Carolyn Bojanowski

As SEPHORA celebrates the graduation of its 2023 Accelerate class, we’re reflecting on what we’ve accomplished and learned in partnership with the 65 brands who have participated in the program to-date, including those who have subsequently launched at Sephora.

At Sephora, we have long been focused on making the world of beauty more inclusive to all, and we believe that the elevation of diverse voices and perspectives within the beauty industry is a key part of this endeavor. One of the ways we hold ourselves accountable to this goal is through our annual Sephora Accelerate program, a hands-on brand incubation program designed to uncover and uplift incredible emerging beauty brands.

When we first founded the program back in 2016, our goal was to cultivate a community of inspirational, innovative women beauty founders. In 2021, as we doubled down on our commitment to promote equity across all parts of the Sephora business, we revamped the Accelerate program to focus on brand founders of color, providing a pathway for these brands to become visible, viable, stable, and financially solvent. As we wrap up our eighth year of this program, here are valuable lessons we’ve learned that other businesses looking to support entrepreneurs can apply.

Opt for a “Choose Your Own Adventure” vs. “One-Size-Fits-All” Approach Through Accelerate, Sephora has supported 65 businesses on their growth journey. With each class of the program, one thing becomes clearer: there is no templated solution to business success.

Every single business and founder that we’ve worked with is different: different personal and professional backgrounds, areas of expertise, visions for their brands, motivations, personalities, support systems – you name it. Each business and founder also enters the Accelerate program at a different starting point in their journeys. Some are already selling products and turning a profit, while others are just getting their idea off the ground.

Large companies tend to value scalability and efficiency, and while that’s not a bad thing, an impactful incubator program offers customization to ensure that every business can address their unique needs. This could include making the right connections for the brand to be seen, having the capital to support demand for the products, or knowing how to best market the brand.

We listen to what each brand needs and work with them to create a curriculum that best serves them, allowing them to choose what areas are most pressing for their business. After all, they know their brand best.

Bring In Outside Experts to Deepen Bench of Expertise Part of what has made Sephora Accelerate a stand-out program in the industry for the 8 last years – and the incubator behind some of today’s bright stars like Topicals, EADEM, Kulfi, and 54 Thrones – is the access it provides to a legendary network of industry-leading experts, both within and outside Sephora.

This year, we introduced a dedicated advisor team to each brand – inclusive of a financial and investment expert, a legacy industry partner, and a current brand founder from within the Sephora portfolio of brands to offer ongoing support, including:

Ron Mackey, Beauty Investor; Ken Suslow, Founder and Managing Partner at Sandbridge; Alisa Williams , Partner at VMG; Wende Zomnir, Founder Urban Decay + Caliray; Greg Gonzalez + Joe Cloyes , Co-Founders Youth to the People; Christine Chang + Sarah Lee, Co-Founders & CEOs Glow Recipe; Lynda Berkowitz, CEO Ilia Beauty; and Mazdack Rassi, Co-Founder and Creative Director Milk Makeup The experience, perspective and network that each of these trailblazers offers – as with beauty branding agency School House , which brings individualized brand workshops and strategy to the program – is unmatched, and offers yet another layer of support to our founders.

Building Community is Just As important as Providing Advice Each year, we create an Accelerate Yearbook that shares more about each of the graduating businesses including their background, brand vision and their experience in the program. Reading the finished Yearbook after getting to know the businesses over the course of half a year is one of my favorite experiences. And each year, one theme stands out: the value of community that the program created . As much as we listen to and empathize with our founders, few of us can relate to the experience of dreaming up an incredible brand idea and putting 110% effort in to bring it to life.

Take, for example, Sienna Brown , founder of Glosshood , a beauty brand with a specialty in providing niche goods that honor your inner child. In the words of Brown,

“My favorite part of the Accelerate program was hands down getting to know the rest of my cohort and meeting founders that have been in our position. This is not an easy road to travel, but they’ve pushed through and have broken barriers. Connecting with founders and those who are critical parts of the beauty business has been incredible! Not to mention, my merchant and mentors were amazing throughout the program. I feel so blessed!” As we look to what’s next, we’re excited to continue expanding our Accelerate community with new programming for some of our alumni. Earlier this year, we launched the Sephora x TikTok Incubator Program connecting Accelerate alumni with TikTok creators, helping them learn impactful social content strategies through a series of educational training modules.

Be A Fan, Not Just a Mentor Getting to play a small role in the story of these amazing entrepreneurs is the most rewarding part of the Accelerate program. I think what makes the program so successful is that we are all genuine fans of the brands we work with. We see and understand their vision, we love their products, and we cheer them on as they grow. This passion for the brands is the last, but arguably most important, ingredient in creating and scaling a meaningful incubator program.

I welcome (and encourage!) you to learn more about the 2023 Accelerate class in our Yearbook and support these brands as they prepare to launch at Sephora!

#SephoraAccelerate #WeBelongtoSomethingBeautiful #TogetherWe #Beauty #Skincare #Haircare #Entrepreneurs

Carolyn Bojanowski

San Francisco, California, United States 2K followers 500+ connections

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Articles by Carolyn

Building an Effective & Inclusive Brand Incubator Program: 4 Lessons From Sephora

By Carolyn Bojanowski

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SEPHORA

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Wellesley College

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