Premium beauty specialists make sharp gains SA's retail market in five years

Estimated share of South Africa's cosmetics and personal care market by distribution channel, 2019–2025 (%)

R507m

Clicks' controlling stake in ARC Store, September 2026

6.9%

CAGR for specialist channel — fastest-growing offline segment

Supermarkets & grocery

Pharmacy & drugstore

Department stores & fashion retail

Premium beauty specialists

E-commerce

Supermarkets, pharmacies and department stores held virtually the entire South African beauty retail market in 2019. The premium specialist channel — scarcely existing before 2020 — now grows faster than any other offline segment, a shift significant enough to draw a controlling-stake acquisition from Clicks.