Beauty Comes with a Price: But How Much Is It Worth It

Author

Fabliha Afia, The Graduate Center, City University of New YorkFollow

Date of Degree

2-2025

Document Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

M.S.

Program

Data Analysis & Visualization

Advisor

Michelle McSweeney

Subject Categories

Applied Behavior Analysis | Benefits and Compensation | Community Psychology | Experimental Analysis of Behavior | Finance | Other Economics | Social Statistics

Keywords

Beauty standards, Social pressures, Body image, Mental health, Consumerism, Cosmetic procedures

Abstract

The global skincare market, valued at 104.24 billion dollars in the year 2022, is very heterogeneous, ranging from prestige brands to more drugstore types. Even when the same key ingredients are present, the latter often sells for much higher due to branding and packaging and the aura of prestige created. This capstone project entitled "Beauty comes with a price: but how much is it worth?" investigates if such higher costs are justified due to superior quality or are driven by non-functional factors. It systematically compared the high-end versus drugstore skincare products in categories like sunscreens, serums, and exfoliants with respect to ingredients' effectiveness, pricing, and consumer perception. The project, using a dataset from Sephora and Ulta Beauty, visualized the prices and quality relationship in Tableau and pinned up ingredient overlaps. Findings are presented on a customized website as interactive visualizations for consumers to have insights transparently. The ultimate goal of this project is to give buyers data clarity with respect to the pricing of skincare, hence making informed decisions by considering cost-effective alternatives. Along the way, the project will demystify the mystique surrounding luxury skincare, challenging what beauty is truly worth in monetary terms, and answering whether the investment in high-end products is due to efficacy or market perceptions

Recommended Citation

Afia, Fabliha, "Beauty Comes with a Price: But How Much Is It Worth It" (2025). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/6179