Beauty Connect 2025 once again proved why it’s one of the most energizing events in the beauty and personal care industry. The room was filled with founders, operators, retailers, and innovators, all focused on the next evolution of beauty and how to build brands with staying power.
This year, QuickBox Fulfillment was proud to serve as the Headline 3PL Sponsor, and we were thrilled to partner with Latinas in Beauty throughout the event. From deep conversations about flawless fulfillment to discussions about scaling, automation, and community, the event reinforced what we know to be true: your logistics partner is a key player in your growth, profitability, and consumer experience.
Below are the key takeaways, insights, and themes that stood out most from the sessions and conversations throughout the week.
What’s Top of Mind for Beauty Brands Today
Rising Shipping Costs & Margin Pressure
Brands across the board voiced concerns about rising freight and parcel costs. Tariffs, ingredient inflation, labor increases, and carrier rate hikes are squeezing margins more than ever.
In her main stage session at the event, QuickBox CEO, Irene Scharmack covered key tactics beauty brands should ask their 3PL about to deal with rising shipping costs:
- Smarter packaging: Right-sized packaging, reducing DIM weight, and exploring ounce-based carrier programs.
- Regionalized fulfillment strategies: Understanding that the majority of shipping costs come from where goods are going, not where they're manufactured, and setting up fulfillment nodes accordingly.
- Carrier diversification: Avoiding over-dependence on a single provider and leveraging 3PL volume-based discounts.
- Zone-skipping: A cost-saving shipping strategy where packages are transported in bulk to a regional hub closer to your end customer. This reduces the number of shipping zones, and therefore the cost and time, required for final delivery.
To stay competitive, beauty brands should partner with a 3PL that can proactively optimize shipping costs.
Compliance and Accuracy Take Center Stage
Beauty brands are operating in increasingly complex compliance environments, especially those with dealing with:
- Lot control
- Temperature-sensitive products
- FDA/OTC requirements
- Retail routing compliance and OTIF obligations
For products like cosmetics, skincare, wellness, and personal care, compliance is critical for quality control and consumer trust. Compliance is also foundational for brands that want to scale. The goal of working with a 3PL that is already an expert in operational compliance for beauty brands is to remove compliance as a growth limiter.
Speed-to-Scale for High-Growth Brands
Whether launching through ecommerce / DTC, expanding into retail, or entering new marketplaces such as doctor’s offices or med spas, brands at Beauty Connect consistently shared the same scaling challenges:
- Expanding into new channels seamlessly
- Managing seasonal launches and influencer-driven surges
- Supporting rapid SKU expansion and complex pack outs
To scale confidently, beauty brands should partner with a 3PL built for multi-channel growth. One that can flex with demand, maintain flawless execution, and support new opportunities without sacrificing quality.
Automation
Automation is great when done right, but it’s important to note that automation is not “one-size-fits-all.” QuickBox CEO, Irene Scharmack illustrated this during her session “Secrets to Brand Resilience.”
She shared a case study comparing two QuickBox clients with similar SKU counts, both exploring automation solutions. QuickBox completed a thorough automation analysis for both of these brands.
- One had no common SKU patterns across orders.
- This client ended up needing a full automation solution.
- One had 80% of their volume in 20% of SKUs
- This client ended up only needing light automation.
Automation must match the order behavior, channel mix, and growth strategy of the brand. For the best results, your 3PL should evaluate automation through a tailored, data-driven lens, choosing solutions that align with your actual order patterns and growth plans rather than assuming more automation is always better.
Data, Visibility & Decision-Making
Across sessions and hallway conversations, one theme was especially loud: brands want more visibility and control over their operations.
You deserve a 3PL that offers data such as:
- Real-time package tracking
- Daily order performance insights
- Inventory allocation, sellable stock, and aging visibility
- Alerts when orders fail to ship same day
- Reporting for forecasting, budgeting, and demand planning
To stay confident and in control as you scale, choose a 3PL that treats data as a core service. QuickBox offers real-time visibility, transparent reporting, and robust analytics, designed to help you make smarter decisions every day.
Final Thoughts
Beauty Connect showcased a powerful truth: beauty is evolving faster than ever, and logistics must evolve with it.
From rising shipping costs and increased compliance needs to automation, multi-channel growth, and growing consumer expectations, operational excellence is a true strategic advantage, not just a back-office function.
Michelle Ranavat, Founder and CEO of RANAVAT, summarized it well during her main-stage conversation with Scharmack. She explained: The fulfillment process is an extension of your brand. If something goes wrong with shipping, the brand may want to say, ‘Well that’s not us… that’s the 3PL,’ but your customers will associate that experience with your brand directly. Your partners represent your brand.
If you’re evaluating your fulfillment strategy, planning a retail expansion, or simply want an operations audit, the QuickBox team would love to connect. Request a free discovery call here.
