Episode summary
David Rubenstein Show: Bobbi Brown
The David Rubenstein Show
· · Hosts: David Rubenstein · Guests: Bobbi Brown
Summary
Bobbi Brown describes building Bobbi Brown Cosmetics from a few lipstick shades sold out of her house into a brand that Estee Lauder bought, then waiting out an unusually long 25-year non-compete before launching Jones Road Beauty in 2020. She says the new company was exciting because it let her start over, but she was also scared of being a one-hit wonder.
Her core argument is that she changed the beauty industry by pushing natural-looking makeup: products that are easy to apply, flatter real skin, and make women look better without looking made up. She also says today’s cosmetics business is shaped by social media influencers, direct-to-consumer sales, and lower-cost packaging, with Jones Road built on a simpler, cleaner model than her first company.
Brown frames the business as both personal and practical. She advises younger founders to work for someone else first, start with a product rather than a pitch deck, and focus on health, sunscreen, and comfort in your own skin. She says she is open to the right strategic outcome for Jones Road, but is not pushing for a sale or a public listing right now.
Key takeaways
- Brown says she launched Jones Road Beauty in 2020 after a 25-year non-compete tied to the sale of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics to Estee Lauder.
- She argues that social media influencers are now a major beauty marketing force and a free way to reach consumers.
- Brown says Jones Road uses a direct-to-consumer model for about 85% of sales and spends less on packaging to keep prices down.
- Her beauty philosophy is natural-looking makeup that enhances skin rather than masking it.
- She tells aspiring founders to work for someone else first, learn the business, and start with a product, not an investment deck.
Notable quotes
“I felt like a young kid again when I started Jones Road, and right before we launched, I definitely had a sudden like, you know, like emotion of saying, Oh, what if I'm a one hit wonder”
“I revolutionized natural looking makeup because it was not popular at all”
“100% true. But you know, the great thing about social media, it's a free way to market your products”
“We are direct to consumer. Probably 85% of our business is direct to consumers through our own site just online”
“Start with a product. So today, if you are going to build this company out, is it your goal to ultimately find another Estee Lauder”
How the episode opens
This is my kitchen table and it's also my filing system. Over much of the past three decades, I've been an investor the highest calling of mankind I've often thought was private equity. And then I started interviewing.
While I watch your interview with Coach, I know how to do something. I've learned in doing my interviews, how leaders make it to the top. I asked him how much he wanted.
He said to 50. I said, Fine. I didn't negotiate with him.
I didn't know due diligence to have something I'd like to sell and how they stay there. You don't feel inadequate now because the only the second wealthiest man in the world Is that right? I think it's fair to say that I'm not an expert on beauty or cosmetics, but I had a chance racing to sit down with somebody who is an expert, Bobbi Brown.
She launched the iconic company Bobbi Brown Cosmetics a number of years ago. And in 2020, she launched another company called Jones Road Beauty. I had a chance to sit down with her recently to talk about all of this and learned a lot more about beauty than I knew before.
Let's talk about the cosmetics world, which is not a world that I'm that familiar with. When you built your initial company, it was, you know, a gigantic success. What was it like starting all over again?
One day you're in a big company, one big parent, and then you have to start all over again. You know, it was really exciting and invigorating. I felt like a young kid again when I started Jones Road, and right before we launched, I definitely had a sudden like, you know, like emotion of saying, Oh, what if I'm a one hit wonder?
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- cosmetics industry evolution
- social media influencers
- entrepreneurship
- m&a non-compete
- brand reinvention
Companies and tickers mentioned
- EL
- Estee Lauder
- Jones Road Beauty
Watch the episode
Watch “David Rubenstein Show: Bobbi Brown” on YouTube
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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