Versed is the first digitally incubated, conscious, drugstore skincare brand to debut exclusively in mass retail. The brand was born out of the need for clean skincare, designed for the modern millennial, that works and is accessible. Years of research showed that people were confused by and disappointed in skincare—they were buying more and more products and not seeing results. They wanted to use products that were better for their bodies and our planet but did not want to sacrifice efficacy (or shelf appeal) to do so. And they didn’t want to spend an arm and leg on their routine. Enter: Versed. Community co-created with over 85,342 of you (and counting), our mission is simple: Make clean products that perform for your skin, body, and planet. But we’re more than a vegan, cruelty-free skincare brand. We use proven, science-backed ingredients at skin-changing levels to deliver results you can see, feel, and feel good about. We bring sustainability into every decision we make. We’re committed to reducing waste, measuring and minimizing our carbon footprint, and preserving the earth’s ecosystems. We call ourselves Versed because, frankly, we're pretty well versed in skin, and we want you to be too.
Brand Founder: Katherine Power
Founded: 2019
Leadership:
2023 Full Year Expected Revenue Range: $30MM to $50MM
Categories: Skincare, Body Care
Distribution Channel: Mass, Drugstore, Amazon
Funding Rounds: Venture Capital
Total Funds Raised:
According to Pitchbook Versed raised a $11.6MM Series A in November 2019 and a seed round earlier that same year.
Notable Investors: Greycroft, LVMH
What are some of your key business initiatives for 2023?
We’re expanding in categories and footprint. More specifically, we'll be approaching the makeup category from a skincare-first perspective—think skincare-infused makeup. We’re also expanding SKUs within body and suncare—two categories our community has been clamoring for new innovation in. And in 2023, our global footprint will reach new regions with expansion into the Asia-Pacific region.
What has been the biggest surprise since the brand was founded?
It's been interesting to see which SKUs rise to the top. We, of course, have projections based on all of the community testing we do on every product we launch. But often what people say they want and what they actually buy differ. In an industry so driven by newness, we’ve been pleasantly surprised to see many of the SKUs in our original launch assortment remain top sellers. The fact that we sell one Dew Point Moisturizing Gel-Cream [one of said original launch SKUs] every minute is incredible.
What aspect of your brand DNA fuels your competitive advantage?
Our connection to our consumer is integral to our success. Our community is with us every step of the way, from concept ideation to formula testing, revisions, and approval; they even weigh in when it comes to naming our products. Their feedback is formally built in to our process with concept testing and formula trials as well as collected organically in what they tell us on social media. We have a private Facebook group (called The Good Skin Crowd (GSC)), composed of over 73,000 beauty lovers who we turn to for ideas, inspiration, and opinions. Let’s say we’re deciding between a pump and a tube for a product and experience and application are great either way; we'll take it to the GSC and ask which component they prefer. Within hours, we have a decision that directly reflects the community who will eventually shop this product in their local Target. At the root of everything we do, we are a community-driven brand. And, as a smaller, independent brand, we have the ability to act fast when they tell us what they want. We are uniquely positioned to be first-to-mass with timely innovation.
Please share your insight on the future of the beauty industry.
In a word: transparency. Clean, cruelty-free, vegan—all these things are table stakes now. Conscious consumerism is on the rise, and with it comes skepticism. Consumers are already comfortable asking what’s in a product; now they want to know where those ingredients came from, where the packaging came from, and who made it. They want substantiated claims over buzzy marketing phrases. And they deserve all of this. At Versed, you won’t find broad, vague statements like “recycled packaging” on any of our items but rather specific, verifiable statements like “Made with 86% PCR (post-consumer recycled) plastic.” The thirst for transparency extends beyond sourcing and product development. We get questions about and publish on site our employee representation numbers. Social media posts that give a peek behind the curtain, like those that show a glimpse into the design process or even bottles on an assembly line being filled, blow up our feeds. Similarly, when things don’t go according to plan, like say when a formula batch issue is discovered late in the game, our community is incredibly gracious when we communicate those issues directly. We’re not perfect. Nobody’s perfect. Being transparent and accountable means showing the good and the not-so-good and being consistent in doing so. It’s something that’s been in our brand’s DNA since day one. Over the years, we’ve seen the more we share, the more encouragement we get from the community.
Paying it forward, what advice would you give to someone contemplating launching a beauty brand?
When it comes to retailer distribution, go narrow and deep. Have a focused approach, and those retailer relationships will serve you well.
If you could change one thing in the beauty industry, what would it be?
We need more collaboration in the multibillion dollar beauty industry. We are advocates for collaboration over competition.
Collaboration is powerful—there's no denying that.
When significant climate policy was being decided, Versed led a collective of more than 200 beauty brands and allies to collaborate on and advocate for solutions to climate change through the CodeRed4Climate campaign [September 2021]. We executed a massive digital activation that went beyond awareness. We wanted to mobilize our communities in key climate policy, using the legislative budget cycle to tilt our system towards course correction. Our goal was to ignite the inner activist in our community members by asking them to join us in a manageable but meaningful action—calling lawmakers to ask them to support critical climate policy. The campaign reached 40 million people, resulted in thousands of calls to Congress, and even two meetings with the White House.
Last year, in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Saie Beauty led 35+ brands (including Versed) in The Every Body Campaign in support of reproductive freedom. It was the largest beauty industry-backed reproductive justice initiative in history. The campaign reached 65 million people, and we blew through our goal of raising 100,000 in just four days.
Campaigns like these show the wild potential we have when we work together.
