ULTA vs GFS Comparison

Ulta Beauty is the largest specialized beauty retailer in the US with about 1,500 freestanding stores. The firm offers cosmetics (39% of 2024 sales), fragrances (13%), skin care (23%), and hair care products (19%). It also has salon services, including hair, makeup, skin, and brow, that account for about 4% of its revenue and drive traffic. Outside of the US, Ulta acquired premium beauty retailer Space NK and its 83 stores in the UK and Ireland in 2025, is opening franchised stores in Mexico, and has formed a joint venture to expand into the Middle East. In addition, Ulta collects royalties through its Target partnership (set to end in 2026) and credit card revenue. Ulta was founded in 1990 and is based in Bolingbrook, Illinois.

GlobalFoundries is a top-five contract semiconductor manufacturer globally. It was originally the manufacturing arm of Advanced Micro Devices before it was spun out in 2009. The foundry sells chips into a range of end markets including smartphones, PCs, Internet of Things, data centers, automotive, industrial, and so on, but primarily focuses on more mature process technologies. Until 2021, the firm was privately held by Mubadala Investment, the sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates, which remains its controlling shareholder today. GlobalFoundries merged with Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing in 2009 and acquired IBM's chipmaking business in 2015. GF is headquartered in Malta, New York, and has about 13,000 staff.