Launched: 2019

Key Executives

• Dr. Iris Rubin, Co-Founder + Chief Medical Officer
• Gregory Maged, Co-Founder + CEO
• James Jacobe, COO

2025 Full Year Expected Revenue Range: $20 to $30 million according to industry experts.

2025 Projected Offline Distribution Points: 1,400

Primary Category: Haircare

Other Categories: Skincare, Bodycare

Key Markets: United States, Canada

Retail Partnerships: Ulta Beauty, Amazon, Dermstore

Primary Distribution Channel: DTC

Other Distribution Channels: Amazon, Prestige, Professional

Funding Rounds: Venture Capital 

• In 2024, Seen raised a fully subscribed $9 million Series A funding round.

Notable Investors / Funding Partners: 

Mitch Rales, Co-Founder of Danaher Corporation

Somerville SPV, led by acclaimed investor Feroz Dewan

Sator Grove Holdings, a permanent capital investor

George Mrkonic, a Board Director of Ulta Beauty 

Dr. Rox Anderson at Harvard/Massachusetts General Research Institute

Accelerator Program: Sparked at Ulta Beauty

As a dermatologist, I saw countless patients facing skin concerns like acne, eczema, and irritation, without ever realizing that their haircare products could be a contributing factor. I myself was experiencing breakouts that I traced back to my haircare products. When I dug deeper, I found that the beauty industry often overlooked the connection between hair products and skin health. I knew there had to be a better way to get beautiful hair without compromising my skin.

That’s why we developed SEEN—a haircare line designed to promote healthy skin and healthy hair. To us, it’s not just about creating great hair days but also about empowering people to feel confident and comfortable in their own skin; to feel better being seen.

My co-founder, Greg, and I set out to create a haircare line that is not only dermatologically tested just like the best skincare products but also free from ingredients that can clog your pores or irritate the skin. It took us 4+ years and countless formulation iterations to bring SEEN to life with our initial products: SEEN Shampoo, Conditioner, and Blow-Out Creme. As a result of our high formulation standards and focus on performance, SEEN is an award-winning and science-backed line that’s truly good for the skin while providing the real everyday joys of gorgeous hair, healthy skin, and improved confidence.

Insights provided by Dr. Iris Rubin, Co-Founder + Chief Medical Officer

Key business initiatives for 2025?

We will continue to establish SEEN as the go-to haircare brand for patients with sensitive skin, acne, eczema, scalp issues, and hair shedding. SEEN is dermatologist-designed and dermatologist-recommended and we will continue to expand our dermatology and esthetician partnerships from 5,000 today to 10,000 in 2025.

By infusing skin science into everything we do, SEEN is raising the bar and redefining the skinification of hair, while giving consumers a greater sense of relief and confidence. We have an exciting innovation pipeline, which includes hair products as well as skin products. We plan to offer head-to-toe solutions for all skin types, including sensitive, acne-prone, and eczema-prone skin. These products will be available across our channel partners, including Ulta Beauty, where we are expanding our presence and investing even more deeply in our relationship.

What are you most proud of having accomplished?

We are immensely proud of the incredible reaction we’ve received from customers, many of whom report that SEEN has been “life-changing” and “game-changing” for them. For years, those of us with skin sensitivities have been told that our skin is the problem when, in fact, the issue often stems from the products we’re using.

SEEN has been widely embraced by the dermatologist community, with 5,000 dermatologists and estheticians referring SEEN to their patients, because of our clean, science-based, dermatologist-developed formulations and clinically proven efficacy. Very few premium brands can claim to be carried in and recommended by medical practices and also be sold in specialty retail distribution. Many of the dermatologists who refer SEEN to patients actually have our products in their showers.

In addition, we are proud of the partnership we’ve built with Ulta Beauty. When they initially DM’ed us on Instagram because they saw us leading the skinification of hair, it was clear they believed in our vision for SEEN as much as we did. Since partnering with Ulta, we’ve consistently surpassed its sales projections for SEEN.

Our recent Series A in September 2024 was a significant milestone for SEEN as it will enable us to continue to accelerate our growth. The funding will support innovation, expansion of our professional sampling to 10,000 dermatology practices in 2025, and growth in our retail footprint, including at Ulta.

What has been the biggest surprise?

We launched SEEN with three SKUs, all of which were scented. About a year after launch, we explored with advisors and people we had met in the industry—including formulators, marketers, channel partners, and beauty industry leaders—whether we should launch a fragrance-free version of our products. Given our focus on people with skin issues (acne, sensitive skin), we thought a fragrance-free option might appeal to people with skin sensitivities. Everyone we spoke with counseled us not to do it. They said scent is well-known to be a key purchase attribute of haircare, and that fragrance-free is a small niche. We considered the input and decided to proceed in offering a fragrance-free option. Fragrance-free soon jumped to be a significant share of our total sales. Today, all SEEN products are offered fragrance-free (and carry the National Eczema Seal of Acceptance), and most are offered with a scented version.

