Once upon a time, securing distribution in department stores was coveted and newsworthy. Fast-forward to 2022, the beauty distribution trends have changed, making Walmart and Target launches big news. Below is a taste of brand retail launches in the high-stakes race to own a piece of the beauty consumer's wallet.
ULTA
In March, Winky Lux will expand to Ulta Beauty and plan to add five new branded stores throughout 2022 in the southern United States to its current outlets in Nashville and New York City. Winky Lux is currently distributed through Target, Urban Outfitters, and Anthropologie. The majority of Winky Lux products sell for below $30. The brand reached $20 million in annual sales as of 2020 and expects to achieve 40% growth in sales for 2022.
BeautyStat, the skin care brand founded by cosmetic chemist Ron Robinson in 2019, expands into 260 Ulta doors and online. A deluxe trial size of the top seller, Universal C Skin Refiner will be available in all doors. The brand launched at Violet Grey and is currently sold in BlueMercury and Nordstrom.
Supergoop! launched in Sephora in 2018 and now marks the next phase of growth for the brand adding Ulta Beauty to the mix with a nationwide rollout with Ulta Beauty in-store and online. This announcement follows Blackstone Growth taking a majority stake in Supergoop! in a deal that insiders believe valued the business at about $600 million to $700 million.
SEPHORA
Sexual wellness brand Dame launches on Sephora.com, marking Sephora's first entrance into offering pleasure products helping to normalizes the category by merchandising these products alongside concealer, face wash, and lipstick. The "Intimate Care" category will live within "Bath & Body" on Sephora's site as its own subcategory. In 2021, Dame's top sellers were Eva, Pom, Aer, and Arc, all of which are included in the Sephora launch assortment. This partnership enhances Dame's message that pleasure is wellness and follows YOY wholesale growth for the brand of 32% from $2.6MM in 2020 to $3.5MM in 2021. The brand raised $4 million in seed funding in early 2021, led by Listen and with participation from a variety of women-run ventures to fuel expansion.
Direct-to-consumer modern intimacy brand Maude is partnering with beauty retailer Sephora on the launch of its intimate care category. Twenty SKUs across the brand's product line, including devices, lubricants, bath, and body, are now available through the Sephora Clean program across the retailer's website. To date, the brand has successfully raised $10M over four rounds of funding—making it one of the most VC- backed sexual wellness personal care companies.
Luxury hair care company Crown Affair founded by Dianna Cohen just turned two years old and is starting its third year launching at Sephora with the release of a new leave-in conditioner. The brand is also carried at Violet Grey and Goop.
AMAZON
Peace Out, the maker of patented acne dots and anti-wrinkle sticks, is going on the offensive against third party resellers on Amazon. The independent, San Francisco-based brand said they have had enough of third parties selling discounted or expired product on the site. They are officially joining Amazon's prestige beauty program as a key partner, which will let them better identify and shut down fraudulent sellers of Peace Out products. These resellers ring in more than seven figures in receipts per year. Peace Out will sell almost its full range through Amazon’s Prime service. The Acne Dot Jumbo and Retinol Face Stick will remain exclusive to Sephora. The move also comes as Peace Out is continuing to develop its global omnichannel footprint. It launched in the UK at Cult Beauty and Boots last year as well as in the Middle East with Sephora. Notably Peace Out was an inaugural brand for the Sephora x Kohl’s in August 2021 rolling out to more than 200 doors and beating plan by 1.5x.
TARGET
Future Beauty Labs has expanded its brand portfolio with the launch BYOMA a skincare line formulated to address concerns related to the skin barrier. The simple seven-piece brand consists of clinically proven, dermatologist-approved, science-backed formulas infused with three essential lipids all priced below $16. The brand launched exclusively at Target in the US and brand made its debut in the UK with Boots and Cult Beauty.
