Beauty exports from the UK to the European Union have fallen by more than £850 million ($1 billion) since the Brexit vote, as customs delays and increased costs put the brakes on orders.

A report by Oxford Economics, commissioned by the British Beauty Council, found that UK businesses had suffered from increased trade barriers between 2017 and 2022.

“Covid is not the problem, Brexit is the problem,” said Millie Kendall, chief executive officer at the British Beauty Council. “People have pulled out of territories.”

The report, sponsored by brands such as SpaceNK and L’Oreal UK and Ireland, found that exports of personal care products from the UK to the EU have generally declined, compared with exports to the rest of the world which have been more constant since the Brexit referendum. The council published it during British Beauty Week, after announcing model Kate Moss as global ambassador for the industry.

Brexit complications have been especially problematic for the many small and medium-size companies in the beauty business. Sarah Chapman, who founded the beauty brand Skinesis, has stopped selling to Spain and said there had been issues sending products to Italy and elsewhere. “Our distributors are now really insisting that unless we set up an EU warehouse, they won’t work with us,” she said.

Chapman, who established her business in 2008 and employs almost 60 people, said the loss of online sales across Europe since Brexit had been significant. There were some occasions where orders had been held up in customs for three months. “Once somebody’s bought from you, if it takes so long to get a product, they just don’t buy directly from you again,” she said.

UK exports of personal care products were rising to both the European single market and the rest of the world between 2010 and 2016, according to the report, at an average annual rate of 3.1 percent and 5.3 percent respectively. Since then, exports to the EU have gradually declined.

A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce previously found that 49 percent of UK exporters reported difficulties in adapting to the changes required to trade goods following the UK-EU trade deal.

By Sabah Meddings

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