New World Natural Brands adds men’s grooming to its growing portfolio with the acquisition of Prohibition-inspired 18.21 Man Made.
WHO: Founded by professional haircare veterans Angel del Solar, Aston LaFon, and David del Solar, 18.21 Man Made is a men’s grooming company that draws inspiration from Prohibition-era bootlegging in America. Their products contain fragrances such as their signature Sweet Tobacco.
New World Natural Brands is a well-financed, nimble holding company comprised of a unique portfolio of microbrands and niche companies in the beauty and personal care segment. Their portfolio consists of Baetea, Baebody Beauty, Suki, and Nugg.
WHY: 18.21 Man Made expands New World Natural Brands’ portfolio into the men’s grooming category while also adding product and sales channel diversification.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: “The team at 18.21 Man Made is honored that New World Natural Brands shares our aspirations to Spoil Him with 18.21’s top-shelf grooming goods,” 18.21 co-founder Aston LaFon said. “We are grateful to gain New World’s commitment, resources and expertise which, will elevate our brand offering, strengthen our distribution relationships, overcome key challenges and provide the business with a better chance to scale quicker and more efficiently. We are happy to celebrate every customer that has or will contribute to the growth of 18.21 along this journey; thank you all for making this dream a reality.”
“We are delighted to announce the acquisition of 18.21 Man Made, the dynamic fast-growing premium male grooming brand that is beloved by consumers. The 18.21 Man Made brand has experienced incredible growth momentum in the professional, specialty beauty and online channels,” Shannon Curtin, CEO of New World Natural Brands, said. “We see tremendous value creation ahead through our existing channels as well as new international markets. New World’s strong capabilities and expertise in every channel of distribution will enable 18.21 Man Made to reach its full potential. We are thrilled to welcome Angel, Aston, David and the entire 18.21 Man Made team into the NWNB family.”
“None of us has a history of scaling a business to let’s say $50 million. We have taken the business from the truck of a Prius to a warehouse, have earned customers like Ulta and Macy’s, and are doing $4 million a year in business, which is great as an indie brand, but there’s a lot of gentlemen out there. How do we speak to all these guys? We had limited capabilities and to expand the team takes cash flow,” LaFon told Beauty Independent. “New World and the investors behind it have a history of taking micro-businesses and scaling them to be large businesses.”
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