Catrice

Catrice is a German cosmetics brand launched in 2004 and owned by cosnova GmbH, a privately held beauty company based in Sulzbach in the Taunus region near Frankfurt [4][5]. Positioned as affordable, trend-driven makeup, it sits alongside its older sister brand essence in the cosnova portfolio and is sold through drugstores and mass-market retailers in roughly 70 to 90 countries [6]. The brand remains active, with new product lines and campaigns running into 2026.

Catrice was founded by Christina Oster-Daum, who, according to the brand, set out "to break boundaries in the beauty industry, proving that luxury-inspired makeup could be accessible to all" [4]. That idea of accessible, premium-feeling cosmetics has remained the brand's core positioning through two decades of expansion from a German drugstore label into a globally distributed range.

The brand belongs to cosnova, a company founded in Germany in 2001 by Christina Oster-Daum and her husband Javier González, who serve as its presidents and founders [7]. Originally named Cosma, the company launched the essence brand in 2002, introduced Catrice in 2004, and that same year renamed itself cosnova and moved its headquarters to Sulzbach. cosnova therefore predates the Catrice brand by three years: the parent company dates to 2001, while Catrice itself launched in 2004.

Today essence and Catrice are cosnova's two flagship makeup brands. The privately held group reported sales of roughly 1.2 billion dollars in 2025, up about 4 percent on the prior year, and describes its makeup division as holding a top-six global position in cosmetics by value [7]. The company employs around 900 people worldwide and states that about 90 percent of its products are manufactured in Europe.

Catrice is a drugstore-priced brand. A 2016 review of its US range noted an average product price of about five dollars, with nothing priced above nine. The company frames this affordability as a deliberate mission, stating that its aim is to "democratize premium beauty so that all beauty lovers can live their magic" [5]. Its tagline is "Own Your Magic."

The brand organizes its identity around several stated values, including affordability, self-expression, community and what it calls "Worry-Free Beauty." cosnova's chief marketing officer for the US, Jill Krakowski, has described the intended customer by contrasting the two sister brands: where essence is imagined as "the girl in college," Catrice is "the recent graduate" in her first job, "in her mid-to-late 20s, maybe early 30s," who "wants a real luxury product, but at an affordable price point" [7]. The brand also emphasizes diversity and inclusion under the hashtag campaign "#beyourselfbecatrice."

Catrice's range spans complexion makeup, eyes, lips, nail products, brushes and tools, and a skincare line. Recent launches highlighted on its site include the Trend Drop Glass Cloud, a cushion blush the brand frames as inspired by K-beauty, and an Under Eye Brightener Liquid. The brand supports its range with digital tools such as a virtual try-on, a foundation finder and a mascara finder.

Catrice states that all of its products are now made exclusively with vegan ingredients [2]. The brand says it has been cruelty-free from the start and is PETA-approved, carrying out no animal testing [4]. It also describes its formulas as paraben-free and free of microplastic particles, and says it complies with EU cosmetics rules that restrict more than 1,500 ingredients, having additionally chosen to exclude a further set of ingredients it deems unacceptable.

Under an initiative it calls "Catrice for Tomorrow," the company groups its commitments around animal welfare, vegan and clean beauty, the environment, and engagement, summarized in the line "We care about the earth. We care about you." Through climate-protection projects, recycling initiatives and measures against plastic waste, the brand says it aims to minimize its carbon footprint.

Catrice launched in 2004 as cosnova's second makeup brand. According to the cosnova corporate site, it reached the number-one position in its home German market within five years of launch, which the company dates to 2007; some secondary accounts phrase the same milestone as occurring "within five years," placing it closer to 2009 [5][9]. The brand entered the US market in 2015 [4], with coverage of its American debut via the retailer Ulta appearing in 2016. Its distribution has since widened across retailers including CVS, Ulta, Target and Amazon in the US, and Primark and Boots in the United Kingdom.

Catrice and its parent have been profiled in beauty trade media. Glossy covered cosnova's US expansion and Catrice's retail growth in 2024, while Beauty Independent profiled the group's roughly 1.2-billion-dollar makeup business and its move into skincare. Racked reported on the brand's arrival in the US as an affordable German drugstore label in 2016 [8].

Catrice is an active, globally distributed mass-market makeup brand. Its site carries a current 2026 copyright and promotes ongoing campaigns and product launches, and its parent group has projected continued single-digit sales growth for 2026 [7].