Reuben Carranza knows a good brand when he sees it. 

Bansk Beauty, where he serves as executive chairman, made headlines in September after acquiring the buzzy, clinical skin-care brand Byoma. It’s part of the late-stage private investment firm’s growing beauty roster, which includes Amika, Eva NYC and Ethique. 

“No. 1, they're on a tear, right? They're growing rapidly. But I think what we loved about them was the story,” he told Glossy on stage at this week’s annual Glossy Beauty and Wellness Summit about its Byoma acquisition. “It's the story: they've de-complicated complicated skin-care routines.” 

Carranza kicked off the Summit with a special live podcast recording, where he shared insights into the firm’s investment philosophy and growth plans for its brands. He also shared career advice from his stacked CV, which includes more than two decades at P&G and leadership roles at R+Co Hair, Kate Somerville skin care, and more. 

This special session is ahead, but first, hosts Lexy Lebsack and Emily Jensen share highlights from the Summit and dig into the news of the week. 

First up, the hosts break down the latest from Tylenol- and Neutrogena-owner Kenvue. Kimberly-Clark Corp. will acquire Kenvue Inc. in a deal valued at $48.7 billion. Kimberly-Clark's portfolio includes consumer brands like Huggies, Kleenex and Cottonelle.

Next up, a look at Skims’s buzzy new hire. Diarrha N’Diaye was named evp, beauty and fragrance of Kim Kardashian’s upcoming Skims Beauty. N’Diaye has worked in marketing and branding for the likes of Glossier and L’Oréal, and was most recently the founder of Ami Colé, which shuttered in July. She will lead product development, innovation and brand strategy for Skims's upcoming beauty launch. 

Finally, an analysis of a hefty investment in Blueprint, the supplement company from American entrepreneur and biohacker Bryan Johnson. The company has taken on $60 million in funding from investors like Kim Kardashian, Ari Emanuel, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, and many more big names. Johnson is best known for documenting his quest to age in reverse on YouTube and through the Netflix film “Don’t Die.” Blueprint currently offers a variety of products DTC, including drink mixes, supplements and skin care. 

Allison Kent-Gunn knows good beauty packaging when she sees it. 

The Los Angeles-based aesthetician-turned-packaging consultant has become one of the leading voices in beauty packaging on social media thanks to her "hot takes" on packaging wins and misses. She’s a former cosmetic packaging instructor at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, and outside of her social media, where she goes by @AllisonTurquoise, her insights can be seen in an upcoming Cosmetic Science Textbook used in packaging courses. 

Today’s episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast —  a special episode dedicated to the best, and worst, beauty packaging — concludes our three-part, deep-dive series on the world of beauty and wellness packaging. Kent-Gunn provides an in-depth hall of fame and shame for several packaging categories, including sustainability, accessibility, celebrity brands' packaging and more. 

But first, Lexy Lebsack is joined by Emily Jensen to run down the beauty and wellness news of the week. 

First up is a look at the growing wellness data economy, including a look at the value of data collection and aneb analysis of Rebook’s new health tracker ring.

The hosts also discuss fragrance news from Unilever-owned Dove. The mass body-care brand is launching its first-ever body mists as part of a limited-edition holiday collection released with the Rockettes. The iconic New York dancers recently partnered with Sephora, as well.

Next up are details about POV Beauty’s foray into color cosmetics. POV is the buzzy new line from influencer and TikTok star Mikayla Nogueira. The line launched this spring with skin prep products and, in news announced this week, will expand into lip products with a November 4 launch. 

The Glossy Beauty Podcast is back with its second of three deep dives into beauty packaging. Today, our guest is Helen Steed, a veteran in the field, whose resume includes a 10-year stint leading creative at Bumble & Bumble, and a gig as Glossier's founding creative director before striking out on her own. Now, she helms Steed & Friends, which has worked with brands including Rhode, Lore, Sakara and Ursa Major. On today's episode, she takes listeners through mini case studies, examining her work on products like Rhode's iconic phone case, Glossier's first foray into body care and Merit's logo.