APTO is a 100% natural skincare brand creating effortless, effective, and accessible skincare for all priced at $20 or less. Founded by Spanish-born Marta Cros in 2015, the brand believes that meaningful minimalism is visionary and transformative. After nearly closing during the height of the pandemic, the brand underwent a revamp, editing their offering from 35+ products to seven essential efficacious SKUs. Following the completion of the Target 2021 Takeoff Accelerator Program, APTO is expanding its retail distribution to 800 Target stores and Target.com.
Sunwink, the plant-powered wellness company for the masses, launched its line of Superfood Powders in 1,800 Target locations with endcaps that run until mid-February before moving on to the ingestible beauty shelf. This announcement comes on the heels of the brand's largest growth year to date. It expanded to over 3,000 retail stores across the country, experienced 500% YoY revenue growth from 2020, and became one of the fastest-growing female-founded beverage brands on shelves today. Sunwink launched as a beverage brand in 2019 and quickly became a cult favorite at health stores and supermarkets, including Whole Foods. After expanding into the powders category in March 2021, the brand launched on Amazon, where they've already seen a spike in sales. Additionally, the company has a strong DTC presence with over 100K monthly site visits on average.
Pure Culture Beauty, the customized skincare company founded by Victor Casale, former Chief Chemist of MAC Cosmetics and founder of CoverFX, and Joy Chen, former CEO of YesTo and H2O+ Beauty, will be launching in 1,735 Target stores. The launch marks a significant milestone in democratizing customized skincare. To support the launch, the brand is reducing the price of its Custom Skincare Set from $100 to $60, and the cost of the custom serum is dropping from $45 to $30. Target customers will purchase the At-Home Skin Test in-store and take the Pure Culture Beauty's Skin Profile Analysis test online; from there, the business develops custom products.
Everyday Humans, the self-funded Gen Z-friendly SPF-led skincare brand, is launching as the first Plastic Neutral Certified SPF brand in 700+ Target stores nationwide. The initial in-store offering at launch will feature its two hero SKUs: Resting Beach Face SPF30 Sunscreen Serum ($24.49) and Oh My Bod SPF50 Body Sunscreen ($17.99). Founder Charlotte Chen Pienaar, a Target Takeoff Accelerator alum, launched online 10 months after its online launch at Target, where the brand surpassed 300% sales growth since its debut. Everyday Humans will continue to grow its omnichannel presence through its DTC storefront and diversified retail partnerships, including Ulta Beauty (online), JCPenney (in-store + online), Revolve, Free People, Beauty Bay (UK), Naturisimo (UK), Sephora APAC, and over 200+ US-based indie retailers.
Imbue, a UK-based, sustainably sourced vegan haircare line that focuses on catering to the needs of the curly coily 3A- 4C hair community, is expanding to the US market with Target. The brand will launch in nearly 1000 stores, with 6 SKUs and 1 SKU available only online. This assortment represents a large proportion of the full range and covers each of the four steps that make Imbue a simple yet credible curls brand. In 2022 the brand is projecting $3-$4 million in sales at retail across all sales channels with Target, HEB, and The Hut Group being key partners.
MDSolarsciences, the decade-old brand founded by dermatologic oncologist Robert Friedman has launched seven new products formulated for distribution in the mass channel priced from $16.99 to $50.99. The new range will launch with Target online. The brand currently has 1000 points of distribution in the medical and professional channel as well as balancing traditional beauty outlets like Revolve, Pharmaca, Dermstore, and Amazon. The business saw triple-digit growth in the professional channel and grew 60% overall last year.
Affordable skincare brand WLDKAT founded by founder Amy Zunzunegui is rolling out into 655 Target doors and online in a new iteration that removes CBD from the formulas and 3 new SKUs. The brand is also carried at Credo and has online beauty distribution at ASOS and Ulta.
