For the past five years, Sephora Accelerate has been dedicated to building a community of innovative, inspirational founders in beauty. This year we are focused on incubating founders who are people of color. In line with our 15% pledge, and to ensure there are brands representative of the colors, races, and ethnicities that make up America, our commitment this year will be to help bring these brands along. Founders will embark on a six-month journey inclusive of an intensive boot camp where they’ll gain the necessary skills to create a successful business and eventual launch at Sephora, the world’s largest beauty retailer.
The goal of the Accelerate program is to provide consistent, cohesive, and ongoing support backed by digital and in-person resources. Content and curriculum provided is directly correlated to helping founders succeed at Sephora. In addition, brands will have the unique experience of building a heart-and-soul connection to our community and its ecosystem, as well as the opportunity of a lifetime—launching with Sephora.
Applications for Sephora Accelerate 2021 are now closed. Please check back in the Fall for 2022 application details.
54 Thrones
Founder
Kulfi Beauty
Founder
ries
Founder
Topicals
Co-Founder
EADEM
Co-Founder
EADEM
Co-Founder
Hyper Skin
Founder
Glory
Founder
Imania Beauty
Founder
Briogeo
Founder and CEO
Tatcha
Founder and CEO
VMG Partners
Partner
Advent International
Operating Partner
Brother Vellies
Founder and Creative Director
Adwoa
Founder and CEO
Tower28
Founder and CEO
Milk Makeup
Co-founder and Creative Director
Bread Beauty Supply
Founder and CEO
peaceFULL app
Chief Meditation Officer
Sideman & Bancroft LLP
Partner
Main Post Partners
Partner
TSG Consumer
Senior Managing Director
"At Sephora, we strive to inspire change for the beauty industry at large by taking a leadership position in further diversifying our product assortment. We are committed to leveraging the powerful skill sets and expertise of our internal teams, as well as external advisors, to help build an eco-system that supports the unique needs of our diverse brands."
“I’m so excited for the journeys you all are on. It’s truly awesome. I wish I had this when I was coming up. It would have been game-changing."
“It’s a really fun creation process together. I trust my Sephora merchants with my life. You can trust them. Sephora is obsessed with brand founders, our vision, supporting us, and making our dreams come true. Any brand founder who has a chance like this has won the lottery. I hope you have so much fun.”
Accelerate holds an open application process for merchandise (makeup, skincare, fragrance, wellness, hair, and accessory) product brands.
Please check our website on October 1 for application information and requirements.
Eligible applicants must lead a US-incorporated company, passionate about beauty, founded or co-founded by a person who is at least 18 years old, and must be an early-stage brand not yet distributed widely by others. Our interest is to help those who have the most to gain from what Accelerate offers, which means businesses with more than an idea (at least a lab sample or prototype), but probably not much real revenue yet.
If selected, you must be able to attend the program in its entirety.
There are a variety of criteria our team uses to make the final selection. Some of the most important are:
– Vision: Do you have the passion needed to make your business successful?
– Innovation: What is differentiated about your brand or product? What can you offer clients that they currently cannot find elsewhere?
– Product: Do you have a working prototype that has been iterated on at least once to incorporate user feedback? (I.e., product sample, goop.)
To view our complete application, please visit our application website by clicking the “Apply Now” button above
Accelerate was created as a way to use Sephora’s strengths for an even greater good in our communities. Five years ago, we saw a unique opportunity to draw from our history of working with beauty entrepreneurs to build a supportive community for people who were in the early stages of developing their businesses.
This year we are paying particular attention to helping incubate founders who are people of color. In line with our 15% pledge, and to ensure there are brands representative of the color, races, and ethnicities that make up America, our focus this year will be to help bring these brands along.
The goal of the Accelerate program is to provide consistent, cohesive, and ongoing support backed by digital and in-person resources. Content and curriculum provided is directly correlated to helping founders succeed at Sephora.
In addition, brands will have the unique experience of building a heart-and-soul connection to our community and its ecosystem, as well as the opportunity of a lifetime—launching with Sephora.
Beginning 2021, the intention is to launch each brand that participates in the Accelerate program in its entirety.
Accelerate was created to use Sephora’s strengths for even greater good in our communities. We are pivoting our Accelerate program and paying particular attention to helping incubate founders who are people of color. In line with our 15% pledge, and to ensure there are brands representative of the color, races, and ethnicities that make up America, our focus this year will be to help bring these brands along.
The 15 Percent Pledge is calling on major retailers to commit to a minimum of 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned businesses. Sephora was the first retailer to agree to take the 15% pledge. We are committed to building an ecosystem that will help support Black-owned brands for long-term growth in prestige beauty.
For any questions please contact us at accelerate@sephora.com