Key Takeaways:
After 15 years of collaboration, Urban Decay has ended its longstanding partnership with Skindinavia, the indie brand behind the cult-favorite formula that powered the blockbuster Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray. The news broke at the start of this week on Skindinavia’s Instagram, following several social media posts from Urban Decay about the product's relaunch and reformulation, much to the industry’s surprise, most of all to Skindinavia founder Allen Goldman.
Once the news was out, devoted fans of the original All-Nighter Setting Spray immediately flocked to Skindinavia’s Instagram, showering Goldman’s post with almost 3K comments and over 100K likes, as of press time, with messages of loyalty and love.
Meanwhile, on Urban Decay’s Instagram, Skindinavia supporters flooded the cosmetic brand’s posts promoting its new setting spray (formulated without Skindinavia), leaving comments that expressed outrage at Urban Decay’s decision to cut ties with Goldman. “For a large company like yourself, putting down a small business that helped you build the loyal clientele you have is a wild choice,” said one commenter, while another declared, “No, we don’t want it after what y'all did to Skindinavia."
In an interview with BeautyMatter, Goldman shares the story behind the innovation, the fallout, and what’s next for Skindinavia.
From Bachelor Party to Global Bestseller
Goldman traces the origin of his patented cooling finishing spray technology to a meeting with a raw material supplier over lunch in 2007. “We were sitting at a restaurant outside of Boston, [the supplier] put a thermometer into a glass on the table, and the temperature started dropping, 70 degrees [Fareneheit], 60 degrees, 55 degrees. It sat there for a while … and I was fascinated by it, but at that time I had no idea what to do with it.”
A few months later, Goldman’s “aha” moment landed while poolside at a bachelor party as he watched a woman’s makeup melt in the Miami heat. “I don't know why it hit me at the time, but for some reason, I thought, ‘Boy, I wonder what would happen if you put this cooling fluid on top of her makeup. What are the chances it could work?'”
Having no background in cosmetics, Goldman called Ulta Beauty and pitched his cooling technology to an executive. “I said, ‘If I come up with a product that stops makeup from melting, would you buy it?’” And of course, they did.
By 2008, Skindinavia landed in Ulta Beauty with its trademark product, The Makeup Finishing Spray. Early traction came not from marketing, but from word-of-mouth among professional makeup artists. Goldman recalls a trade show in LA, where he met celebrity makeup artist Sharon Gault, who confirmed to him that she used the product on a broad range of celebrities, including Madonna.
However, despite affirmation of trust in the SKU from professionals, Goldman admitted there was a struggle regarding consumer interest at Ulta Beauty once the recession hit. “At the time, I thought, ‘This stuff works, but there is clearly something I’m doing wrong. Maybe I’m not getting the marketing right, maybe I’m not telling the story well enough … maybe the packaging stinks?'”
After a year at Ulta Beauty, sales were flat, and the ultimate decision was made to cut the product from shelves, despite the retailer seeing its potential. At that point, Goldman pitched to Sephora, but they declined based on the product having had a stint at Ulta Beauty.
“I figured then we were going to go out of business,” Goldman explained. “But every once in a while, I was getting these inklings not to give up, based on stories of the product really working.”
He noted a showgirl in Vegas, who requested the product after struggling to keep her makeup in place. “I turned to her and said, 'I’m not sure it's meant for that type of abuse, but sure, let me know how it goes.'” The next day, a praising email landed in his inbox, explaining that after four shows in 105-degrees Fahrenheit heat, the performer did not have to touch up her makeup once.
“That cemented it to me that this product is unbelievable. I knew I had something, but again, I didn't know how to sell it. Until a 2008 Ulta Beauty Charity Golf Tournament …”
Enter Urban Decay: A Lifeline and a Launchpad
A serendipitous meeting at Ulta Beauty’s 2008 Charity Golf Tournament introduced Goldman to Urban Decay’s Head of Sales at the time, Eric Jimenez, and his husband, General Manager of Urban Decay, Tim Warner. The pair expressed their love for the product and informed Goldman that they would use the Finishing Spray at Urban Decay makeup stations on the West Coast.
“I was sending about 24 bottles at a time for what it cost to make. It wasn’t about the money,” said Goldman. “It was a real honor. After that, I was still failing as a brand and pretty much close to being out of business, so I had an idea …” After a pitch meeting with Urban Decay founder Wende Zomnir and the product development team, the deal was sealed. “I said, ‘Wende, you take this and sell it to Sephora and Ulta [Beauty].”
