Launched: 2004
Founder:
Key Executives:
2024 Full Year Expected Revenue Range: $50 to $75 million
Offline points of distribution projected globally for 2024:
600 (not including amenities)
Primary Beauty Category: Skincare
Other Beauty Categories: Body Care, Fragrance
Key Markets:
Retail Partnerships:
Primary Distribution Channel: DTC
Other Distribution Channels:
Funding Rounds: Private Equity
Notable Investors / Funding Partners: Manzanita Capital
Notable Advisors / Board Members:
The brand was born in New York. The founders developed a line of products that could simplify their routine that they could both share (knowing their respective skin types and conditions were extreme opposites) and with limited bathroom real estate available based on living in New York City. And all other aspects of why and how these products were created have a strong relevance and differentiation 20 years later: an uncomplicated, two-step, efficacious cleanse and hydrate approach for scalp, face, and hair rooted in apothecary principles, products that live in every room of your space, and can be shared with everyone you live with (partner, roommate, guest); and that is truly genderless while suited for the most sensitive skin. Twenty years later the same essentials the brand was built on remain the essentials relevant to consumers' needs and aspirations.
Insight provided by Brad Horowitz, CEO Malin + Goetz
What are your key business initiatives for 2024?
Expansion of our retail footprint, further growth of our e-commerce, and expansion of the brand assortment into new categories.
What are you most proud of having accomplished?
Consistent growth rate above the industry standards and strong talent acquisition and retention, plus the brand globalization.
What has been the biggest surprise?
How much we don't need to change anything about the brand proposition in terms of positioning, product assortment, pricing, and customer-facing messaging. All those elements are as strongly relevant today as they were 20 years ago when the brand was founded.
What fuels your competitive advantage?
Being conceived, designed, and executed as a lifestyle brand (not a beauty proposition). Being designed to be genderless and having an equal split consumer base among genders today. Being designed and executed uniquely for the lifestyle of people living in city environments and with consideration of the specificities (challenges, constraints, and aspirations). Having design as the heart of our brand ethos and everything we do. The uniqueness of our scent profile and olfactive expression. Being discoverable through amenities and having therefore the opportunity to play in spaces where other brands can't.
Please share your insight on the future of the beauty industry.
A continued fragmentation of the industry resulting in the barrier to entry being much lower. The importance of sustainability to meet consumers' aspirations and its impact on formulating product propositions, plus being creative in the supply chain efficiency. The continuous regulatory challenges with globalization and expansion. The rise and opportunity of biotech. The potential impact of AI.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Looking behind is equally as important as looking to where you're going. Learning and aperture of lens: Don't just focus on details but also widen your perspective and look at the bigger picture.
What is the best mistake you've ever made?
Expanding distribution too quickly and not having the resources to support it, which led me to have a greater appreciation for learning to focus the organization and doing fewer things better and yielding more impact. There is always opportunity for distribution expansion, but it's important to be cautious to not chase too many opportunities so as to not exhaust the company capital. It is key to weigh between immediate gratification vs sustained and more durable impact.
Paying it forward, what advice would you give to someone contemplating launching a beauty brand?
To make sure you have an own-able white space, clearly filling a need. And have a story to tell and keep telling consistently and compellingly with great content. Focus on what is your unique selling proposition. Be mindful of how you select your distribution model and don't neglect supply chain and operational efficiency.
If you could change one thing in the beauty industry what would it be?
The lack of universal alignment in regulatory standards globally causes a lot of challenges and creates increased stresses on supply chain.
