Beauty products suit online selling: they are small, light, easy to post, and customers re-order the same items. They are also the category where a seller can break the law without knowing it, by stocking a cream with a banned ingredient, a fake branded lotion, or a product whose label promises a cure. Here is what to check before you list anything.
Who regulates cosmetics in Kenya
Two bodies matter.
The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) sets product standards and issues quality marks. If you make products yourself (soap, body butter, hair oil), you count as a manufacturer, and the KEBS Standardization Mark (S-Mark) is the certification for products made in Kenya. You apply on the KEBS KIMS portal. After that comes a factory inspection and a signed scheme of supervision, and KEBS says the mark can be issued within about eight weeks if everything is in order. It lasts two years.
KEBS lists these S-Mark fees (excluding VAT, per production site, valid two years):
| Firm size (KEBS's annual turnover bands) | Inspection fee | Permit |
|---|---|---|
| Small: turnover up to KSh 200,000 | KSh 10,000 | Covers up to 3 products; KSh 10,000 for each extra product |
| Medium: KSh 200,000–500,000 | KSh 20,000 | Covers up to 3 products; KSh 10,000 for each extra product |
| Large: over KSh 500,000 | KSh 40,000 | KSh 15,000 per product/brand/site |
To apply you need a company registration number, a KRA PIN and the director's ID number. Anyone can check a product's S-Mark by SMS: send SM#permit number to 20023, or call KEBS on 1545.
The Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) has a Cosmetic Division that grants marketing authorisation for cosmetics. It assesses each product's ingredients, safety data, manufacturing practice, labelling and claims, and it says all "special cosmetics" must be reviewed before they go on sale. Questions go to [email protected].
The split between the two bodies has moved. In 2022 the registration of one class of cosmetics began moving from KEBS to PPB, and the move was delayed after manufacturers objected (Business Daily, August 2022). Regulatory consultants describe the line like this: products that only clean, perfume, protect or change your appearance are cosmetics, while anything that claims to treat something (acne, eczema, fungus) or relies on an active drug ingredient is a medicine and needs full PPB registration. If you make or import your own product, ask PPB which applies before you spend on packaging.
Ingredients that get products banned
In November 2022, KEBS banned 131 cosmetic brands (soaps and skin-lightening creams, lotions and gels) that contained hydroquinone, mercury and its compounds. It listed steroids and hormonal preparations as prohibited in cosmetics too, and warned of legal action against sellers.
For a seller this means:
- Don't stock "lightening", "whitening" or "bleaching" creams unless you can show they are legal. This is the product type behind most bans.
- Read the ingredient list on everything you stock, not just the brand name.
- Banned products are seized from shops. Stock you can't sell is a total loss.
Fakes: the risk is yours as well as the buyer's
In August 2026 the Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA) seized about KSh 1.1 million of suspected fake personal-care products in Eastleigh, Nairobi, sold under the NIVEA, Vaseline and TRESemmé names. The warning signs ACA listed: prices that are too low, poor packaging, spelling errors, missing manufacturer details, and logos or product details that don't match the real thing.
Selling fakes is a crime even if you bought them in good faith from a wholesaler. Under the Anti-Counterfeit Act, a first conviction can bring up to five years in prison, a fine of at least three times the retail value of the goods, or both (as summarised by law firm Oraro & Company in 2020).
In June 2026, ACA started piloting a digital certification mark: a code on the pack that buyers check with a phone app. Cosmetics are among the first product types. Once your brands carry it, show it in your product photos.
Sourcing: buy so you can prove where it came from
- Buy branded products from the brand's appointed distributor or from a wholesaler who gives a proper invoice (an eTIMS invoice where they issue one). Keep every invoice. It is your proof if stock is questioned. See eTIMS for small sellers.
- Check every pack when it arrives: batch number, expiry date, manufacturer's name and address, full ingredient list, and a seal that hasn't been broken.
- Treat prices well below other wholesalers' as a warning, not a bargain. That is ACA's first warning sign.
- Making your own? Budget for the S-Mark from the start. The fees are in the table above.
Write listings that don't make medical claims
The words on your product page count as much as the label. "Clears acne", "cures eczema" or "removes dark spots permanently" are treatment claims, and treatment claims put a product in medicine territory. Describe what the product is and does as a cosmetic: "moisturising shea body butter, 250 ml, for dry skin". Then add photos that show:
- the full ingredient list, readable;
- the batch number and expiry date;
- the real colour or shade in daylight, with a swatch on skin for make-up.
Pricing beauty products
Expiry dates make beauty different from clothes: stock that doesn't sell loses its value. Buy smaller quantities more often, and sell older batches first.
To price, start from your landed cost per unit, then add packaging, delivery and payment costs:
| Cost | Rate |
|---|---|
| Duka checkout (M-Pesa or card) | 1.5% |
| M-Pesa Buy Goods till, merchant fee (from 7 Aug 2026) | Free up to KSh 500; 0.55% up to KSh 36,363; capped at KSh 200 |
| Jumia Kenya commission, for comparison (2026 sheet) | 18% on most health & beauty, make-up and hair extensions; 15% on make-up tools, nail tools, hair tools and beauty appliances |
Work out your margin with the profit margin calculator, and see whether marketplaces are worth it in Jumia seller vs your own shop.
Returns
Opened beauty products can't be resold, so say clearly before the sale that only unopened, sealed items can be returned, and that wrong or damaged items are replaced or refunded. Jumia doesn't accept perfume returns at all. Under the Consumer Protection Act, a buyer can cancel an online order if you didn't disclose the required information, so put the policy on every product page and send an order confirmation.
Where Duka helps
A Duka shop is free to set up. Each product gets its own page, with room for ingredient, batch and expiry photos and your returns policy. Buyers pay by M-Pesa or card at checkout (1.5%), you can take orders on WhatsApp, and you can send parcels through Pickup Mtaani agents. One link works for your WhatsApp status, TikTok and Instagram.