But first, a look at some of this week’s headlines, including the news of L’Oréal's biggest acquisition ever, which broke on Sunday — it is purchasing all of Kering's beauty holdings for $4.6 billion. Kering owns brands like Creed, and the deal will grant L’Oréal 50-year exclusive licenses for Gucci, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga's beauty ranges.

This week’s episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast introduces a three-week series dedicated to beauty packaging. Despite daily interacting with beauty products — including face wash, body wash, lipstick or shampoo — consumers rarely spend time thinking about the countless decisions that go into a brand’s packaging. From sustainability (Are refills offered? Is the plastic PCR?) to color (think: the pull of millennial pink) to font, every packaging element is carefully considered. As our first guest in the series, FIT Professor Sebba Alqetrani, said, “The first thing the consumer sees, touches and interacts with is the package. [It] is your first opportunity to have a first impression.”

Over the next two weeks, we will explore just why packaging is so important and what factors can make it impactful, whether it has to do with a product’s efficacy, branding or deeper emotional resonance.

But first, a look at some of this week’s headlines including the launch of Ulta Beauty’s UB Marketplace, a curated third-party marketplace that will allow the mega beauty retailer to integrate many new brands into its existing e-commerce site; Sephora’s growth, bolstered in part by Rhode’s buzzy launch, according to LVMH’s recent earnings; and The Body Shop’s return to U.S. sales , launching online through a direct-to-consumer site and Amazon.

On this week’s episode of “The Glossy Beauty Podcast,” co-hosts Sara Spruch-Feiner and Lexy Lebsack dive into one of beauty’s buzziest topics: Gen Alpha’s rapid emergence as consumers in their own right. 

They discuss Spruch-Feiner’s reporting on Sephora tweens and teens, as well as Sephora’s first two brands geared directly at Gen Alpha: Sincerely Yours, brought to market by father-daughter mega-influencer duo Jordan and Salish Matter, and Evereden, which will hit Sephora.com on October 14.

They examine what will happen, on Sephora's shelves and beyond, as Gen Alpha grows into its purchasing power. The demographic, born between 2010-2024, is currently 15 years old and younger — and already showing a voracious appetite for consuming beauty products, while also starting brands they want to see hit the market. See: Sincerely Yours and Yes Day.

But first, a look at some of this week’s headlines, including Coperni’s introduction of C+, a collection of athleisure clothes infused with pre- and probiotic properties, meant to help support the skin’s microbiome. The brand claims that the benefits last through 40 washes. 

They also discuss CeraVe becoming the NBA's official skin- and hair-care partner. The brand has previously dabbled in partnerships with basketball players, working with Anthony Davis and Paige Bueckers for its "Head of CeraVe" campaign to promote its anti-dandruff shampoo in February. It will promote the new partnership through digital and physical activations throughout the season.

Finally, they talk about fitness trackers, specifically rings, which continue to gain traction — U.S. sales are up 88% year-over-year. More than 1.3 million fitness tracker devices were purchased during the first seven months of 2025, a 35% increase over last year. The same growth has not been seen for devices worn on the wrist, however — sales of these devices were down 6% year-over-year.

What does it take for a beauty campaign or brand to cut through the noise in 2025? 

Our second-annual Glossy Pop Awards is one place where our team recognizes the best and most culturally relevant beauty and fashion campaigns, people, products, and brands. 

In today’s episode of The Glossy Beauty Podcast, we welcome three esteemed beauty executives to discuss the secret sauce behind their Glossy Pop Award-winning campaigns. 

These winning campaigns drove audience engagement, generated buzz and successfully met their set business goals. 

To start, host Lexy Lebsack welcomes Leslie Ann Hall, founder and CEO of Iced Media (18:50). She and her team partnered with hair-care brand Moroccanoil to launch the brand’s first fine fragrance. The teams at Iced Media and Moroccanoil executed a campaign that levered social media for awareness and sales. They took home the Glossy Pop Award for "Best Use of TikTok."

Next, Lebsack sits down with Dana Paolucci, head of PR and influencer at Unilever-owned Dove North America (30:02). Paolucci and her team worked with communications firm Edelman to take home two Glossy Pop Awards for its Dove x Crumbl cookies body-care collaboration. They won "Best Product Launch Campaign" and "Best Community Engagement Strategy."

