Coty Updates Strategy & Growth at CAGNY 2025
Coty a global leader in beauty and personal care, continues to strengthen its market position and strategic vision as it prepares to present key updates at the 2025 Consumer Analyst Group of New York Conference (CAGNY). Scheduled for Wednesday, February 19, at 4:00 PM EST (10:00 PM CET), the presentation will be led by Chief Executive Officer Sue Nabi and Chief Financial Officer Laurent Mercier. This highly anticipated session will cover category leadership, financial progress, and strategic roadmap aimed at sustaining its outperformance in the beauty industry.
Driving Growth Through Strategic Market Leadership
Over the past several years, has emerged as a dominant force in the beauty industry, leveraging its strong brand portfolio and innovative marketing strategies. The company has outpaced market growth in nine of the last fourteen quarters, demonstrating resilience and adaptability in an evolving consumer landscape. Coty attributes this success to its strategic investments in core beauty segments, including prestige and mass fragrances, color cosmetics, skincare, and body care.
Fragrances remain the cornerstone of business, accounting for more than 60% of the company’s sales and an even larger portion of its profits. With a robust portfolio that includes iconic brands such as Hugo Boss, Burberry, Chloé, and Marc Jacobs, Coty has successfully capitalized on growing consumer demand for premium scents. The company’s expertise in fragrance development, coupled with strong distribution partnerships, has positioned it as a leader in both prestige and mass-market fragrances.
Beyond fragrances, is actively expanding its footprint in the skincare segment, an area of immense growth potential. By harnessing its research and development capabilities, Coty aims to enhance its skincare offerings with a focus on efficacy, sustainability, and innovation. The company’s approach includes integrating cutting-edge formulations, dermatological expertise, and consumer-driven product development to capture market share in this competitive category.
Capturing White-Space Opportunities and Global Expansion
One of Coty’s key strategies for continued growth is the identification and pursuit of white-space opportunities across categories and price points. The company is actively expanding into new geographic markets and adjacent product segments, aiming to tap into multi-billion-dollar opportunities worldwide. By leveraging its global reach and brand equity, seeks to extend its leadership beyond traditional markets and into emerging economies with growing consumer spending power.
This expansion strategy is supported by a robust digital transformation initiative. Coty has been making significant investments in e-commerce, direct-to-consumer channels, and digital marketing, ensuring that its brands remain at the forefront of consumer engagement. The company’s omnichannel approach integrates both online and offline experiences, allowing customers to interact with brands seamlessly across multiple touchpoints.
Additionally, Coty is exploring opportunities in scenting adjacencies, including home and personal fragrances. These segments offer significant growth potential, as consumers increasingly seek multi-sensory experiences that extend beyond traditional perfume and cologne products. Through strategic partnerships and brand extensions, Coty aims to capture a larger share of the expanding fragrance market.
Financial Performance and Strategic Deleveraging
Coty’s financial strategy is underpinned by a disciplined approach to cost management, margin expansion, and debt reduction. Over the past four fiscal years, the company has successfully expanded its adjusted gross margins by over 400 basis points and improved its adjusted EBITDA margins by 130 basis points to 17.8%. These improvements reflect commitment to operational efficiency and profitability.
A major milestone in Coty’s financial journey occurred in the first half of fiscal 2025, when the company reported a leverage ratio below 3x for the first time in over eight years. This achievement underscores Coty’s progress in deleveraging and its commitment to maintaining a healthy balance sheet. The company remains on track to further reduce its leverage to approximately 2x by the end of calendar year 2026.
In line with its financial objectives, Coty continues to target steady gross and EBITDA margin expansion, coupled with double-digit adjusted EPS growth. The company’s ability to drive profitability while reinvesting in strategic initiatives ensures sustainable long-term value creation for shareholders.
Industry Outlook and Competitive Positioning
The beauty industry is undergoing rapid transformation, driven by shifting consumer preferences, technological advancements, and evolving retail dynamics. Coty is well-positioned to navigate these changes and capitalize on emerging trends. Key industry drivers include:
- Premiumization: Consumers are increasingly gravitating toward high-quality, luxury beauty products, a trend that aligns with strong presence in the prestige segment.
- Sustainability: Eco-conscious consumers are demanding sustainable packaging, clean ingredients, and ethical sourcing, areas where is making substantial progress.
- Digitalization: The rise of social commerce, influencer marketing, and AI-driven personalization is reshaping the beauty retail landscape, prompting Coty to enhance its digital capabilities.
competitive advantage lies in its ability to blend heritage brands with contemporary innovation. By combining a legacy of craftsmanship with modern marketing strategies, continues to resonate with a diverse consumer base across generations and demographics.
CEO Perspective on Future Growth
Reflecting on Coty’s trajectory, CEO Sue Nabi remains confident in the company’s ability to outperform the global beauty market. “The beauty market has evolved considerably since we first unveiled our strategy over three years ago. We see significant growth opportunities for our core brands in the coming years, particularly in the fragrance category, where structural tailwinds are supporting category growth,” said Nabi.
She further emphasized Coty’s strong momentum, stating, “Our fragrance portfolio delivered outperformance at all price points in the first half of this year, driven by strong momentum across iconic brands including Hugo Boss, Burberry, Chloé, and Marc Jacobs. With 2025 emerging as a key year for the sector, we are confident in our ability to fuel Coty’s outperformance of the global beauty market and deliver long-term growth.”
Investor Relations and Presentation Details
Coty’s presentation at CAGNY 2025 will provide further insights into its strategic direction, financial outlook, and market positioning. Investors and stakeholders can access the live webcast of the presentation at investors.coty.com/news-events-and-presentations, beginning at 4:00 PM EST (10:00 PM CET). The accompanying presentation materials will also be available on Coty’s Investor Relations website under the “Events and Presentations” section.
A replay of the presentation will be accessible following the event, offering interested parties an opportunity to revisit Coty’s key messages and strategic priorities.
A Beauty Giant Poised for Sustained Growth
Coty’s impressive track record of market outperformance, coupled with its disciplined financial approach and commitment to innovation, sets the stage for continued success in 2025 and beyond. By focusing on core growth drivers—fragrance leadership, skincare expansion, digital transformation, and global market penetration—Coty is well-positioned to navigate industry shifts and deliver long-term value to consumers and investors alike.
As the beauty industry continues to evolve, Coty’s strategic vision ensures that it remains a dominant player, capable of adapting to changing consumer demands while maintaining its legacy of excellence. With strong leadership, a resilient business model, and a forward-thinking approach, Coty is poised to define the future of beauty.