WALMART
Billie: The direct-to-consumer subscription-based razor maker makes its brick-and-mortar debut in 4,000 Walmart stores as it eyes expansion. To support the partnership, Billie added a new shaving cream to its product line, which will be sold alongside a $10 "Starter Kit," that includes a handle and two razor blade cartridges, a travel case, and replacement blades. This retail expansion comes on the heels of the November 2021 acquisition by Edgewell for $310 million. The Walmart partnership allows the beauty brand retail distribution at mass to rival Target's collaboration with Harry's and Flamingo.
Monday: The cult favorite haircare brand from New Zealand launched in the US with an all-door Target rollout followed by Ulta Beauty in 2021. The brand continues expanding in 3,000 Walmart stores with a custom Valentine's Day set available exclusively from January 22 to February 14. The brand will also be launching on-shelf in 900 Walmart stores with their Moisture, Smooth, and Volume SKUs. Last year the brand entered the UK market and has plans for European expansion this year. Industry sources estimate the brand will achieve $100 million in retail sales in 2022.
Versed continues to democratize access to high-performance, clean skincare with its rollout in Walmart. Launched in 2019 with Target Versed has built a powerhouse community (75% of Versed users are Millennial or younger) around its mission to create products that perform. The lineup is available on Walmart.com and in more than 3,000 Walmart.
Fig.1 co-founded by Dr. Courtney Rubin, MD, Kimmy Scotti and Elizabeth Trelstad, bringing together respective expertise in dermatology, entrepreneurship and chemistry to create a high-quality, affordable skincare line that delivers professional results. The brand will be available in select Walmart retail locations across the country as a part of the retailer’s Spring end cap. As a brand focused on making healthy skin accessible for everyone, collaborating with Walmart makes sense. The brand will continue to rollout in Walmart stores as the retailer continues to prioritize new product discovery within beauty and wellness. Fig.1 skincare is also available on Walmart.com.
CVS
BosleyMD is designed to help prevent hair loss and thinning with a 360-degree approach to healthy hair growth with products developed in collaboration with doctors and endorsed by professional stylists. BosleyMD will launch a curated collection of their clinically proven products at 7,500 CVS Pharmacy doors, including Women's & Men's Hair Growth Supplements and Hair Regrowth Treatments with Minoxidil. The brand entered the beauty space a decade ago and sold at Ulta, Amazon, SalonCentric, Cosmo Prof, Walmart.com, and Target.com. Driven by a commitment to multichannel consumer access, the business achieved a 45% increase in sales in 2021 vs 2020.
CREDO
Henry Rose, Michelle Pfeiffer's radically transparent fragrances and personal care brand, takes its first major step into brick-and-mortar since launching direct to consumer in 2019. All nine fragrances will be available at all 10 Credo Beauty doors and new launches will be available online.
Jones Road, the makeup and skincare brand founded by Bobbi Brown in 2020, makes its first brick-and-mortar distribution move, launching with Credo Beauty in all 10 doors and online.
BERGDORF GOODMAN
Ustawi is now available at Bergdorf Goodman and is the first brand that focuses on melanin-rich skin to be carried by the retailer. Founded by former refugee, model, and Miss Congo Natacha Paugam, Ustawi uses natural ingredients and family recipes from Africa, and is rooted in a deep culture that speaks to an underserved category in skincare. The range consists of six anti-pollution products comprised of over 95% naturally derived ingredients.
NORDSTROM
Stryx, the men's cosmetic and skincare brand, has leveraged recent growth to expand its distribution beyond CVS, launching at the Nordstrom Men's Store flagship in NYC and Nordstrom.com. This partnership is a result of Stryx's successful nationwide retail expansion in 2020, a 250% sales increase over the past year, and launch of the Stryx Bronzing Gel, made in partnership with Bravo celebrity Tom Sandoval.
H-E-B
Anise Cosmetics' national brands, Nail-Aid and Vegan Pure, will add Texas' largest supermarket chain. This expansion builds on the company's 16-year relationship with Walmart and adds to their 4600 door count.
