by Selena Gomez has arguably excelled in every venture – from acting and singing as a child and teen star to founding her cosmetics brand, Rare Beauty.
“I basically said, ‘I want people who have been doing this for a long time, who are willing to take a chance and take this journey with me,'” Gomez told WWD in 2021 about building the company.
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Launched in September 2020 (although the idea for the brand came in pre-pandemic shape), it assembled a team led by chief executive officer Scott Friedman, who brought in chief digital officer Mehdi Mehdi and chief product development officer Joyce Kim (both of via NYX Cosmetics alums).
“We really tried to absorb as much as we could about what makes her so special and why people love her so much and that’s kind of how the foundation started,” Mehdi said of the early days. of development. “In terms of creativity, we got a lot of inspiration from the looks she’s done, the makeup she’s done, the fashion she’s done, her music videos, her personal aesthetic.”
They continued into storytelling, producing lo-fi material with Gomez as the face and creator; she definitely already had an audience watching, as one of the most followed people on the internet. She currently has 428 million followers on Instagram, 58.7 million on TikTok and 34.6 million subscribers on YouTube.
What is it about Gomez that allows her to have such resonance with her audience? It’s a question that the Rare Beauty team asked themselves early on.
“The more we got into it, the thing that kept coming up was her vulnerability,” Mehdi continued. “She was so open and honest about who she is and some of the struggles she goes through and the challenges, and there was a sense that everyone could see themselves in her.”
After basically being in the public eye her entire life, Gomez revealed in 2017 that she had received a kidney transplant as part of ongoing treatment for lupus. She then opened up about mental health, sharing her struggles with anxiety, depression and publicized her bipolar diagnosis.
“There was this huge pressure on me growing up and I felt like I had to be a good role model,” Gomez told WWD. “And then I felt like maybe that was unreal, and my life became very public very quickly, and I didn’t know that I was going through my own journey with mental health at the time. So, it was very confusing growing up, and when people created this story of my life, I realized that I can’t be quiet anymore. All I have to do is deal with what needs to be resolved, and that’s me recalling my story.”
A big part of Rare Beauty is its mission to make an impact, driving the discussion on mental health and paving the way for brands and consumers to speak publicly about dealing with pressure, stress and anxiety. What she has developed with her team shows a new kind of beauty that is free from the contouring and morphing of the person and is focused on accepting the person himself, enhancing the natural. And she’s giving back in a way: 1 percent of all Unique sales go to the Unique Impact Fund, the brand’s nonprofit affiliate working to expand mental health awareness and services, especially in underserved communities at them. The goal is to raise $100 million over 10 years.
As the brand has grown and expanded internationally, exclusively with Sephora, so have its offerings. His Soft Pinch Liquid Blush was a hit from the start – and recently, Gomez decided to double down on the core cheek category by unveiling a powder blush: Soft Pinch Luminous Powder Blush. The news follows reports that Rare Beauty has hired investment banks Goldman Sachs and Raymond James to explore a potential sale or initial public offering.
The evolution of Selena Gomez’s style through the years
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“People have been asking for a Rare Beauty powder blush for years, so we thought it was the perfect time to give them what they want,” Gomez said of the recent launch in March.
What beauty products are always in her handbag? It’s all Rare Beauty, of course. She lists: “Always get Comfort Hand Cream and Aromatherapy Pen, Soft Pinch Tinted Lip Oil, Perfect Strokes Universal Mascara, Positive Light Under Eye Brightener, 4-in-1 Optimizing Mist.”
Launch Gallery: Selena Gomez’s Style Evolution Through the Years
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