The current market, dominated by mass-produced products, often fails to meet individual skincare needs, leading to inefficiencies and wastage.
With the rise of advanced technology, personalized cosmetics offer a promising solution, tailoring products to the specific requirements of each user.
The skincare industry is transforming significantly, with personalized cosmetics at the forefront of this revolution. Consumers’ unique and diverse needs are challenging traditional one-size-fits-all solutions.
This customization enhances effectiveness, ensures better skin health outcomes, and reduces environmental waste.
As we delve into personalized cosmetics, exploring innovative startups driving this change is crucial.
Additionally, hyper-personalization has led to a surge in the skincare devices market, with 72% of consumers willing to pay more for customized skincare and cosmetic products. However, only 23% of brands offer such options, revealing a significant gap between consumer interest and industry offerings.
This article highlights five startups, each addressing cosmetic industry personalization challenges through cutting-edge technology and novel approaches.
These startups have rapid growth potential, are in a good market position, or can introduce game-changing technology to the market in the next 2-3 years.
This makes them a great option for partnering, collaborating, or acquiring.
Want to know what the latest trends and innovations are happening in the cosmetic industry?
1. Pomp Beauty Helping Estheticians Making Brands for Personalized Care
| Founding Year | 2020 |
| Headquarters | Greater Denver Area, US |
| Total Funding Amount | $4.8 Million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Venture – Series Unknown/$3.3 Million |
| Website | https://www.pompbeauty.com/ |
Estheticians need to manage multiple aspects of their business, including brand education, retail management, and the creation of customized skincare routines for clients. The challenge lies in the fragmentation of these tasks, which can be cumbersome and inefficient without a streamlined solution.
To address this, Pomp Beauty developed a platform specifically for estheticians to facilitate brand education, retail management, and the creation of personalized skincare routines for clients. This tool allows estheticians to recommend products from over 30 professional skincare lines without managing inventory, as products are shipped directly to clients’ doors.
The platform also enables continuous education on medical-grade skincare lines and provides virtual client management capabilities.
It has a personalized at-home routine generation feature, where clients are four times more likely to purchase products and have a 15% higher average order value. Consumers can also use this tool to connect with professional estheticians offering in-person and virtual consultations.
Estheticians using Pomp see an average 40% repurchase rate, facilitated by features like dedicated landing pages, storefronts, and reorder reminders.
Founder and CEO Shannon Erley has been leading this startup since its inception. She worked as a Beauty Industry Growth Advisor, Marketplace Strategy Director (Beauty Vertical), Sales Director, and E-Commerce Manager.
Pomp raised its latest funding of $3.3 million from a venture round led by CASSIUS and Long Journey Ventures on April 12, 2023.
2. ART Lab Provides 24/7 Personalized Skincare with a Trained AI Chatbot
| Founding Year | 2019 |
| Headquarters | Seoul, South Korea |
| Total Funding Amount | Undisclosed |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Seed |
| Website | https://artlab.ai/ |
The beauty industry needs personalized skincare advice and product recommendations to reduce consumer confusion caused by generic marketing and advertising.
Artlab, or Artlab.ai, has created SkinChat, a vision AI chatbot that utilizes artificial intelligence to provide personalized skincare consultations and product recommendations.
SkinChat can handle procedures and cosmetics recommendations based on an extensive database of dermatology knowledge and skin photos.
The startup’s SkinChat offers a unique approach by providing 24/7 personalized skincare advice through AI. It analyzes and recommends products accurately based on individual skin analysis.
Terry Taewoong Um is the Founder and CEO of this personalized beauty care startup. He is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Waterloo and has experience as a Research Scientist at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology. Terry also worked as a Research Engineer at LIG Nex1.