Beginning with a $100,000 order for 25,000 units, the partnership was firmly in place, and to Goldman's humble surprise, it only grew from there. “At the time, it [the partnership] allowed me to get my mortgage up to date and breathe, said Goldman, who thought he probably wouldn’t hear from Urban Decay again because he had no idea if the product would “sell forever.” But within a month or so, Urban Decay was back to order five times its initial numbers, doubling up again with each year to come.
“Within the partnership's first year, they were selling a few 100,000 units,” Goldman recalled. “They said this stuff blew out, and it became what I believe was either number one or top fiver at least at Ulta [Beauty], Sephora, and Urban Decay globally for the entire 2010s … it was incredible and it changed my life dramatically.”
Goldman clarified his strong relationship with Urban Decay during the 2010s. “Wende and the team there treated me with nothing but respect. These are good people. They were innovative. They took chances. They paid their bills, we had no issues.”
During this golden period, Goldman said he started getting calls from big distributors. “We got calls directly from Sephora at the time and received direct calls from other major retailers.”
L’Oréal Acquisition Changes the Game
When L’Oréal acquired Urban Decay in 2012, a year after Goldman had patented his product, it opened international doors—but also brought new pressure. The industry became more saturated than ever, making it more difficult to compete in the space. “By 2019, the market was so full that the category of setting sprays was no longer just ours,” Goldman explained. “A bunch of competitors came in, and they [Urban Decay] were under some pricing pressures to make their numbers for L’Oréal.”
As a result, L’Oréal proposed manufacturing Skindinavia’s formula in-house under a royalty agreement. Goldman initially resisted, citing loyalty to his longtime Pennsylvania factory and fear of losing control over the formula. Ultimately, he agreed after securing his manufacturer's blessing.
“I said to him [the manufacturer], I will only do it with your approval,” Goldman recalls. “To which he said, ‘Give me a year and I’ll train them [L’Oréal].’ Thankfully, that deal ended up saving their rear end during COVID when it was difficult for independent factories to get their labor in while social distancing.”
Goldman shared that shortly after the royalty agreement, L’Oréal moved Urban Decay’s headquarters to a new building in Orange County, California. During the 60-mile move, only a few team members remained at the cosmetic company with whom he had a relationship. The founder explained that it was during this timeframe that he began to be "blindsided" by the brand.
“To be honest, I don't think anyone retained the brand legacy and the brand story. As time went on, I tried to get in there and kept telling them things from my end, sharing the story and new ideas, but the doors were kind of closed. At present, I have not spoken to product development at Urban Decay in four or five years. I have a list of outgoing emails. Some even say, ‘Are you still there?’”
After several attempts to speak with Urban Decay, Goldman was told the brand was solely focusing on color cosmetics for the time being.
A Breakdown of Trust
In 2023, Goldman began noticing clear signs of turbulence in the partnership between Skindinavia and Urban Decay. Urban Decay launched new setting sprays—including the vitamin C and watermelon variations—without Skindinavia’s involvement.
“I saw the products come out, and I said, ‘Guys, what are you doing? You’re launching this without me, and now we're weird competitors. We have this legendary product. Our agreement is to work together,’” said Goldman, who believed that any Urban Decay setting spray development was part of the longstanding partnership. But Urban Decay declined to involve Goldman and Skindinavia.
The founder fairly gives credit where credit is due. “At the same time, with all due respect to them, they were paying me. They gave me a forecast. So, it was still lucrative, but there was no working relationship.”
For a while, Goldman took a step back from trying to communicate with the brand about any new products. He attributes Urban Decay’s decision to develop new products without him to L'Oréal's pride. “This is nothing but my opinion, but I think cutting a royalty check was very atypical of L’Oréal. They have a huge research department, and it was probably painful to cut someone like me a check every quarter for innovation, when they could just attempt to do it themselves.”
The Beginning of the End
In February of 2025, Goldman became aware of what he calls “the first inkling the relationship was over,” when a vendor called him to ask why there had been several cancelled orders for raw materials, of which he knew nothing about. After hearing several more rumblings of other cancellations, he had a strong feeling the partnership would cease to exist by the end of the year, but instead of bringing it up, he chose to focus on what he would do next with the business should this be the outcome.
“I was thinking, I have this patented product. They can't do the same thing, so there's going to be customers who wants it, and I know where they are. But I'm not in Sephora. I'm not in Ulta [Beauty]. I'm not in these global chains. How do I serve them?"
In early May 2025, Goldman confronted Urban Decay. A week after contact, he received a call from a team member at the brand who had been authorized to share the news, but could not give a date other than “within the year.” Goldman explained that the contract between the two companies stated he was to be informed of termination six months in advance, as well as given an official 90-day notice.
