March 4, 2025
The TikTok "ban" that never quite was hasn't slowed sales on the platform's commerce arm.
In fact, data from Charm.io shows sales on TikTok Shop increased - both in general merchandise and in beauty specifically - on Jan. 19, the day the proposed ban was meant to take effect. While the app did go dark the evening of Jan. 18, access was restored a little more than 12 hours later - and users wasted little time getting back to perusing the virtual aisles.
For the month of January as a whole, the skin care brands that dominated on the platform were a varied bunch. Among them: K-beauty favorites like Medicube and Anua; The Ordinary; Rihanna's Fenty Beauty, which is a more recent riser, and notably, Terra Lotus, known for its beef tallow balm.
Medicube was the number-one brand for the month, logging $2.7 million in revenue.
While the brand first became popular in the U.S. in 2023 for its $240, celebrity-loved LED and microcurrent facial wand, its skin care products have recently risen to the fore as a more accessible entry point. Today, Medicube's "glass skin" bundle, which includes a foam cleanser, pore pads, an "exosome shot" serum and more, is the brand's most popular offering via TikTok.
Single-dose hyaluronic acid serums by WNP Skincare - a brand which emerged both on Amazon and TikTok Shop in December 2024 - have also been booming, costing just under $30 for a 30-day supply. Meanwhile, in tandem with the late-2024 beef tallow trend, Terra Lotus' Tallow Honey Balm, $20, has taken the number-five position.
Interest in the offering, as well as beef-fat-powered skin care in general, has surged as natural skin care enthusiasts have championed its purported moisturizing and acne-reducing benefits online.
On the prestige beauty front, Rihanna's Fenty Beauty has been having a moment on the platform, with its $37 Perfect Puck'r Hydrating Lip Care Duo emerging as the brand's top seller for January. This follows the longtime success of fellow LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton-owned Benefit Cosmetics on TikTok Shop.
The top 10 skin care brands by sales on TikTok Shop in January, per Charm.io.