear message: scale still matters but strategy matters more.

According to the latest Q4 rankings from Kolsquare, L’Oréal Group brands dominated the UK beauty conversation across Instagram and TikTok. Yet the quarter’s most compelling story may belong to Rimmel London, whose sharp, highly efficient creator strategy propelled it into the upper tier of both platforms.

L’Oréal’s Structured Supremacy

On Instagram, L'Oréal Paris climbed four places to secure the number one position, generating £11.8 million in Earned Media Value. Meanwhile on TikTok, NYX Cosmetics retained its top ranking with £10.7 million EMV, outperforming MAC Cosmetics, which posted £7.6 million EMV and an industry-leading 8.3 percent engagement rate.

The group’s strength extended beyond colour cosmetics. Garnier led both the skincare and haircare categories on TikTok, reinforcing L’Oréal’s multi-category influence. Even heritage nail brand Essie surged, climbing 70 places on TikTok and 149 on Instagram evidence of renewed cultural traction among digitally native audiences.

What Q4 underlined was not just dominance, but infrastructure. L’Oréal’s scale is supported by disciplined, data-led creator activation across its portfolio, enabling consistent performance across multiple sub-brands and verticals.

Rimmel London’s Strategic Surge

Yet amid corporate consolidation, Rimmel London delivered the quarter’s most interesting performance curve.

The brand jumped 37 places to rank fifth on Instagram and rose 23 places to sixth on TikTok. On Instagram alone, it generated £8.8 million EMV using 825 influencers and 2,526 pieces of content notably fewer creators than L’Oréal Paris required to reach the top spot.

On TikTok, Rimmel produced £6.7 million EMV from 675 influencers, signalling a leaner, more optimised creator model. The momentum coincided with high-impact activations, including its Thrill Seeker Mascara campaign with Red Bull and gymnast Lily Smith the kind of cultural crossover that feels native to short-form video rather than retrofitted for it.

As Quentin Bordage, CEO and founder of Kolsquare, notes, the rise demonstrates that “scale alone is not the only key.” Efficiency, creator alignment and platform fluency now drive measurable return.

The Heritage Comeback

Beyond the major conglomerates, Q4 revealed a broader recalibration among high street names.

On TikTok, MCoBeauty climbed 147 places to rank 30, while Soap & Glory jumped 160 places to 56. No7 rose to 25th position with £2.73 million EMV.

Instagram saw similar acceleration. Kylie Cosmetics advanced 35 places to 16th, Laura Mercier moved up 48 positions, and YesStyle leapt 163 places. Luxury fragrance house Maison Francis Kurkdjian posted one of the quarter’s most dramatic climbs, surging 222 places.

The narrative is clear: legacy brands are no longer disadvantaged on social platforms. When heritage equity meets creator-native storytelling, rapid growth follows.

The Cost of Saturation

Not every brand benefited from the reshuffle. On TikTok, The Beauty Crop fell 40 places despite high content output, reinforcing that volume alone no longer guarantees EMV gains. Olaplex declined 31 positions, while The INKEY List dropped 55 places year on year amid increasingly crowded skincare competition.

Instagram saw similar downward movement from Barry M, ghd, Benefit Cosmetics and REFY a reminder that in a saturated beauty landscape, share of voice can shift quickly.

Precision Over Volume

If 2024 was about influencer expansion, Q4 2025 signals consolidation and precision. The brands rising fastest are not necessarily the loudest. They are the most aligned.

The UK beauty social economy is maturing. Structured activation, strong creator partnerships and cultural relevance now outweigh raw output. L’Oréal may hold the crown but Rimmel London’s performance proves that in today’s algorithmic arena, efficiency is power.