Today at CEW, we report from the 2025 CEW Beauty Expo, which took place last Thursday evening, September 18. A sparkling celebration of beauty innovation, the prestigious event was attended by over 1,200 industry professionals, who gathered at Manhattan’s Metropolitan Pavilion. “From CEW Board members to influencers to brand executives, attendees had the opportunity to sample, spritz, and experience more than 278 Finalist products across 35 categories, helping guide their votes for this year’s prestigious Beauty Awards,” writes CEW’s Andrea Nagel. Don’t miss all the behind-the-scenes photos.

In other CEW Awards news, beauty investor and brand builder Cristina Nuñez —co-founder of True Beauty Ventures — shares how attending the 2014 CEW Achiever Awards changed the trajectory of her career, at her Substack newsletter, Beauty Is My Business. “Beauty has room for all of us — our talents, our passions, and our pivots,” writers Nuñez.

In breaking beauty headlines this morning, WWD reveals that Selma Blair has co-created her first skin care product with ESK, the Australian cosmeceutical brand co-founded by Dr. Ginni Mansberg and Daniel Rubinstein. Ultimate A Gold, which drops today on ESK’s website, is “a more potent alternative to its hero product Ultimate A,” reports WWD. In other celebrity skin care news, actress Leighton Meester has been tapped by Bubble, as its first global brand ambassador. Meester appears in Bubble’s new ad campaign, Radical Joy. 

Also here at CEW, we unpack Daash Intelligence’s new report on the data and insights driving change in the prestige beauty market, across makeup, skin care, hair care and fragrance. According to Daash Intelligence, the average price of prestige beauty products increased by approximately 10.2% in the first half of 2025.

In business updates, THG — the beauty giant that owns Lookfantastic — is on schedule for a FTSE 250 return, “after crashing out earlier this year,” according to Cosmetics Business. Meanwhile, ESW Beauty, the wellness-inspired skin care company, is making its CVS debut, in 3,532 doors across the U.S. 

Bobbi Brown’s memoir, Still Bobbi, released yesterday, published by Sue Rucci Books.  Business Of Fashion has an excerpt.

Read more about these and other news stories by clicking on the links below.

Behind The Scenes At The 2025 CEW Beauty Expo. The winners will be revealed at a grand luncheon on November 11 at the Hilton Midtown Hotel. (CEW)

True Beauty Ventures Co-Founder Shares How The CEW Awards Changed Her Career. “That day changed something for me. I realized that beauty wasn’t just a category I admired from afar — it was an industry where I wanted to build my career,” Cristina Nuñez writes at her Substack, Beauty Is My Business. (BEAUTY IS MY BUSINESS)

Daash Intelligence Shares Data And Insights Driving Prestige Beauty Change. In all four categories, consumers favored products delivering tangible results which fit more seamlessly into daily life. (CEW)

Selma Blair X ESK Unveil Ultimate A Gold. Blair discovered the Australian cosmeceutical brand through her aesthetician, after years of undiagnosed multiple sclerosis had inflamed her skin. (WWD)

Bubble Taps Leighton Meester As Global Brand Ambassador. “Meester will front the initiative and feature with a curated set of her preferred Bubble products, which will be promoted in Ulta stores nationwide from October,” reports Global Cosmetics News. (GLOBAL COSMETICS NEWS)

ESW Beauty Enters CVS. The brand’s best-selling Deep Detox Pore Control Raw Juice Mask, Pink Dream Moisturizing Raw Juice Mask, Strawberry Matcha Latte Eye Patch and Iced Chai Latte Eye Patch will be among the products stocked. (HAPPI)

THG To Make FTSE 250 Return. The beauty giant originally joined the FTSE 250 in March 2025. (COSMETICS BUSINESS)

Bobbi Brown’s Memoir Releases. In an excerpt at Business Of Fashion, “Brown explains why she didn’t seek investment, how she stumbled upon her first hero product and what happened when Estée Lauder came knocking.” (BUSINESS OF FASHION)

Essence Takes Stage At Gamescom 2025. The brand is the first color cosmetics company to showcase at the event, which took place last month in Cologne, Germany. (BEAUTY MATTER)