Introducing LIFT Beauty Accelerator, a brand incubation initiative from Rare Beauty Brands (parent company of Patchology and Dr. Dana), JCPenney and prestigious sponsors including Black Beauty Collective (BBC) and Black Girl Ventures (BGV) dedicated to fostering a vibrant community of pioneering beauty brand founders. LIFT Beauty Accelerator was created with a mission to empower female-identifying founders from underrepresented backgrounds. In 2024, the LIFT Accelerator will support five early-stage beauty brands from these communities with $10,000 grants, retail distribution, mentorship with beauty executives, and more.

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LIFT Beauty Accelerator was created with a mission to empower female-identifying founders from underrepresented backgrounds. (Graphic: Business Wire)

Winners of the LIFT Beauty Accelerator will receive:

NON-DILUTIVE FUNDING

• Minimum of $10,000 to each of the five program-winning brands.

RETAIL OPPORTUNITIES

• Opportunity to pitch JCPenney for potential in-store or online product distribution.
• 1 Year Membership in the BBC and placement in Chicago & Los Angeles storefronts.

PRACTICAL MENTORSHIP

• Cross-functional team of industry experts from Rare Beauty Brands and their partners.
• Mentoring focused on real-time needs instead of an established curriculum, allowing guidance to be personalized to each winner.

IN KIND SERVICES

• Claims support testing, Benchmarking Co.
• Product testing, Validated Claims Support
• Product registration, The Good Face Project
• Retail Support Software & VOB, BeautyFluent
• 1-Year Membership, Independent Beauty Association

Applications opened on June 3, 2024, and the deadline to submit is July 18, 2024, at 5 p.m. ET. Winners will be announced in late September.

“At Rare Beauty Brands, we are deeply passionate about the transformative power of entrepreneurship and have been privileged to host incubator programs over the past three years. This year, we are thrilled to introduce our newly rebranded initiative, LIFT Beauty Accelerator,” says Chris Hobson, CEO of Rare Beauty Brands. “Working closely with past winners has been an incredible experience, and we are eagerly anticipating this year’s applicants. We are honored to collaborate with JCPenney and other amazing partners in our mission to uplift underrepresented founders in the beauty industry.”

“I am thankful to Rare Beauty Brands and JCPenney for their commitment to bridging the gap for diverse indie beauty brands. Through partnerships like these, legacy retailers like JCPenney are not only leading the charge to support diversity across the beauty industry, but are also directly impacting the baseline of independent brand owners through our mission to scale and grow historically underrepresented brands,” says Leslie Roberson, Founder and CEO of Black Beauty Collective (BBC). “Having participated as a judge for the 2023 Black Girl Ventures pitch competition, I’m excited that Black Beauty Collective can be a part of the inaugural LIFT Beauty Accelerator. By partnering with Rare Beauty Brands and JCPenney, we can continue our commitment of diversifying the beauty industry by ensuring diverse beauty founders scale quickly and thrive in retail so they can reach their full potential.”

ENTRY CRITERIA:

• Black and Brown Female-Identifying beauty brand founders
• Brands that have between $10,000 and $1 million in annual revenue
• Business must be past the ideation phase with fully developed product or service, ready for customer or with existing customers
• Located in the United States and operate in the beauty and/or personal care industry, including but not limited to: skincare, hair care, color cosmetics, nail care, fragrance, bath and body care, tools and accessories, or wellness

To learn more about the LIFT Beauty Accelerator, please visit https://rarebeautybrands.com/lift-beauty-accelerator/.

About Rare Beauty Brands

Rare Beauty Brands’ mission is to develop and scale unique brands with a truly positive impact, that inspire and empower. In a word, rare. Rare Beauty Brands (RBB) is the parent company of skincare-meets-selfcare brand Patchology and dermatologist-developed nail health and treatment brand Dr. Dana Nails. RBB’s LIFT Beauty Accelerator program provides more visibility, supplier diversity opportunities, corporate mentorship, and funding for founders. For more information, visit rarebeautybrands.com.

About JCPenney

JCPenney is the shopping destination for America’s diverse, working families. With inclusivity at its core, the Company’s product assortment meets customers’ everyday needs and helps them commemorate every special occasion with style, quality and value. JCPenney offers a broad portfolio of fashion, apparel, home, beauty and jewelry from national and private brands and provides personal services including salon, portrait and optical. The Company and its 50,000 associates worldwide serve customers where, when and how they want to shop – from jcp.com to more than 650 stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

In 2022, JCPenney celebrated 120 years as an iconic American brand by continuing its legacy of connecting with customers through shopping and community engagement. Please visit JCPenney’s Newsroom to learn more and follow JCPenney on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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