Shares at Revolution Beauty have fallen by 15% in early trading, knocking £7m of the firm's market value, following its latest trading update for the current financial year.

The makeup brand stated that it had "experienced some sales softness in December 2024" across its digital channels and some de-stocking from US retailers.

As a result, it now expects net sales to decline by around 25% in the 2025 financial year.

Furthermore, the British firm said that during its "transformational year", which saw it discontinue over 6,000 stock-keeping unit (SKUs), it had to delay "certain retailer launches" that were expected in Q4 FY25. These will now take place in the first half of the 2026 financial year.

In the year to 28 February 2025, it now expects an adjusted EBITDA of "high single digit millions".

Revolution Beauty had cash balances of £6m at the end of December 2024, with net debt of £26m, including a fully drawn revolving credit facility of £32m.

Despite these results, the firm said that its core SKUs continue to grow, including through channels such as Amazon, which are "performing well in both the USA and Europe".

Looking ahead, Revolution Beauty stated that it is "confident in a return" to overall growth in the 2026 financial year, supported by new growth initiatives such as the launch of its new SKIN brand, the relaunch of REVOLVE and as "core SKU growth accelerates globally".

Although Revolution Beauty was optimistic in its outlook, investment director at AJ Bell, Russ Mould, described the update as "more beast than beauty".

He concluded: "Delays to product launches in the shops, destocking by US retailers and weaker online sales has soured the turnaround story.

"For a business that was worth nearly £500m when it joined the stock market four years ago, Revolution Beauty’s life as a listed company has been nothing short of ugly.

"With a turnaround that seems to be one step forward, two steps back, it’s getting to the point where Revolution Beauty’s management might need to accept the company is better off as part of a larger entity rather than trying to sweat it out alone."

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