What fuels your competitive advantage?

SEEN is redefining haircare by addressing the connection between hair, scalp, and skin health. Traditional hair products leave residue on the skin—on the scalp, face, back, and body—through transfer in the shower, on towels or pillowcases, and from long hair brushing against the skin. This can clog pores or irritate the skin.

SEEN offers a solution with clean, dermatologically developed, and clinically tested formulas that deliver a luxury haircare experience without compromising skin health. Our Epidermal Rebalancing Technology (ERT) uses skin-friendly ingredients to strengthen and smooth hair while promoting healthier skin. By avoiding common irritants, SEEN reduces breakouts and improves scalp conditions, providing beautiful hair without compromise.

Dermatological science shapes every SEEN formulation, and dermatologists are integral to our strategy. A dedicated team supports outreach, ensuring professionals have the tools to incorporate SEEN into their patient care. The response has been exceptional—after posting about our latest launch in a dermatologist Facebook group, over 100 professionals requested samples within 48 hours. Many now use SEEN themselves, underscoring the trust and efficacy of our products.

SEEN is more than haircare—it’s a breakthrough in holistic skin wellness, delivering visible results for sensitive skin and redefining what it means to care for hair and skin together.

Insight on the future of the beauty industry.

Being clean is table stakes for any new haircare brand. It’s clear that discerning consumers will increasingly expect higher performance from their beauty products, including their haircare. Science matters, especially to the extent that it contributes to “better for you” performance. As consumers become more aware of the impact of haircare on scalp and skin health, dermatologist-developed brands like SEEN will benefit.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given?

Early in our launch journey, we met with a long-time beauty industry leader who recounted advice they had received from an industry icon: you have one opportunity to launch so make sure the products are excellent. We’ve taken this to heart from that day.

As a young brand, it’s easy to feel pressure to launch quickly in order to start generating revenue or to meet the demands of a retail partner. In our case, we try to push back on the pressure and stay true to this advice. We are relentless in perfecting our formulas, often to the frustration of our chemists who may submit 30 or more versions of a product before we accept and finalize the formula. All SEEN products go through comprehensive hair and skin testing, so it’s important that we get the formulas right out of the gate because the financial and time cost of redoing tests, especially skin testing to ensure a product is noncomedogenic and safe for sensitive skin, is high.

In our early days, I was testing every formula directly on my skin to ensure that I wouldn’t break out or have other issues. We would rather have a smaller number of outstanding products vs. a larger collection of so-so products.

What is the best mistake you've ever made and what did you learn?

Early on, we hired a chief marketing officer before we had earned the right to do so. We quickly realized that while the person we hired was a wonderful human being, they weren’t the right fit for us as a very young company. The experience made us much more thoughtful about who we hired, the skills we needed, and the attitudes we wanted to bring on board. A single person can have a significant impact on an organization of any size, but it’s especially true of a small company. It’s important to us that we hire people who are excellent, accountable, fun, and at the right point in their career for a company of our size. It was helpful to learn these lessons early.

What advice would you give to someone contemplating launching a beauty brand?

We would offer two points of advice: (1) launch with a partner who brings complementary skills, and (2) only launch when you really believe your product or service has a clear point of differentiation.

Building a business is hard. Having a partner with shared values and complementary skills can help load-balance the work and solve issues, and often leads to a better outcome since a partner may think from angles that you may not. It also is more fun to have a partner than starting something on one's own.

Even with the right launch team, it’s important to validate that your product has a clear point of differentiation. Beauty is a crowded space, and it’s easy to become lost in the noise. A clear path of differentiation provides a reference point for the brand’s marketing and positioning, makes it easier to hire top talent, and improves the odds of landing a big channel partner. For example, the differentiation for SEEN lies in our being dermatologist-designed haircare that applies skin science to deliver your healthiest skin and hair.

If you could change one thing in the beauty industry what would it be?

Consumers are often led to believe that their hair or skin is problematic. In reality, many of the issues people have are exacerbated, if not caused, by products they’re using. It’s not just a practical problem; it’s an emotional one that can deeply impact a person’s self-esteem and confidence. We named our brand SEEN because our mission is to help people feel better being SEEN for their best self. Often people may be affected by products, and ingredients in those products, that they never previously associated with their hair or skin issue. I often see the lightbulb turning on when I’m sharing with people the results of a study we did that showed that hair products, including “rinse-off” products like shampoo, can leave a residue on the skin even hours after initial application.

For many people, less is often more, and they are better off using products that are clean, clinically validated, and, to reference a core medical principle, strive to, at a minimum, do no harm.