On Thursday (1/26/2017), Market Force Information will release findings from a large-scale fitness & beauty study. Market Force polled nearly 8,000 women and found that MAC and Clinique are their favorite makeup lines, and Macy’s and Sephora are their favorite places to buy cosmetics. The study also looks at buying habits, satisfaction with makeup artists, how women classify their makeup styles, etc.

Here are some of the highlights:

The top three cosmetic lines are MAC and Clinique (tie), bareMinerals and Urban Decay.
MAC ranked first for value, Clinique for brand trust, Urban Decay for humane testing, and bareMinerals for easy application.
30% buy their makeup from mass retailers such as Target and Walmart, 24% from specialty retailers, 16% from drug stores and 13% from department stores
Macy’s is their favorite department store for cosmetics, and Sephora is their favorite specialty retailer

Makeup Wearers Fancy Lasting Products, Trusted Brands
The three product factors that cosmetics wearers said matter most are 1) wears well throughout the day, 2) brand trust and 3) easy application. Lower on the list are leak/spill-proof containers and products that are humanely tested or environmentally safe.
Market Force ranked the top cosmetic lines in these areas and found Urban Decay rated tops for wearing well throughout the day, Clinique for brand trust and bareMinerals/Bare Escentuals for easy application. MAC was the value leader. [See Graph 5].

Most Making Makeup Buys from Mass Retailers
Thirty percent of respondents said they most frequently purchase their cosmetics from mass retailers such as Walmart or Target, 24% from specialty retailers such as Sephora or MAC, 16% from drug stores and 13% from department stores. Just 3% said they buy them from grocery stores. Sephora is Favorite Specialty Retailer, Macy’s is No. 1 Department Store
Among specialty retailers that sell cosmetics, Sephora is the crowd favorite. It ranked first in the study, followed by Ulta, MAC and bareMinerals/Bare Escentuals. bareMinerals/Bare Escentuals is perceived as being natural and no fuss and MAC as beautiful and professional. Macy’s took the No. 1 spot among department store chains, and was trailed by Dillard’s and Nordstrom.

Makeup Artists – Who Puts on the Best Face?
Twenty-eight percent had a makeup artist at a specialty store apply make-up during their most recent visit, especially those visiting MAC and bareMinerals/Bare Escentuals. However, 15% weren’t satisfied with the experience. Conversely, 35% had makeup applied by an artist at a department store, especially Nordstrom, and just 10% report being unsatisfied.