AS Watson listing plans highlight Superdrug’s growth in UK beauty retail

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AS Watson Superdrug UK growth

Highlights

Superdrug generated £1.6 billion in 2024 sales, grew at a 4.5% annual rate over ten years, and outpaced the overall UK health and beauty sector.
Superdrug’s profit growth averaged 15% annually from 2014 to 2024, implying potential 2024 earnings of £135 million and a valuation near £2.5 billion at an 18x forward multiple.
AS Watson’s potential $30 billion IPO, including Superdrug, would be a rare major London listing and offer exposure to resilient high-street retail growth.

Superdrug growth profile and valuation case

As reported by Financial Times, Superdrug generates £1.6 billion in sales in 2024, roughly one-fifth of Boots’ size, but expands nearly twice as fast over the past four years based on Companies House filings. The chain’s annual growth rate of 4.5% between 2014 and 2024 is ahead of the wider UK health and beauty sector average.

Its positioning helps explain that performance. Superdrug targets younger and more price-sensitive shoppers, including consumers influenced by TikTok trends, and has built momentum in affordable "dupes", legitimate lower-cost alternatives to premium beauty products. Exclusive access to some viral items from e.l.f. Beauty also supports that strategy.

On earnings, Superdrug’s profit growth averages about 15% a year from 2014 to 2024. If that pace continues, the business could generate about £135 million in earnings this year, which on an 18-times forward earnings multiple, in line with U.S. retailer Ulta Beauty, implies a valuation close to £2.5 billion.

High street resilience and London market implications

The broader retail backdrop makes that performance more notable. Around 400 UK retailers go bust during the 2014 to 2024 period, according to the Centre for Retail Research, yet beauty retail remains one of the healthier parts of the high street because shoppers still visit physical stores more often than in many other non-food categories.

Only about 17% of UK health and beauty sales take place online, compared with more than one-third across non-food retail overall, according to the British Retail Consortium KPMG Retail Sales Monitor. The Office for National Statistics says retail sales in the pharmaceutical, medical, cosmetics and toiletries category are 18% higher while general retail sales rise about 1.3% year on year in April 2026.

Even so, Superdrug represents only a small part of AS Watson’s mooted $30 billion valuation, as investors would also need to assess more than a dozen other retail brands owned by the group. If the IPO proceeds, it is likely to matter both as a rare large listing for London and as an unusual public market bet on a high-street retail success story.

In our earlier article on London’s 2026 tech ecosystem rankings, we noted the city had reclaimed the top spot in Europe as funding flows strengthened into AI and deep tech, alongside a large base of unicorns. The piece also highlighted how London’s global standing and scale of capital can reinforce its pull for investors and high-growth companies compared with other European hubs.

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