12.12.23
Sephora North America has named the eight BIPOC brand founders who will join its 2024 Accelerate program, a longstanding brand incubator that supports emerging beauty businesses spanning the hair care, makeup, skincare and fragrance categories.
Revisit last year’s cohort.
The program features a 360-degree, six-month curriculum with mentorship, merchandising support, grants, and investor connections for all participants, with the opportunity to launch at Sephora North America upon completion.
“We are thrilled to reveal the 2024 finalists of the Accelerate program and officially welcome them to the Sephora family,” shared Kristin Odegaard, Sr. Director, Merchandising Strategy and Business Development at Sephora. “This year, we received more than 800 applications – a record-setting number of applications in Accelerate program history – which we believe is a testament to the unique and differentiated curriculum we’re able to offer, plus the strength of our community. Accelerate continues to serve as a vehicle for discovering, cultivating, and even launching these amazing brands that represent so many of our clients and the world today, while providing meaningful support for growing brands to continue to succeed well beyond the program’s completion.”
The 2024 Sephora Accelerate Cohort includes:
With a continued focus on building community and collaboration across the beauty industry, the program features weekly content and curriculum that aims to prepare brands for long-term success, with sessions such as Nancy Twine’s (Briogeo) Financial Readiness; Vicky Tsai’s (Tatcha) Brand + Assortment Strategy; Christine Chang + Sarah Lee’s (Glow Recipe) Social Media + Community; and Marketing Sessions with Amy Liu (Tower 28).
The 2024 Accelerate class will also receive access to 1:1 personalized consulting with Front Row and Clarity Media, plus a dedicated advisory team comprised of beauty industry partners, founders from within the Sephora portfolio and financial professionals.
Through this journey, brands will gain the necessary skills and relationships to build and sustain a successful business through consistent, cohesive, and ongoing support backed by digital and in-person resources with content and curriculum directly correlated to helping founders succeed at Sephora.
About the Sephora Accelerate Program
Now in its ninth year, the program continues to focus on building a community of innovative, inspirational brand founders in the beauty space by creating a foundation, network, and ecosystem for brands to launch and thrive.Revisit last year’s cohort.
The program features a 360-degree, six-month curriculum with mentorship, merchandising support, grants, and investor connections for all participants, with the opportunity to launch at Sephora North America upon completion.
“We are thrilled to reveal the 2024 finalists of the Accelerate program and officially welcome them to the Sephora family,” shared Kristin Odegaard, Sr. Director, Merchandising Strategy and Business Development at Sephora. “This year, we received more than 800 applications – a record-setting number of applications in Accelerate program history – which we believe is a testament to the unique and differentiated curriculum we’re able to offer, plus the strength of our community. Accelerate continues to serve as a vehicle for discovering, cultivating, and even launching these amazing brands that represent so many of our clients and the world today, while providing meaningful support for growing brands to continue to succeed well beyond the program’s completion.”
The 2024 Sephora Accelerate Cohort includes:
- Roz Samimi, banuskin – Founded on the belief that acne should never hold you back from safely achieving all your skin care goals, banuskin offers a full range of products formulated for the unique needs of acne-prone skin.
- Hannah Diop, Sienna Naturals – Sienna Naturals was created by Issa Rae and Hannah Diop to elevate the wash day experience for textured hair consumers with clinically-proven, clean products that cleanse, treat, condition and style.
- Yasmin Zeinab, ABI AMÉ – ABI AMÉ creates problem-solving skincare for the body, powered by active ingredients and made in France.
- Diipa Buller-Khosla, indē wild – indē wild is a holistic beauty ecosystem rooted in tradition with revolutionary products that marry 5000+-year-old Ayurvedic superfood ingredients with modern chemistry.
- Katini Yamaoka, Katini Skin – Katini Skin is home to powerful and high-quality facial oils that use wild harvested, natural, and organic flora from around the globe, with a unique focus on hero ingredients that pay tribute to Katini’s cultural heritage across Africa, Japan, and Australia.
- Teri Johnson, Harlem Perfume Co. – The Harlem Perfume Co. is a luxurious, fine fragrance brand inspired by the heart of Harlem and the soul of jazz.
- Denise Vasi Mandler, MAED Beauty – MAED Beauty offers decadent lip care for daily wear that harnesses the highest-performing clean ingredients proven effective in softening texture, brightening hyperpigmentation, boosting moisture levels, and prepping lips for unrivaled color application.
- Quani Burnett, Soft Rows – Soft Rows is a culturally-inclusive beauty brand, deeply rooted in high-performing, clean solutions that celebrate texture-rich hair.
Providing Support and Guidance
This year’s program provides participating brands with comprehensive support and tailored guidance from the retailer’s ecosystem of beauty entrepreneurs and experts, as well access to an expanded network of top-notch operational experts and advisors.With a continued focus on building community and collaboration across the beauty industry, the program features weekly content and curriculum that aims to prepare brands for long-term success, with sessions such as Nancy Twine’s (Briogeo) Financial Readiness; Vicky Tsai’s (Tatcha) Brand + Assortment Strategy; Christine Chang + Sarah Lee’s (Glow Recipe) Social Media + Community; and Marketing Sessions with Amy Liu (Tower 28).
The 2024 Accelerate class will also receive access to 1:1 personalized consulting with Front Row and Clarity Media, plus a dedicated advisory team comprised of beauty industry partners, founders from within the Sephora portfolio and financial professionals.
- Investment experts include Alicia Sontag, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Prelude Growth Partners; Alisa Carmichael, Partner at VMG Partners; Janet Gurwitch, Operating Partner at Advent International, and more.
- Brand Founders + Legacy Partners include Danessa Myricks of Danessa Myricks Beauty, Greg Gonzalez and Joe Cloyes of Youth to the People, Lilli Gordon of First Aid Beauty, Wende Zomnir of Urban Decay + Caliray, and more.
Through this journey, brands will gain the necessary skills and relationships to build and sustain a successful business through consistent, cohesive, and ongoing support backed by digital and in-person resources with content and curriculum directly correlated to helping founders succeed at Sephora.