In our final mini interview, Lebsack welcomes Nilofer Vahora, Amika’s CMO, to discuss the hair-care brand’s "Best Use of Video" award win for its Superfruit Star Lightweight Hairstyling Oil launch with marketing company January Digital (40:03). 

But first, Lebsack is joined by host Emily Jensen to discuss this week’s top beauty and wellness news. 

Squishmallows, the TikTok-famous plush toy brand launched in 2017, made headlines this week for its foray into fine fragrance. Squishmallows parent company Jazwares, a Florida-based toymaker that was purchased by Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway in 2022, has tapped longtime beauty executive Joel Ronkin, current founder and CEO of Jennifer Aniston’s LolaVie hair care, to lead the project. The scents launched at Ulta Beauty this week in two sizes, priced $38 and $58. 

Lebsack and Jensen also discuss rumors that beauty conglomerate Coty is looking to sell heritage mass color cosmetics brands CoverGirl, Rimmel and Max Factor. 

Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop is also in the news this week for the closure of its 2-year-old mass beauty experiment, Good Clean Goop, which sells under-$40 skin care through Target and Amazon. The duo discusses the closure and what it means for masstige skincare. 

Finally, the hosts walk through Amazon’s new ambitions in K-Beauty with this week’s launch of a dedicated storefront. It's a smart move considering the rise in popularity of K-Beauty products and the stunning sales on the channel. To wit: K-Beauty is growing three times faster than Amazon’s average beauty category. 

Executive coach Angela Bennett knows a thing or two about the unique needs of beauty and wellness industry leaders. She spent more than two decades working across L’Oréal and Estee Lauder brands like La Roche-Posay, Maybelline and Clinique in roles like vice president, general manager and svp of talent acquisition.

"The subjective nature of [the beauty industry] requires an art of balancing data points, intuition and conviction [while] becoming your own leader to navigate the decisions that need to be made on a daily basis," Bennett said.

But today, Bennett is part of a growing number of certified professional executive coaches who help individuals and organizations to build stronger teams. She also works one-on-one with executives who need help getting to the next level in their careers. 

This often entails a rigorous strategy that includes reflection, learning and planning in an effort to become a better leader with more long-term career direction. Much of this process starts with developing communication skills to suit the workplace environment and culture.

“Communication coaching is really going to be about developing the skills to be clear, concise, convincing and motivating, and to really master the art of what we call ‘influencing for results’,” she said. “[That means] influencing others, influencing management toward making decisions on specific strategies that, as a leader, you are recommending and wanting to push through.” 

In today’s episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast, Bennett introduces us to the world of executive coaching and shares her top three universal tips for executives. 

But first, hosts Lexy Lebsack and Emily Jensen discuss the biggest beauty news of the week. 

First up is wellness investment news from Oura Health Oy, the makers of Oura, the wearable health tracking ring that launched in 2015. The Finnish company is reportedly closing in on a $875 million Series E investment round that will undoubtedly impact the industry. The company could soon be valued at around $11 billion. 

The hosts also break down the latest influx of celebrity endorsement deals including Kris Jenner for Estée Lauder-owned MAC, Leighton Meester for indie darling skin-care brand Bubble, singer Ciara as the new face of Thorne’s Creatine products, Miley Cyrus for Maybelline, and Dua Lipa’s new deal with pilates reformer company Frame Fitness. 

Lebsack and Jensen also unpack Hailey Bieber’s splashy Rhode launch with Sephora, which brought in $10 million in sales in just two days, according to Yipit, an alternative data provider and analytics firm that utilizes web and in-store receipt data. 

Finally, the duo discuss the closure of Kim Kardashian’s 3-year-old skincare line, SKKN by Kim, including Coty’s $71.1 milliones loss from its 2021 investment in the now-shuttered brand. 

After starting as a brick-and-mortar nail salon in Los Angeles in 2013, Olive & June closed up shop in 2020, with founder and CEO Sarah Gibson Tuttle pivoting her focus to DIY manis. By November 2024, Helen of Troy had acquired the brand for $225 million in cash and a $15 million earnout subject to performance over three years. Helen of Troy's beauty portfolio also includes Drybar, Curlsmith and Hot Tools, among others. But Gibson Tuttle was intent on remaining involved in her brand's operations — operating essentially as it did prior to the acquisition, but with greater support.

