In 2021, Kline identified three brands that represented potential buyout targets: Glow Recipe, Ilia Beauty and Prose. Since that time, Glow Recipe has been rumored for sale and has received funding from North Castle Partners. In 2022, meanwhile, Ilia Beauty was acquired by Famille C, the Courtin-Clarins family holding company, home to the Clarins brand. And, finally, Prose has expanded into Canada and the skin care category, but has not yet been purchased.
Two years later, Kline has returned with a new, expanded list of 25 indie brands ripe for investment and/or acquisition.
Kline notes, "Recording staggering growth, these privately owned brands are outpacing the total beauty market growth by offering unique product and ingredient stories, combined with compelling digital marketing that resonates with today’s beauty consumers."
The brands that made the list span makeup, fragrance hair care, fragrance and personal care.
The launch of the report follows a hopeful beauty M&A forecast from Kearney, which noted that 88% of the 130 senior investment professionals surveyed believed beauty and personal care M&A volume will rise over the next two years. Key drivers were expected to be a consolidation of companies seeking external add-ons and synergies for existing brands/businesses.
Color cosmetic brands on the Kline group list include Danessa Myricks Beauty, the recently revamped Haus Labs, Bobbi Brown's Jones Road, Juvia’s Place, Merit, Patrick Ta, Rare Beauty (which just broke into body care), Tower 28 and Westman Atelier.
Skin care/body care brands on the list include Good Molecules, Nécessaire, Peach Slices (Peach & Lily's sister brand), Osea, Starface, Summer Fridays and TruSkin.
Coco & Eve, which offers sun and skin care as well as hair care, has also made the list.
Hair care brands on the list include Amika, IGK, bonding disruptor K18 and Verb. (UPDATE: K18 has since been acquired by Unilever.)
Personal care/body care brands on the list include men's grooming/body care upstart Dr. Squatch, body care brand Megababe and Raw Sugar.
Only one fragrance brand made the list, Dossier.
