Bloomberg | | Posted by Singh Rahul Sunilkumar
From books to cloud computing, Amazon.com Inc. has gone on to dominate many segments over the years. Now Morgan Stanley projects that the e-commerce giant will become the biggest player in another space: beauty.
Amazon is set to overtake Walmart Inc. as the biggest US beauty retailer by 2025, analysts led by Simeon Gutman wrote in a research note. Amazon will make up about 14.5% of a market that could hit $180 billion in value by 2025, followed by the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer at about 13%.
While grocery retailers still hold a leading share of about 29% of the US beauty market, their portion has shrunk over time with specialist retailers like Ulta Beauty Inc. and Sephora among the biggest beneficiaries.
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Amazon’s gains are set to come as the company continues to grow its share in the e-commerce market, set to account for 46.5% of it by 2025, Gutman wrote in the note.
Its shares, which lost nearly half their value last year as routs ravaged technology and growth stocks, have rebounded this year to rise 49% through Friday’s close. Meanwhile, Walmart shares have seen a relatively steadier growth curve over the past five years, rising 9.7% this year.