Becca Finds Cosmetics Success Across Skin Tones
"We are experts in the beauty of light, and we are passionate about creating products in balanced shade ranges for all skin tones."
So says CEO Bob DeBaker on the Becca cosmetics success story, which is rooted in that respect for every personal hue.
If you don’t know Bob and Becca like we do, you might think the above is just another executive touting the merits of their brand. But Bob is not just another executive, and Becca is not just any cosmetics brand.
The Foundation of Becca's Cosmetics Success
We first met Bob when he was tapped by Korres to run its US business. He was so successful George Korres was able to use Bob’s tenure as a springboard to a collaboration with Johnson & Johnson. Bob then moved along to new opportunities, and found a perfect one in Becca.
Perfect not because Becca was doing so well, but because they were experiencing some tough times. They had been kicked out of Sephora for stock outs, were in the low seven figures in revenues, and clearly in need of new leadership and direction. Bob brought that, and fast.
He reached out to his good friends and former colleagues at Capacity and indicated he wanted to make a change in warehousing and distribution partner and collaborate again. We were thrilled, although Capacity CEO Jeff Kaiden did have to personally extract them from a pretty sketchy warehouse. Bob quickly built the same culture and excitement around the revitalization of Becca’s brand and team, and within a few years was growing so fast we had to hold on to our hats every month-end just to ride out the growth.
Fast forward just a few years. Becca is sold to Estée Lauder for a reported $200 million dollars, just a few years after Bob and his team took over the brand.
One holiday season following on the phenomenal success of Champagne Pop, Becca’s legendary collaboration with Jaclyn Hill, Capacity team members were fortunate to be invited to Becca’s holiday party. There were lots of enthusiastic young Becca employees, and then the packaging, warehousing and transportation folks.
It was very easy to tell who was from which side of the business, but folks mingled freely and shared a laugh about challenges overcome and raised many a glass of champagne. Finally, Bob stepped up to say a few words.
The passion and sincerity with which Bob extolled the culture and the mission of Becca reached everyone in that room. His dedication to driving towards the brand’s core mission and the diversity of customers they seek to serve was not lost on anyone, especially these days. He exemplified a leader who talks the talk and walks the walk.
Has he stopped, now that Estée Lauder owns the brand? Not at all.
Annual growth continues to be phenomenal, up over 80% in September 2017. Furthermore, the company's culture is still all about getting great products to customers who are clearly more delighted than ever before.
The Becca cosmetics success story continues to be written, safe in the hands of a CEO who aptly describes his brand in the most passionate and poetic sense.