Never before has a celebrity-owned D.T.C. beauty company cracked the marketing code quite like Hailey Bieber’s Rhode. According to YipitData, the 2.5-year-old brand made about $90 million in revenue from its website in the final two months of 2024—close to what Rhode was once projecting for the entire year. I can’t think of another D.T.C. beauty brand that’s been able to generate these kinds of numbers so early… or really ever. There are many reasons for Rhode’s success: clear messaging (its clever naming conventions aren’t groundbreaking, but they’re extremely effective), top-tier talent, and Kardashian-esque marketing. But regardless of its strength as a D.T.C. business, the path to critical mass requires a major retailer to ride shotgun. For months, I’ve been hearing that Rhode was going to partner with Sephora, and a person close to the retailer confirmed that the deal was finally official. Multiple sources told me that Rhode will be available at your local Sephora later this year. So why did it take so long? After all, Rhode launched almost three years ago. One theory is that it was related to the “drama” around Selena Gomez, once a potential Mrs. Bieber herself. Rare Beauty, after all, is one of Sephora’s most important brands, and bringing in an ostensible rival could upset the partnership. “If it’s the right business decision, Sephora will navigate the drama,” one person close to Sephora’s business told me. But another high-level source confirmed that Gomez was definitely the reason for the delay, plus “general reticence” overall with respect to celebrity brands. “It took them close to a decade to bring in Ariana Grande’s fragrance,” this source noted, adding that although Gomez’s Rare Beauty is “great,” the business is still maturing. “They need new hits constantly.” (Sephora did not respond to a request for comment.) Of course, the partnership with Sephora—which currently commands 30 percent of the U.S. beauty retail market—has huge implications for Bieber’s business. Sephora distribution will cannibalize Rhode’s e-commerce site, which is the inevitable downside when strong D.T.C. brands expand into offline retail. But the exposure to new customers, and the opportunity to get in front of the millions of people who only shop for beauty I.R.L., is invaluable. At the very least, it will recenter the years-long rivalry between Bieber and Gomez as they fight for floor space and Gen Z wallet share. Rhode and Rare will be in more direct competition than ever, especially since the former has pushed into color. (Rhode already has tinted gloss, blush, and lip liners, and I’ve heard that bronzer and other makeup is on the horizon.) And while it will almost certainly never happen, it would be cool if the two brands collaborated on a Rare x Rhode Soft Touch Pocket Blush.

Meanwhile, I’m still amazed at how seamlessly Rhode is morphing into the Skims of beauty—and how little anyone seems to care. Last week, Rhode took a page from Kim Kardashian and Jens Grede’s playbook again while teasing the launch of a lip liner creatively renamed as a “Peptide Lip Shape,” which goes on sale Thursday. The entire campaign is so incredibly Skims-coded, from the way it’s shot, to the lighting, to the monochromatic color palette, and even to its star: Tate McRae, the 21-year-old pop singer Vogue just anointed a fashion icon. Yes, it’s not the first time another famous face has appeared in Rhode’s ads––Claudia Schiffer and Matilda Djerf collaborated with Bieber last year––but McRae is the most au courant, and proof that Skims isn’t the only brand in touch with the zeitgeist. That said, the mimicry makes sense. I hear that Grede and Michael D. Ratner, Hailey’s business partner and a producer on the Justin Bieber: Seasons docuseries, are pals. Also, Grede & Co.’s genius has an outsize, unavoidable influence beyond beauty. But you have to wonder if the Grede-Bieber connection is privately grating to Kim and the other Skims stakeholders, particularly as Rhode adopts more and more of the Skims brand playbook. My understanding is that it’s not—or not yet, anyway. Rhode plays in an entirely different category, and so the two brands aren’t competing for market share. I’ve already written about the obvious parallels between Bieber and Kardashian’s respective marketing tactics, but with Rhode’s impending launch, it’s worth considering how their approach differs, too. For Rhode, talent and visuals are only part of the strategy: A lot of the brand’s success comes down to how it messages what it’s selling. Obviously, Sephora already carries several similar makeup and skincare lines—like Makeup by Mario, Rare Beauty, Tower 28, and Glow Recipe—but Rhode’s more creative terminology gives the illusion of market differentiation. One of the more discerning insiders I know praised Bieber’s ability to make “peptides” and “lip peptide treatments” a thing, instead of just calling Rhode’s bestselling item a lip gloss, which is exactly what it is. (Also, the “peptide” terminology helps create a skincare-makeup throughline for customers, which is important since Rhode started as a skincare brand and still considers itself one, although at this point I’d beg to differ.) Among other things, the strategy seems to concede that everything already exists, and that simply repackaging an established product and marketing it better is enough to stand out. (Why can’t skincare brands stop trying to top one another with pseudoscience-y claims about their efficacy and health benefits, and just do the same thing?) A retail pro I know suggested that not calling it a “liner” could hurt S.E.O., consumer understanding, adoption, etcetera, but that the messaging upside seems to outweigh the risks. That said, they did just make $90 million in two months online, so someone must be searching for “peptide.” Anyway, come Thursday, don’t even think of calling Peptide Lip Shape a liner. A person close to the brand told me the brand does not consider this a liner, but rather a “contouring stick, but for lips.” Liner is supposed to contain the bleed—beauty speak for when lipstick unpleasantly migrates beyond the borders of your natural, un-lined lips—and Rhode’s version is meant to be used as a “shaper” to make lips more full. It’s also dual-ended and has a little silicone smudger to “diffuse” color or “tidy up the edges.” Rhode’s really sticking to this spiel, and I love it, but to be clear: This product’s main function is lip lining.

I had no idea what Quince was until late last year, and now I can’t escape their washable cashmere sweatsuits. The company just announced that it raised a $120 million Series C. [LinkedIn] Nine-year-olds are having their birthday parties at Sephora. [BoF] Jil Sander relaunched fragrance with a collection of six scents. I know that “collections” are the trend now—they mitigate risk, there’s something for everyone, etcetera—but it also makes it harder for a “hero” to emerge. [WWD] This dinner, which Lauren previewed a couple of weeks ago, was the best-attended thing at Paris Fashion Week. [Vogue] Victoria Beckham Beauty has a new C.E.O. [WWD]

And finally… We have been alerted that Gap Inc. C.E.O. Richard Dickson was at… Davos. See, actions do speak louder than words! Until tomorrow, Lauren P.S.: We are using affiliate links because we are a business. We may make a couple bucks off them.

Puck fashion correspondent Lauren Sherman and a rotating cast of industry insiders take you deep behind the scenes of this multitrillion-dollar biz, from creative director switcheroos to M&A drama, D.T.C. downfalls, and magazine mishaps. Fashion People is an extension of Line Sheet, Lauren’s private email for Puck, where she tracks what’s happening beyond the press releases in fashion, beauty, and media. New episodes publish every Tuesday and Friday.

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