Beauty Pay in 2025 Shows Resilient Growth, Sharper Divides and a Firm Tilt to Hybrid

Arthur Edward’s 2025 Salary Survey spans more than 50 roles across Technical, Sales, Marketing, Operations and C-suite, with 70% of respondents based in the UK and many concentrated in and around London. The average salary across respondents is £66,869, highlighting solid mid-market earnings in a sector that remains attractive to experienced professionals.

Pay levels vary widely by function and seniority. Technical salaries stretch from £24,000 for lab roles to £300,000 for senior posts such as QP or CTO, while perfumery has the highest ceiling at £400,000 for creative perfumers. Marketing spans £25,000 to £250,000, Operations £25,000 to £180,000, and Sales climbs to £250,000 at director level. Managing directors and CEOs report £100,000 to £320,000, reflecting the premium on top leadership.

Bonuses remain a structural part of Sales compensation. Nearly half of sales professionals receive a bonus worth 10 to 20 percent of base, and 65% of people in Sales take home bonuses above 10 percent compared with 44% in non-sales roles. That difference underlines how variable pay is used to drive commercial performance, while other functions still rely more on fixed salary.

Salary movement has cooled from the post-pandemic peak. Half of respondents received a pay rise in the last 12 months, down from 57% in 2023 and 2024 and well below 76% in 2022, when hiring churn and shortages pushed wages up quickly. Younger staff are the least satisfied with their pay, with 63% of under-25s feeling below the peer average, while pay sentiment improves notably after 46 as expectations and pay bands converge.

Mobility and loyalty coexist. Thirty-nine percent changed roles within the past two years, signalling active progression and movement, yet 38% have stayed with their current employer for six years or more. That pattern suggests many professionals are advancing through internal moves while others switch firms for step-ups in scope and pay.

Representation is broad at entry and mid levels, but the senior ranks still skew male. Women outnumber men by more than 50% at junior levels and by 20% at manager, yet at the top 6% of male respondents earn £200,000 or more versus 1% of female respondents. Closing that gap will require clearer pathways into senior P&L, technical leadership and board roles.

Hybrid has become the centre ground. Almost half of respondents receive flexible hours or location as part of their package, a big rise on 2019 but lower than 2024 as some firms push office returns. Technical teams are most likely to be on-site, with 47% in the workplace daily, compared with 19% in Marketing, 18% in Sales and 14% in Operations. When presented with a dream role that required five days on-site, only 62% said yes, and willingness fell sharply among those used to one to three office days. Employers insisting on full-time attendance should expect a smaller candidate pool.

AI adoption has surged and is being led from the top. Sixty percent use AI or machine learning at work, up from 24% a year earlier, rising to 72% among directors, board members and C-suite. Sentiment is mostly pragmatic and positive, with 43% expecting AI to reduce workload without replacing their role, while only 5% fear significant displacement. Adoption rates are tightly grouped across functions, signalling that AI is now a practical tool rather than a niche experiment.

Benefits and time off matter in retention. Twenty-five days’ paid annual leave is the UK norm in this sample, with almost half receiving that allowance and a further 28% on more generous packages. The most common and most valued benefit is bonus or profit share, followed closely by flexible hours and location, medical cover and enhanced pensions. These levers have become more important as base pay growth steadies.

What drives movement in 2025 is clear. Salary remains the top reason to change jobs, tied closely to career progression. Work life balance rises in importance through mid-career and becomes decisive for older cohorts. Management quality weighs more heavily with seniority, pointing to the importance of leadership practices as a retention tool.

For employers, the picture is actionable. Benchmark pay with care by function and seniority, reserve higher variable pay for commercial roles, and use targeted benefits where budgets are tight. Offer clear progression tracks into senior leadership for women and under-represented groups. Set hybrid policies that reflect role realities and candidate expectations, particularly outside labs and manufacturing. Invest in practical AI skills across teams and support managers to lead through change. For candidates, the data confirms where the biggest pay clusters sit, how bonuses stack up in Sales, and where hybrid flexibility is most common, helping frame informed moves and negotiations.

Read the full report here.