It’s kind of wild to think about how Rhode, one of the most successful and influential beauty brands in recent history, debuted only three years ago. In 2022, the thought of selling the direct-to-consumer brand was a distant dream for founder Hailey Bieber—but it’s already here. E.L.F. Beauty announced today that it is acquiring Rhode.
Though this acquisition has been widely reported as a $1 billion deal, in reality, we have no idea yet just how much money will ultimately change hands here. But it will certainly be a massive amount: As a press release tells it, that billion-dollar figure is “comprised of $800 million of consideration payable at closing in a combination of cash and stock, subject to customary adjustments, and an additional potential earnout consideration of $200 million based on the future growth of the brand over a three-year timeframe.” As it stands, the agreement has been approved by the E.L.F. Beauty board of directors, and the transaction is expected to close next year.
In the meantime, Allure spoke with Bieber today about what this means for herself and her brand. In short: expansion, something Bieber had hoped to achieve since Rhode’s conception. “When you’re launching a brand, you’re just so focused on what’s right in front of you at the time,” Bieber recalls of Rhode’s early days. “And of course, you always have really big dreams and really big goals for it. This is definitely one of those things being realized. I could have never anticipated that it would happen at this exact time.”
That growth is certain with E.L.F. Beauty—which also owns Keys Soulcare, Naturium, Well People, and of course the blockbuster drugstore brand E.L.F. Cosmetics—bolstering it.
As for the branding of Rhode itself, it seems that won’t change much, if at all, going forward. “We want to nurture Hailey’s vision, and that includes providing more resources and investing more in marketing,” says E.L.F. chairman and CEO Tarang Amin, who calls Bieber the most thoughtful founder he’s ever met. “She’s built an incredible team that we want to continue to build and expand globally.”
