The Foundr Podcast with Nathan Chan 517: We Made $400K In 6 Months Selling Sunscreen | Ava Chandler-Matthews and Bec Jefferd
Ava Chandler-Matthews and Bec Jefferd spent their entire careers building an unfair advantage before starting Ultra Violette. The former product development colleagues at Mecca spent two and a half years creating their “skinscreen” formula before launching. In 2019, when they launched, the market was ready. In the first six months, they sold 40,000 units and disrupted the medicinal sunscreen category with their sexy and fun branding. Ultra Violette now sells its skincare-infused SPF products in 28 countries, and it recently raised $15M. In this episode, Nathan Chan chats with Chandler-Matthews and Jefferd about developing a regulated beauty product, standout branding advice, and knowing what good looks like.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
- Why they spent two and a half years in the ideation phase
- How they accidentally overordered their first product batch
- The origins of their fictional marketing character “Vi”
- The marketing challenges around a regulated product
- Why having a global mindset is critical for beauty brands
- The pros and cons of owning your formula
- What you need to pitch mass retailers like Sephora or Mecca
- How to test formulations with real people
- Product development and formulation timing tips
- And much more beauty brand advice…
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