Welcome in, today is Friday, August twenty-eighth, and we begin with Ulta Beauty, where a raised full-year outlook lands on top of a quarter that beat the street. Ulta Beauty posted second-quarter net sales of three billion dollars, up eight point nine percent from a year earlier, with comparable sales up three point eight percent. That is per Investing dot com, which reports diluted earnings of six dollars fifty-five a share against a consensus of six seventeen, and operating profit up ten point one percent to three hundred eighty million dollars. The same account has the comp gain driven mainly by a higher average ticket, with transactions roughly flat. Ulta said it outpaced the US beauty market and gained prestige share while holding mass share steady. It raised full-year guidance to sales growth of six point seven to seven point two percent and earnings of twenty-eight seventy to twenty-nine dollars a share. Shares still fell about three point four percent after hours, a move that reporting reads as caution on second-half growth and margins rather than on the quarter itself. For brands, this is the demand read that wholesale and promotional calendars get planned against. Industry reaction leans positive on the execution story, though a recurring counterpoint in the channel is that headline growth can mask in-store friction such as out-of-stocks. Also today, Tatcha. WWD reports the Japanese skin care brand is undergoing what new chief executive Diane Kim calls a refinement, returning to its founding positioning to stand out in a crowded prestige set. That account has the brand adding three new ambassadors, Naomi Osaka among them, and leaning deeper into science-based messaging. The argument there is that proven efficacy, not novelty, is the differentiator left in skin care. Read against the wider category, this is a founder-built prestige brand resetting under new leadership, using celebrity reach to carry a clinical message rather than a lifestyle one. Whether that combination moves share is what buyers and competing brand teams will be watching through the next launch cycle. Separately, Thirteen Lune. Per WWD, Nyakio Grieco has regained ownership of the inclusive beauty platform, and has announced international expansion into South Africa through a partnership with the online retailer Takealot. That summary is all the detail we have. Deal terms and launch timing were not stated. A founder buyback paired with a South African retail route is still worth tracking for how independent brands travel across borders. Now, to Korea. Cosmetics Business argues the next wave of K-beauty growth starts in the pharmacy. The piece uses the term K-pharmacy for clinically backed brands sold through Korean pharmacies, naming Dr. Reju-All, Dr. Althea and Aestura, and quotes Boots trends head Grace Vernon saying pharmacist-guided selling built trust that is now travelling, helped by beauty tourism and TikTok. That read puts clinical provenance, rather than routine length, as the next credibility axis, which lands straight on assortment and claims strategy. Industry reaction broadly agrees, though some note the label is circulating faster among trade watchers than shoppers, and a recurring caution is that trending actives go viral ahead of proof. Now, a few more headlines moving the trade today. Cosmetics Business reports Unilever's Vaseline has switched its social display name to Baseline, a nickname it credits to a Korean beauty creator. Glossy reports Curology is testing Walmart as an acquisition channel, with early conversion, company-reported, running five times its online rate. PDC Brands, the owner of Dr Teal's, Cantu and Bodycology, has rebranded as Arthēa, per WWD, around an accessible wellness positioning. And finally, Cosmetics Business has published its year-to-date recall tally, spanning Bondi Sands and Hello Sunday mineral sunscreens, Oribe's Serene Scalp shampoo and Schwarzkopf Professional's Osis Grip.