ULTA vs USFD Comparison

Ulta Beauty is the largest specialized beauty retailer in the US with more than 1,500 stores and e-commerce. The firm offers cosmetics (38% of 2025 sales), fragrances (13%), skin care (24%), and hair care products (19%). It also has salon services, including hair, makeup, skin, and brow, that account for 4% of its revenue and drive customer traffic. Outside of the US, Ulta operates premium beauty retailer Space NK (86 stores at year-end 2025 in the UK and Ireland), has franchised stores in Mexico, and a joint venture in the Middle East. Ulta was founded in 1990 and is based in Bolingbrook, Illinois.

US Foods is a leading domestic foodservice distributor, generating $39 billion in sales in fiscal 2025 and capturing a 10% share of the fragmented industry. The firm sells and distributes more than 350,000 food and nonfood products to around 250,000 customer locations, including independent restaurants (33% of fiscal 2025 sales), chain restaurants (23%), healthcare and hospitality clients (27%), and other end markets (17%), largely consisting of education and government contracts. US Foods also operates 98 cash-and-carry locations under the Chef'Store banner. The firm's physical network spans 76 distribution facilities and 14 broadline production centers.