In the weeks following his initial conversation with Urban Decay, Goldman reached out again, emphasizing the urgency of clarity. Shortly after, he received formal notice. First came the six-month termination window, then, a week later, the official 90-day notice—bringing the timeline to roughly two weeks before the news broke publicly on social media of Urban Decay’s setting spray reformulation.
With the writing on the wall, Goldman immediately began outreach to retailers. “I said, hey, just for feedback—what do you guys think?” The responses he received underscored how imminent the change was. “They told me, ‘Allen, this is really around the corner.’”
By the following week, the writing wasn’t just on the wall—it was on social media. “Friends started forwarding me posts from Urban Decay teasing a relaunch, and I thought, what is going on here? Why are we reformulating? Why would you even do that to such a product?”
What he saw next stunned him: marketing language referencing “temperature control technology.” “I’m like, wait a minute—that’s our patent. That’s our whole business, going back to 2007.” When he first pitched the concept to Urban Decay, Goldman recalls saying, “This is how you keep makeup in place: you cool it. Everyone else seals it. You cool it. That’s why this works.”
The promotional content only escalated the frustration. “Then I saw a post trashing the old formula, saying the sprayer was better now; the product was better; complaints about the original. And I’m like, guys … we have 50,000 five-star reviews. We’re in Allure’s Best of Beauty Hall of Fame. This is a product that’s been used and trusted for 15 years.”
The shift in messaging felt not only personal but disrespectful to Goldman. “I’m reading it and thinking, ‘What is going on here?’ If you want to innovate, fine. If you think our stuff’s outdated, let’s talk about it—we’re partners. Even if you don’t want to work with me anymore, there’s a way to end things with mutual respect. Respect for the customer. Respect for the story. Respect for each other.”
Instead, Goldman said he felt under attack. “When I saw that [Instagram] post, I knew I couldn’t stay silent.”
Speaking Out, Standing Firm
Goldman's decision to break his silence wasn’t an easy one. “There are influencers with 10M TikTok followers being presented as the new face of this product. If I don’t say something now, I’ll be drowned out,” he thought to himself.
When the founder wrote up his now-viral Instagram post, he took the day to be thoughtful about it “I asked myself, Is it truthful? Is there anything mean about it? Is it ethically appropriate? Does it violate our agreement? Is it fair? And I said yes to them all. I thought this story needed to be told.”
Goldman paused in the interview to gather his thoughts and emphasize, “I don’t want this to sound like a ‘poor me’ story. I’m fine. I’ve saved [money]. I’m okay no matter what. That’s not the point—I’m not telling this story for sympathy.”
Goldman affirmed the three things that drove his decision to share the story. First, a responsibility to small businesses. “I have no issue with big business. If you’re successful, great. But you do have a responsibility to play fair. This isn’t just your customer; my name is on the bottle too. You brought the marketing and distribution. I brought the innovation.”
Second, he thought of the makeup artists and loyal consumers who’ve trusted the product for years, particularly for special occasions like weddings. “I don’t know this new formula. I’m not going to endorse a copycat just to protect someone else’s margin. These people trust me—and I won’t let them down.”
Third and final, as a good business owner does, he thought about protecting his own team. “I’ve got people who work for me. Vendors we buy from. Jobs that depend on this business. I speak for them, too.”
As Skindinavia’s post gained traction—reaching hundreds of thousands of people within days—Goldman says he was surprised, but also moved, and hopeful for the future.
“First, I want to thank everyone who’s reached out with kind words. That’s the priority. Then, I want people to know they can still get the original product—direct from us. And after that, we’ll see. We’re already starting conversations with potential new partners, and I think there’s still a lot of runway ahead, but that’s definitely the best idea for us.”
Despite the setback, Goldman isn’t planning to stray from his hero product. “I don’t need to make a foundation. I don’t need to make lipstick. I make one product. And I want to make it better than anyone else.”
He added, “Makeup isn’t vanity—it’s identity. It’s the face you put on every day. And for the people who’ve counted on us for 15 years, I’m not going to risk handing them something with a different formula and hoping it works. That’s not what we do.”
As it searches for its next potential partner, Skindinavia will continue to market The Makeup Finishing Spray DTC, much to fans delight, including Instagram user @kontrajunkie, who pleaded on Urban Decay’s launch post “Please, please, please, don’t ruin what’s already perfect.” Going forward, Goldman's mission is clear: Stay focused, stay small, and stay true to the innovation that started it all.
*BeautyMatter has reached out to Urban Decay and L’Oréal for comment
