Italy investigates Sephora to profit from skincare marketing aimed at children

Italian regulators are trying to crack down on tweens’ skincare obsession. LVMHcosmetics brands Sephora and Benefit are under fire over their “insidious” marketing campaigns aimed at children.

The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) announced on Friday that it had opened an investigation into the two cosmetics brands, focusing on “unfair commercial practices” in encouraging children and young people, including those under the age of 10, to buy serums, masks and anti-aging creams.

Regulators said the marketing encouraged a behavior known as “cosmecollectia,” which refers to an unhealthy obsession with skin care among minors.

Both Sephora and Benefit emphasized that both in-store and online on social media, they have a history of failing to properly label products or omitting important warnings for products not intended for use by minors, which can pose serious harm to the health of minors.

Additionally, the AGCM said the popular cosmetics brand was employing an “insidious marketing strategy” in which young micro-influencers encouraged other young people to buy their products.

AGCM officials and the Italian Financial Police inspected the premises of Sephora Italia, LVMH Profumi e Cosmetici Italia and LVMH Italia on Thursday.

LVMH said Sephora, Benefit and LVMH General Insurance Italia were notified of the investigation.

LVMH said in a statement to CNBC: “As the investigation is ongoing, Sephora, Benefit and LVMH General Insurance Italia cannot share any further comment at this stage, but have expressed their intention to cooperate fully with the authorities.” “All companies reaffirm their strict compliance with the applicable Italian regulations.”

Sephora boasts nearly 23 million followers on Instagram and more than 2 million followers on TikTok, and the beauty brand is at the center of 20-something beauty trends.

The “Sephora Kids” social media trend has been gaining traction over the past few years, with videos on TikTok and Instagram showing stores filled with teenage girls filling baskets with brightly colored and fun-looking skin care products.

In several videos, young girls demonstrate skin care routines that include products containing anti-aging ingredients such as retinol.

CBS News analyzed 240 skin care posts by teen influencers on TikTok and found that many videos were not properly tagged as promotional content, with only 15 videos, or just 6% of the posts, being tagged. This means that many content creators may be unintentionally promoting their products to unsuspecting children.

Embry Cortlin, a teenage skincare influencer, told CBS that some brands will ask them not to label their videos with “#ad,” which can be off-putting to viewers, but will instead call them partners to improve the performance of their content.

A peer-reviewed study published last June by Northwestern University looked at 100 popular skin care videos posted by influencers between the ages of 7 and 18. They found that only a quarter of videos contained sunscreen, and the top 25 most viewed videos contained an average of 11 and up to 21 potentially irritating active ingredients.

metaThe company, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, faced two painful defeats this week in court cases centered on harm to social media. Meta was found liable for nearly $400 million in damages by a New Mexico jury on Tuesday, which found the company failed to protect children from predators on its platform.

In another trial in Los Angeles, Mehta and Google A lawsuit filed by a plaintiff who claims that habitual use of Instagram and YouTube caused him to develop body dysmorphic disorder said on Wednesday that YouTube was negligent and that the companies failed to warn users of the dangers associated with using those platforms. The lawsuit seeks $3 million in compensatory damages from Meta and Google.