Buying Cosmetics Online? Survey Shows 40% Shoppers Got Fake Beauty Products At Least Once

India's beauty and personal care market has crossed $30 billion in size and is projected to touch nearly $34 billion in revenue this year, with lipstick, face wash or sunscreen now bought as routinely off a phone app as from a neighbourhood store, as per a report by Local Circles.

But alongside this booming market is growing a shadow economy of counterfeit, misbranded, unlicensed and expired cosmetics, one that a new survey suggests is touching a far larger share of Indian consumers than previously understood.

According to a nationwide survey by LocalCircles, 40% of consumers who purchased cosmetics and beauty products over the last three years found one or more of them to be fake or counterfeit, while 26% reported an allergic reaction to at least one cosmetic product. The survey drew over 23,000 responses from consumers across 318 districts of India.

Asked what issues they or their family members had faced with cosmetics and beauty products in the last three years, 18% of respondents said they had bought something that later turned out to be fake or counterfeit, 4% reported an allergic reaction to some cosmetics, and 22% said they had faced both issues together.

Online Platforms Emerge As Single Biggest Source Of Fakes

Among those who bought counterfeit cosmetics, 23% said they had bought it on an online platform, app or website, making online the single largest source of fakes, ahead of beauty, cosmetics or general stores at 18% and local stores or stalls in the market at 14%.

Department stores accounted for 9%. Company stores and direct sellers each accounted for 5%. Notably, no respondent reported buying a counterfeit product from a mall.

Online platforms, apps, or websites accounted for 23% of consumers who ended up with counterfeit cosmetics. This makes the internet the single biggest supplier of fakes, surpassing local stores or market stalls at 14% and beauty, cosmetics, or general stores at 18%.

Nine per cent were department stores, five per cent were business stores, and five per cent were direct sellers. Interestingly, none of the respondents said they had purchased a fake item from a mall kiosk.

Enforcement Actions Mirror What Consumers Are Reporting

The survey's findings align closely with a string of enforcement actions over the past few months.

The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration has led a sustained crackdown, seizing illegal cosmetics and manufacturing equipment worth Rs 1.52 crore in Mumbai and Bhiwandi raids in June alone, part of a month in which it raided 34 manufacturing units, tested 787 samples and registered nine FIRs.

The health stakes were laid bare in Nagpur, where 18 women developed kidney disorders after using a Pakistan-made skin-lightening cream found to contain mercury at 752 times the legal limit.

Separately, an India Today investigation also uncovered a Rs 500-crore racket in the National Capital Region, re-labelling expired cosmetics with fresh dates and selling them through Instagram reels, while Kerala's Drugs Control Department registered 15 fresh cases in August alone under its ongoing 'Operation Soundarya'.

LocalCircles Calls For Scannable Authentication Codes

LocalCircles noted that it will be escalating the survey findings to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, CDSCO, the Department of Consumer Affairs, the Central Consumer Protection Authority and state drug controllers.

Among its recommendations: a unique, scannable authentication code on every cosmetic product sold in India; mandatory disclosure of seller, licence and batch details on e-commerce listings.

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