L'Oreal, the Paris-based cosmetic group, posted sales of 14.3 billion yuan ($2.31 billion) for 2014 in the Chinese mainland, up 7.7 percent from the previous year.

The results marks an 18th consecutive year of growth in the mainland, the second-largest cosmetic market in the world.

Alexis Perakis-Valat, CEO of L'Oreal China, said at a press conference in Shanghai Tuesday that the mainland contributed 8 percent to the firm's global market in 2014, after the US and France.       

The CEO attributed China's growth to investment in research and innovation, online sales growth, channel expansion and the contribution of mask brand MAGIC, which "attracts millions of new consumers in China."

According to Perakis-Valat, online sales in the mainland market doubled in 2014.

However, analysts said that the global cosmetic giant faces challenges from competitors at home and abroad.

New consumers, emerging channels, digital transformation, and the emergence of local brands could be seen as the new trends of fast-moving consumer goods in China, Yu Jian, general manager of market research firm Kantar Worldpanel China, told the Global Times Tuesday.

Shanghai Jahwa Corp released its financial report for 2014, saying the company's sales revenue reached 5.34 billion yuan in 2014, a growth of 19.38 percent from the previous year, and its net profit stood at 898 million yuan, an increase of 12.2 percent year-on-year.

Yu noted that big-name cosmetics brands from the EU and the US are also thwarted by counterparts from South Korea and Japan, which are increasingly preferred by consumers in the Chinese market.

In 2014, South Korea exported $600 million worth of cosmetics to the Chinese mainland, an increase of 89 percent year-on-year, according to media reports.