How American Beauty Regulations Are Pushing Customers Overseas
The American cosmetic industry is losing scores of customers to “beauty tourism” thanks to stifling regulations.
By Cait Dexter – July 19, 2024
While some Americans fret over the outsourcing of manufacturing jobs, economists are glossing over another crucial sector feeling the pinch of overregulation and a push overseas—beauty. In a country where women control upwards of 60 percent of personal wealth, wielding purchasing power between $5 trillion and $15 trillion annually, it’s high time we talked about how US policies are giving the beauty industry unwanted wrinkles.
The beauty market alone is poised to reach approximately $580 billion by 2027. This isn’t just lipstick and shampoo—it’s a broad sector encompassing costly cosmetic procedures that could stimulate substantial economic activity domestically if not for the regulatory hurdles that drive consumers abroad.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which safeguards consumer goods with all the grace of the TSA at a busy airport, places Botox under a dual classification of drug and cosmetic. This means Botox is subject to extensive formula reviews, toxicological assessments, and an eagle-eyed scrutiny of manufacturing practices. The recent adoption of the Modernization of Cosmetic Regulation Act (MoCRA) has tightened these already stringent rules, piling on obligations that translate to higher costs for consumers.
Across the Atlantic, the UK’s approach to non-surgical cosmetic treatments like Botox has been markedly more laissez-faire. Until recently, even non-medics could administer injectables—a concept that would raise eyebrows, if not foreheads, in the US. Although recent UK legislation has begun to tighten these rules, the cost of compliance remains significantly lower than in the States. Getting a few wrinkles smoothed out in the UK can average £100 to £350, compared to an eye-watering $300 to $600 for similar procedures in the US.
The ramifications of these cost discrepancies are playing out in real time on platforms like TikTok, where young Americans document their ventures into an emerging trend of “beauty tourism.” These savvy travelers combine vacation with vanity, undergoing extensive treatments abroad that total less—even with airfare and accommodations—than similar procedures stateside.
This trend isn’t just a quirky workaround; it’s a pointed critique of an overbearing regulatory system that drives consumers to seek solutions beyond our borders. The challenge for US policymakers isn’t just to balance safety with accessibility—it’s to foster a competitive domestic market that incentivizes keeping dollars within our economy rather than sending them on a transatlantic flight.
A lighter regulatory touch would lead to a more vibrant market, benefiting consumers and the economy alike. If the government took a more balanced approach to beauty regulations, it could rejuvenate the domestic beauty industry, retain healthcare dollars within the economy, and perhaps smooth out a few fiscal wrinkles along the way.
Cait Dexter is a specialist in grassroots leadership. She writes and speaks primarily on the topics of educational freedom and libertarian feminism.
