Joey Shamah built e.l.f. Cosmetics into a billion-dollar beauty brand by doing the exact opposite of every competitor in the industry.
In this interview, the e.l.f. co-founder breaks down how he turned a radical $1 makeup idea—laughed at by investors and retailers—into a global powerhouse that went public on the New York Stock Exchange.
From bootstrapping his business out of his father’s warehouse to selling 192,000 orders overnight after a viral Bloomingdale’s rumor, Joey shares the full story behind disrupting an entire industry, mastering retail relationships, and scaling a household name without big marketing budgets or celebrity backing.
What you’ll learn from this interview:
• How Joey built e.l.f. Cosmetics into a billion-dollar brand from scratch
• The marketing strategy that turned rejection into virality
• How a fake rumor led to 192,000 orders and changed everything
• Lessons from raising margins, expanding retail, and going public
• Why the $1 price point was his biggest advantage
• How to identify whitespace in a saturated market
• What Joey learned from multiple exits and the IPO process
• His framework for buying, turning around, and scaling legacy beauty brands
• Why perfection kills momentum and speed drives success
By the end of this interview, you’ll walk away with the playbook for disrupting established industries, scaling consumer brands from zero to IPO, and building lasting wealth through innovation, grit, and timing.
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HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER
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Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial
PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING?
→ Starting from scratch? Apply here →
https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application
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CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN
Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/
CONNECT WITH JOEY SHAMAH
Website → https://www.elfcosmetics.com
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephshamah/
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