Beauty M&A kicked off hot (and high-profile) in 2023 when P&G Beauty acquired TikTok-loved natural hair care brand Mielle Organics in January.
The year has since ushered in a flurry of deals: Live Tinted closed a $10 million series A led by Monogram Capital Partners, Oprah Winfrey invested in Dr. Barbara Sturm’s namesake brand and L Catterton backed Tula’s founders for their newest venture, Dibs Beauty, to name a few.
“I would expect the rate of beauty deals to pick up in the second half of this year and accelerate into 2024, as many companies have held off exiting or raising capital in the current climate,” said Rich Gersten, who cofounded early stage investment fund True Beauty Ventures in 2020 with Cristina Nuñez.
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So far this year, True Beauty has invested in Caliray and sun care brand Vacation.
“The bar continues to be raised for what makes an attractive beauty investment today,” said Nuñez. Gersten added that an engaging founder, differentiated positioning (“next-level sustainable, inclusive, wellness-driven”) and clinical efficacy are among the qualities that make a brand appealing to potential investors.
“The success of the recent Oddity IPO further illustrates the importance of tech when it comes to customer acquisition,” he said.
The top U.S. beauty VC raises by size in 2023 YTD, per Pitchbook.
- NewLimit: $60mm
- True Botanicals: $30mm
- Tally Health: $10mm
- Dibs Beauty: $9.6mm
- Mother Science: $8.2mm
- SalonInteractive: $6.8mm
- The Lip Bar: $6.7mm
- Half Magic: $6.5mm
- Disco: $6mm
- Matter of Fact: $6mm
The top U.S. beauty companies by VC raised to date.
- Brandless: $292.5mm
- Glossier: $272.4mm
- Tria Beauty: $271.3mm
- Madison Reed: $266.9mm
- Ipsy: $236.7mm
- Unity Biotechnology: $225.3mm
- Evolved by Nature: $140mm
- Thirty Madison: $211mm
- MBX: $191.3mm
- Function of Beauty: $150mm