Episode 202: Building Beauty Brands Then vs. Now

Sarah Kugelman is an original beauty founder. She created gloss.com in 2000, and was the CEO/Founder of Skyn Iceland until she sold that brand in 2022. In this episode of Beauty from the Shelf, we discuss investors, and challenges from her time in the industry. Listen to hear tips from someone who has created successful brands a few times over.   "I recently had a conversation with an investor who had some very sage advice for me, and she said, 'You made the best decision you possibly could under the circumstances at the time, and with the information that you had... I think you did a great job and learn from it. But don't question your decisions.'"     EPISODE OUTLINE Where does Sarah draw inspiration to create brands? (1:43) What are some of the challenges that founders are facing now that weren't present 15 to 20 years ago? (3:44) How things have changed in the industry. (7:35) How does Sarah look to support your brand? (9:21) Bootstrapping skyn ICELAND and the investment community. (11:45) What was the hardest thing he had to go through during the 2008 crash? (15:36) Don't make decisions out of fear, but out of want. (17:35) Sarah's thoughts on how brands are launching today. (20:47)     FIND US ON ONLINE: Sarah Kugelman Monique Benoit     THE EMERSON GROUP The Emerson Group is a consumer products and equity organization that works with brands that sell into retailers across the USA, Mexico and Canada. Our services include logistics, marketing, consumer insights, brand design, consumer care, and more.   For more information on our organization, visit emersongroup.com.