Ahead of the Curve with Coco Mocoe

The Brilliant Branding of Hailey Bieber's Rhode Skin

Mar 17, 2025

Discover how Hailey Bieber's Rhode Skin skyrocketed to fame with innovative marketing strategies. The shift towards sensory marketing set it apart from other celebrity beauty brands. Learn about the brand's evolution from maximalism to a minimalist approach, and how celebrity endorsements play a pivotal role. Explore the dynamics of disruption in the beauty industry, comparing Rhode’s strategies to other brands like Kylie Cosmetics. This journey through branding provides valuable insights for those looking to elevate their own marketing game.

20:38

Creator website

AI Summary

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Hailey Bieber's Rhode Skin brand successfully leveraged sensory marketing and innovative food-themed promotions to achieve remarkable consumer engagement and revenue growth.

Despite its current success, Rhode Skin faces challenges related to long-term market relevance and the risk of becoming too trendy in the beauty industry.

Deep dives

Hailey Bieber's Disruptive Branding Success

Hailey Bieber's Rode Skin achieved remarkable success within two years, generating nearly $100 million in revenue despite initial skepticism regarding its viability among celebrity beauty brands. This brand differentiates itself by leveraging a unique approach to sensory marketing, particularly through its focused use of food imagery and themes in promoting its products. Unlike many celebrity beauty lines that have faltered, Rode Skin has managed to engage younger audiences effectively by aligning product launches with social media trends while counteracting the negative narratives surrounding its founder. The strategic collaborations with friends and fellow influencers, such as Kylie Jenner, have further solidified its positive market presence, turning the tide from controversy to brand acclaim.

Intro

5min

The Evolution of Beauty Branding: From Maximalism to Minimalism

7min

The Dynamics of Disruption and Trend in Beauty Branding

2min

The Art of Sensory Marketing in Skincare

7min

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit cocomocoe.substack.com

Today's episode of "Ahead of the Curve with Coco Mocoe" marketing podcast is about the brilliant branding of Hailey Bieber's Rhode Skin. The brand was the second-most talked about celebrity beauty brand of 2024, just behind Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez, according to ⁠Mintoiro⁠.

If you look at Rhode Skin's Instagram account from when they launched in 2022 vs now, there is a huge difference just three years later. They began leaning into sensory marketing unlike any other celebrity beauty brand and sky-rocketed, as a result. That will be the topic for today's episode. Enjoy!

TIME STAMPS & TOPICS:

0:00 - Introduction

5:30 - What was popular in the last 10 years from 2015-2025?

6:47 - The rise of minimalist makeup

7:29 - The Data of Rhode Skin

15:10 - The Shift into Sensory Marketing

17:00 - Integration of celebrity collabs

Topics on the Extended Episode at ⁠cocomocoe.substack.com⁠

20:38 - Rhode’s product innovation vs disruption

26:40 - “The Editorialization of Brand Social” by Kristen Vinakmens on Substack

33:15 - How you can apply all these marketing tactics to yourself

REFERENCE LINKS:

* Substack: "⁠Hailey Bieber Changed One Thing About Her Branding. She Sky Rocketed as a Result⁠"

* The The Devil Wears Data: ⁠The Rise of Hailey Bieber's Rhode Skin⁠

* YouTube: ⁠Who’s In My Bathroom? With Hailey Rhode Bieber⁠

* “The Editorialization of Brand Social” by Kristen Vinakmens on Substack: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149158518

If you are as obsessed with the intersection between pop culture and marketing as I am, consider becoming a member of my best-selling Substack for $9-a-month. For the $9 a month, you will get access to:

* The rest of this Friday Trend Report + every weekly trend report to stay on top of where internet culture is headed from the lens of someone who is a full-time creator and worked full-time at two major media companies in marketing for 5+ years beforehand

* Extended episodes of the Monday “⁠Ahead of the Curve with Coco Mocoe⁠” podcast. The podcast is a weekly deep dive into the behind-the-scenes branding of celebs, creators and brands making waves in culture. I save the best bits of information for my paying coconuts every episode so be sure to tune in, if that is your thing!

cocomocoe.substack.com

“Ahead of the Curve with Coco Mocoe” is a marketing podcast that covers internet and pop culture but from a branding angle. Coco Mocoe is a trend forecaster and marketing expert who loves diving deep into why things go viral on the internet and how you can apply that to your own brand or creator journey.

Thank you for reviewing the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts!

Follow Coco Mocoe on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube!

* IG: @cocomocoe

* TT: @cocomocoe

* YT: coco mocoe

Email: cocomocoe@gmail.com