Beauty founders Ben Gorham of fragrance label Byredo, and Monique Rodriguez of hair care brand Mielle Organics, both took their businesses from indie beauty darlings with cult followings to high-profile exits to major conglomerates: Byredo sold to Spanish luxury giant Puig for $1 billion in 2022, while Procter & Gamble bought Mielle Organics earlier this year.
But the two founders didn’t start their businesses with the sole focus of cashing in quickly. “We live in a climate where expectations are that you start a company and you build it to great heights, and then you sell it, and you make lots of money. And this is how we define success stories,” said Gorham. “For me, for many years, it was really about just the craft. It was really about the product. It was really about learning how to operate a business.”
As Rodriguez learned after building a loyal customer base, a sale impacts many other stakeholders. “When you build a brand in the Black community, it's not my brand, it's their brand,” said Rodriguez. Yet she doesn’t downplay the personal importance of the exit. “It's a true testament to - especially as a Black woman, a woman of colour - what we build is very valuable… I didn't grow up seeing this. So to accomplish just having a conversation [with investors, including P&G] was rewarding for me,” she said.
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