How UK under-16s social media ban could reshape beauty brand engagement
As the UK Government moves ahead with plans to ban under-16s from major social media platforms, beauty brands may need to rethink how they attract customers, build trust and communicate with younger audiences.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced last week that under-16s will be banned from popular platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. The Government plans to follow a model similar to Australia's social media ban, targeting user-to-user platforms amid concerns about their impact on young people’s mental health and long-term wellbeing.
The measures are expected to be legislated before Christmas and implemented by spring 2027, with technology companies responsible for enforcing compliance.
When the announcement was made, it immediately raised questions about its implications for the beauty industry. From viral brands like P. Louise, which has built a loyal following through playful cosmetics content, to teen-focused skincare labels such as Indu and Bubble Skincare, social media plays a role in how younger consumers discover products, engage with brands and learn about skincare.
For brands targeting teens, the proposed ban could disrupt marketing strategies by removing a key touchpoint with a significant portion of their audience. However, some founders argue the impact may not be as severe as it first appears.
indu co-founder Aaron Chatterley is among those supporting the proposal and believes the business is already well positioned to adapt.
"As a parent of twin teen girls myself, I firmly believe this is a positive and much-needed change," he tells TheIndustry.beauty. "Under 16s today are often glued to their phones, so it’s more important than ever that we encourage face-to-face interaction inside and outside of school that helps them develop important social skills, build genuine relationships and a sense of community, away from the screens and social media.
"We are always evolving our marketing plan to align with our audience, so it will be less of a re-think and more of a slight re-adjust. We are already speaking to them now to gauge how they feel about the change and how they'd like to see indu show up for them."
Charlotte-Anne Fidler, founder of tween and teen skin, hair and body care brand Spots & Stripes, shares a similar view. She developed the brand after her daughter Anouk, then aged 11 or 12, needed products for changing skin but struggled to find anything bridging the gap between baby products and adult acne treatments.
"As a parent, I welcome anything that might help restrict the amount of time our children spend on social media. I know there are questions about how effective the Australian ban has been, but at the very least, parents will be able to use this law to set firmer boundaries about phone usage. I’ve seen firsthand the addictive nature of TikTok, in particular, on my daughters," she says.
While Spots & Stripes does receive engagement directly from teens, its long-standing focus on parents as the primary audience means it may be less exposed than some peers.
"Spots & Stripes social media engagement has always been with the parents, first and foremost. This was a deliberate strategy from the moment I saw the gap and started thinking about the brand," Fidler reveals.
"I understood how the parent - particularly the mother - thought, and I knew what was important to her: gentleness, effectiveness and safety. I knew that at our entry level, which is as young as eight with our hair and body products, it's the mother doing the buying and making the decisions. I also knew that it would be incredibly tricky to try to market a brand directly to teens. So I just didn’t go there!
"That didn’t mean that we ignored what teens thought and wanted, though. From the get-go we tested all of our products on a big group of tweens and teens and got their feedback. But we also got the parent's feedback on all our new products, too. That gave the perspective of the person who was actually buying it. I still think this is the right way to do it."
As a result, the policy could accelerate a shift already underway across the category. Parent-focused marketing may become increasingly valuable for brands selling age-appropriate skincare and beauty products.
However, brand reach is not solely about driving sales. Many of these businesses have also become influential voices in promoting healthy, age-appropriate skincare routines and in countering misinformation among young people.
These brands are not only selling products, but also shaping habits, correcting misconceptions and helping young consumers navigate an increasingly complex beauty landscape. indu, for example, uses its social channels to deliver educational content designed to cut through online noise and challenge skincare myths.
While the ban may reduce the rapid spread of misinformation among teens, social media will likely be replaced by owned educational channels - such as blogs, email newsletters, expert-led guides and community platforms - which are likely to become increasingly important in delivering skincare advice and education to teens. indu already operates an on-site blog called indu101 to help young people navigate "all things teen beauty", from skincare basics to trending step-by-step makeup looks.
Importantly, Chatterley also believes that the brand’s product development process will remain unchanged following the proposed ban.
"Our community has always been at the heart of the brand, from its inception. From the initial research we did with our audience, we’ve proudly built an engaged core community of over 1,000 13-20-year-olds. They act as a valuable source of insight for us, as we’re able to obtain relevant information that helps us to shape our marketing plans and define our product portfolio to ensure we continue to be relevant for our customers. So it won't be harder, as we come prepared. We already have this in place and are actively listening to and working with young people of all ages, every day, on a global scale," he says.
Indu brought together dance students from The Brit School in central London for a high-energy flash mob.
Beyond digital channels, the shift could also accelerate the importance of physical retail and in-person experiences in how brands connect with younger audiences.
Beauty brands have already shown the power of experiential marketing, from to community-led events and pop-ups.
Since launch, indu has invested in creating opportunities for young consumers to connect beyond the screen, while Bubble Skincare has also brought its community together through pop-up events celebrating new product drops and retail launches.
"As we’ve seen with our own community that we regularly communicate with, they thrive with in-person connections. We’ve seen and experienced this at our IRL events, big and small. No matter the scale or style, or how much time they spend on a phone, they have made it abundantly clear to us how much they value meeting up, gathering for a shared experience," notes Chatterley.
"We’ve seen first-hand how these kinds of events also help to build friendships beyond the event itself, where teens go on to hang out together independently, indu aside.
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"We have an ongoing IRL activation plan to bring them together, which we'll continue to do more of on TYB, which enables us to speak directly and obtain valuable insights," Chatterley adds.
"We’ve already demonstrated that this model works, through our recent Skincare That Gets You campaign, that culminated in our milestone event, The Hangout, which was put together with ideas offered up by the teens through various IRL and digital workshops."
Collaborations are also expected to play a larger role as brands look for alternative ways to reach both teens and parents.
Commenting on this, Fidler tells TheIndustry.beauty: "We collaborate with brands and platforms with the same mission, that put us in front of the parents and their teens/tweens.
"We did an event recently with a new platform called TeenEdit, which is being launched by former Daily Mail fashion editor, Camilla Ridley Day, and it was such a fantastic experience to be in a room with a hundred teens/tweens and their mothers. So much more positive and informative than two hours spent scrolling.
"I think that speaking directly to under-16s in real life and talking to their parents, while keeping that continual dialogue going, is the way forward for brands like Spots & Stripes. And obviously, as a mother, that gives me an advantage, as it’s all happening right under my nose!"
Retail partnerships will also become increasingly important, offering a trusted route to influence both teens and parents in physical spaces.
"We have always been retail-first through our partnership with Sephora, so the in-person model is already in place," says Chatterley.
Artificial intelligence may also play a growing role in product discovery, particularly as platforms like ChatGPT remain outside the scope of the ban. Brands are increasingly investing in conversational tools, including developments such as Fenty Beauty’s new WhatsApp AI-driven chatbot, signalling a shift in how consumers may search for and engage with products.
As teens become less active on platforms like Snapchat and Instagram, WhatsApp may increasingly serve as a key communication channel, while AI-powered assistants could emerge as important tools for product discovery.
Ultimately, the brands best positioned to adapt may be those that maintain strong retailer relationships, invest in community-driven in-person activations and build educational authority that extends beyond social media.
