Key Takeaways:
At BeautyMatter, we believe the company you keep matters, and the group that came out to celebrate the best of what’s next in beauty at the 2025 NEXT50 Summit in Los Angeles showed just how powerful the right room of people can be. From founders and formulators to investors and retailers, the room was filled with the people who all have a role to play in shaping the industry’s future—and from where we’re standing, the future of beauty looks as bright as the Los Angeles sun.
This year, BeautyMatter hosted its inaugural Brand M.B.A Bootcamp the day before the summit exclusively for early-stage brands, focusing on the levers that matter most: money, business, and amplification. Built by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, the half-day boot camp delivered essential insights and practical tools to help founders make smarter, faster decisions. Modules covered how organic social, paid campaigns, influencer partnerships, and affiliate programs work together to drive full-funnel growth; strategies for expanding into the European market; the mechanics of retailer exclusivity agreements; and alternative paths to fundraising.
Later that night at the NEXT50 Dinner, attendees mingled over cocktails and multiple courses at Bavel in downtown Los Angeles ahead of the main event. The seating chart was curated with intent, placing complementary expertise at every table to spark real conversations and surface opportunities. By dessert, calendars were filling with follow-ups, and more than a few partnerships were already in motion.
When the doors opened at City Market Social House at 8 a.m. on Thursday, October 23, the room was buzzing with beauty founders, executives, and entrepreneurs eager to dive into a day of connection and learning. After a warm welcome from BeautyMatter co-founders Kelly Kovack and John Cafarelli, Senior Editor Janna Mandell kicked things off with a candid chat on what it takes to break through at Sephora. Carolyn Bojanowski, EVP of Merchandising at Sephora, pulled back the curtain on how the retailer evaluates potential brand partners, while founders Charlotte Palermino of Dieux and Nikki DeRoest of ciele shared the founder-side realities of launch, support, and scaling at Sephora.
Speaking about how the retailer collaborates with emerging brands to develop products that succeed on store shelves, Bojanowski said she wasn’t looking for “yes” founders. “I don’t expect founders to take all my advice, and I don’t want them to.”
Other panel discussions included a candid conversation on the utility of AI and how beauty brands should (and shouldn’t) use it, as well as how indie brands can thrive in today’s fragmented shopper landscape, moderated by Christopher Skinner, Chief Revenue Officer of Front Row. Cafarelli led a refreshingly frank conversation on what it truly takes to bootstrap with the CEOs of Kitsch, Innersense Organic Beauty, and Maison Louis Marie. Mandell closed the loop with a discussion on building customer trust amid constant cultural whiplash, featuring leaders from Song Candy Media, Fazit, and DECIEM.
Regulatory updates from the Independent Beauty Association (IBA) have become a standing feature of BeautyMatter summits, and for good reason. As Kovack quipped, those who stayed for the fireside chat with Dr. Akemi Ooka, Interim CEO of the IBA, were “the smart ones.” Ooka underscored that the most urgent items on brand radars should be state-by-state packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws, which differ in scope, timelines, and reporting requirements. Deadlines are approaching across multiple jurisdictions. In Vermont, for example, companies producing certain toxic products must register with the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources by November 1, 2025.
While the panels delivered education, the SuperMarket was the hub for discovery. Part showroom, part playground, attendees curated their own swag bag, taking only what truly sparked their interest, including products from NEXT50 brands like Aora Mexico, Good Light, Luna Bronze, and Hanni. An on-site shipping station, sponsored by PIMS, kept the experience frictionless: Guests boxed their picks and sent them straight to their home or office, avoiding the hassle of overstuffed carry-ons and sore shoulders.
After a mid-day break for lunch and networking, the room filled fast for BeautyMatter’s Person(s) of the Year: Alexis Androulakis and Dr. Christina Basias Androulakis, better known as The Lipstick Lesbians. The fireside chat, moderated by Kovack, delved into why their work cuts through the noise of today’s crowded social media landscape and how brands can replicate the Lipstick Lesbians' formula to better connect with their community. According to Alexis, the biggest catalyst for successful content is consistency. The Lipstick Lesbians posted three videos a day for a year to engage their audience, which they say helped them discover their niche amid the sea of sameness in beauty content.
Despite the proliferation of new product launches, the Lipstick Lesbians argued that consumers are still hungry for more—but that doesn’t necessarily mean more newness. “They want more of the story. More of the why. They want to know everything, and they want more education and transparency,” said Androulakis.
Speaking to a room full of beauty founders and executives, Androulakis ended the conversation with a simple but inspired rallying cry: “Let’s dare to be bold in 2026 … Let your innovation wings fly again. Let’s teach consumers how to enjoy products in different ways, so that we’re not just giving them the same thing over and over again.”
The excitement continued as leaders from SpaceNK and Douglas discussed how true international expansion demands more than distribution; it also requires cultural fluency, digital integration, and localized curation to build relevance across markets. In a panel on building brands that matter, moderated by Kovack, founders from Good Light Cosmetics, True Botanicals, and Maude explored how purpose-driven brands can align profit with impact, emphasizing that authenticity and consistent action—not slogans—create lasting loyalty and meaningful growth.
The day ended with a panel on what happens after a brand goes viral on TikTok and how brands transform that momentum into lasting brand relevance, moderated by BeautyMatter Editor Cristina Montemayor. Ajay Salpekar, General Manager of Beauty for TikTok Shop US, spoke alongside executives from The Beachwaver Co. and Wonderskin, offering insights into TikTok Shop’s role in the beauty retail landscape and what it takes for a TikTok-native brand to succeed at the brick-and-mortar retailer level.
BeautyMatter’s NEXT50 Summit was a testament to the power of community. Individually, we each make an impact, but when we come together, we can drive the entire industry forward faster. Over two days, founders, executives, investors, and innovators came together to exchange ideas, challenge assumptions, and celebrate the next generation of beauty brands. From the hands-on learning of the Brand M.B.A. Bootcamp to the big-picture conversations onstage and informal one-on-ones in the networking room, every moment was engineered for connection. Attendees told BeautyMatter they felt like they could talk to anyone in the room; there was no hierarchy, just a friendly, open community eager to compare notes and collaborate.
BeautyMatter NEXT only happens once every year, but the impact lasts far beyond the one day of programming.
“I talked to three brands who had leaps and bounds growth in a year,” said April Uchitel, CEO and founder of The Board. “They were so thrilled to share their success stories from who they met at BeautyMatter.”
If you weren't able to attend in person, we've got you covered. Over the next week, we'll publish detailed summaries of all the panel discussions held at the summit. You'll get key takeaways, thought-provoking quotes, and highlights of the major trends and topics covered.
Stay tuned to BeautyMatter for your exclusive recap of the NEXT50 Summit and catch up on everything you missed.