3. Beauty Tech Biohack Cosmetic Industry with Its Genetic-Based Product Selection
| Founding Year | 2019 |
| Headquarters | Undisclosed |
| Total Funding Amount | RUB5 Million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Seed/RUB5 Million |
| Website | https://www.beautytech.app |
Beauty Tech is addressing the need for personalized beauty and wellness solutions tailored to individual genetic profiles. The startup has developed an app that integrates genetic testing with customized cosmetic and nutrition sets.
The app employs a unique algorithm for genetics-based product selection, positioning itself as a biohacking marketplace.
Natalia Feldberg is the co-founder and CEO of this startup. She is an Entrepreneur in the production, development, and sales of cosmetology and parapharmaceutical products.
Beauty Tech raised RUB5M in its latest seed round on Jun 21, 2021.
4. Omy Laboratoires offers Natural, Vegan, and Personalized Skincare with Its SkinIA
| Founding Year | 2018 |
| Headquarters | Quebec, Canada |
| Total Funding Amount | $11 Million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Venture – Series Unknown/$11 Million |
| Website | https://omycosmetics.com/ |
Finding compatible skincare products for individuals with multiple skin concerns, such as acne, redness, and wrinkles, is challenging. Many consumers struggle to find products that simultaneously treat these conditions without exacerbating one another.
The traditional skincare market often requires individuals to focus on one issue at a time, leading to a compromise in addressing their comprehensive skincare needs.
To solve this problem, Omy Laboratories developed a system that combines artificial intelligence with cosmeceuticals to create personalized, natural, and vegan cosmetics.
The startup technology, SkinIA, enables a unique approach by analyzing a customer’s skin through a simple photo. This analysis allows for the customization of products to match the individual’s specific skin conditions and goals.
Omy offers a range of products, including day, night, and serums, formulated based on the SkinIA analysis and tailored to the customer’s needs.
Omy Laboratoires provides the world’s first refillable personalized skincare products. This system reduces waste significantly, as customers buy a durable glass bottle and pump only once and then purchase refills as needed. The packaging is 100% recyclable and made from recycled plastic, aiming to lessen the environmental impact.
The products are prepared fresh in Omy’s Canadian laboratory and shipped on the same day, ensuring product effectiveness and integrity.
Omy Laboratories, based in Quebec, specializes in personalized skincare products crafted with scientific precision. Customers can have their skin needs assessed through questionnaires or consultations, leading to products tailored specifically for them. Their focus on using scientifically-backed ingredients and formulations ensures high efficacy and customer satisfaction.
Co-founder and CEO Andrea Gomez has experience as a Cosmetician (Pharmaprix) and project management advisor. She participated in entrepreneurship programs like TEC Canada and G20 YEA. Andrea is also a member of the Mouvement des accélérateurs d’innovation du Québec.
Omy Laboratories raised its latest funding of $11 Million in a Venture—Series Unknown round on April 11, 2023. Crédit Mutuel Equity led this investment round.
Read Cosmetics Publications
5. Lesielle Replacing Static Skincare Products with Its Lesielle S
| Founding Year | 2016 |
| Headquarters | Andalucia, Spain |
| Total Funding Amount | Undisclosed |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Seed |
| Website | https://www.lesielle.com/fr/ |
Static skincare solutions do not adapt to the changing needs of the user’s skin. They are general-use products that do not consider individual skin type, environmental factors, or the changing condition of the skin over time. These products lack personalization.
To tackle these problems, Lesielle has developed an adaptive skincare system that allows users to create personalized skincare formulations.
The system includes a device that can blend a moisturizing base with up to four active ingredients tailored to the user’s specific skin needs. This device, known as the Lesielle S, is compact, user-friendly, and enables the creation of skincare formulations in single doses.
The technology enables real-time adaptation of the skin care product, accounting for factors such as weather changes, hormonal fluctuations, and personal preferences.
Lesielle’s cost-effective pricing model makes it accessible. It aims to bring personalized skincare to the mass market.
Ruben Rubiales Vazquez is the founder and CEO of this startup. He had experience in marketing and R&D in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.
Lesielle raised its latest seed funding round on September 19, 2019.
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