Now, nearly a year post-acquisition, Gibson Tuttle joins the Glossy Beauty Podcast to discuss life after selling her brand, why an obsession with the customer can almost guarantee product success and how the nail category differs from other beauty categories.

But first, co-hosts Sara Spruch-Feiner and Emily Jensen discuss industry news, including Sephora's announcement that it will launch its own affiliate platform, the recent acquisitions of Nudestix, Byoma and Cos Bar, and Gap's increased investment and new hires as it looks to grow its beauty offerings.

When it comes to innovation in the beauty industry, few wield more power and influence than Guive Balooch, L’Oréal Group’s longtime tech leader. 

“In the last three or four years, [we’ve seen] this incredible shift in the speed of innovation,” Balooch told Glossy. “It feels great to work on things that are shaping the future of our industry.” 

Since Balooch last joined the Glossy Beauty Podcast in 2021, his team has released a light-powered blowdryer called the AirLight Pro; an in-store skin diagnostic device called Cell BioPrint; Water Saver, an in-salon water reduction tool; a home hair-color application tool called Color Sonic; and many more innovations.

He’s also taken on an expanded role as global vp of tech and open innovation, where he now oversees the partnerships driving L’Oréal’s future innovation. This includes investments in Swiss longevity biotech company Timeline and San Diego-based Debut Biotech.

In today’s episode, Balooch shares insights into the future of beauty innovation, which includes further exploration of the skin’s microbiome, ingredient creation through biotechnology and beauty at the intersection of longevity. He also shares details on his team’s use of AI, the latest shift in consumer desires, and the unexpected inspiration behind L’Oréal’s new 3D printable eyebrow technology called 3D shu:brow. 

But first, Lexy Lebsack is joined by senior reporter Emily Jensen to walk through the biggest beauty and wellness news of the week. To start, the hosts discuss a new $28,000 fragrance from LVMH-owned Maison Francis Kurkdjian. The new 10-year anniversary edition of the brand’s Baccarat Rouge 540 comes with many perks for the investment, including access to events and a members-only club.

Jensen and Lebsack also dive into the latest earnings at Puig, which saw 7.7% like-for-like sales growth driven primarily by fragrance sales, which made up 73% of the quarterly sales. And they discuss Macy’s Inc., which saw its best comparable sales growth in 12 quarters, thanks to boosts of 3.6% at Bloomingdale’s and 1.2% at Bluemercury.

Finally, everything you need to know about the influx of lawsuits in California courts challenging “made in America” marketing claims by top beauty brands including Unilever-owned Paula’s Choice and It’s a 10, which is privately held. 

What does it take to successfully reinvent a heritage beauty brand?

Industry veteran Dawn Hilarczyk is on a mission to completely transform Borghese, the 68-year-old heritage brand famous for its Italian skin care and Fango mud masks — and it’s working. 

In today’s episode, Hilarczyk dives into the nitty-gritty of her brand turnaround efforts. She breaks down her strategy in great detail, from cleaning up the brand’s Amazon presence and expanding into Ulta Beauty, to reestablishing a social presence and reducing the brand's SKU count from 87 to 27. 

But first, host Lexy Lebsack is joined by Glossy senior reporter Emily Jensen to walk through the biggest news stories of the week. 

First up is specialty beauty retailer Violet Grey’s acquisition of clean beauty retailer The Detox Market. The deal was reportedly quietly closed earlier this year. Founder Cassanda Grey purchased Violet Grey in September of 2024 from Farfetch alongside private-equity investor Sherif Guirgis, who later transitioned into its CEO. 

Lebsack and Jensen also discuss the latest GLP-1 news, including a possible new pill form of the drug and the rumored connection between the rise of GLP-1s and gourmand fragrances. 

Finally, the duo discuss changes at Estée Lauder Companies-owned Tom Ford, including new spokesperson Tilda Swinton and new creative director Haider Ackermann, and what it all means for luxury fragrance.