Hardware Podcasts

e.l.f. Cosmetics: Joey Shamah. The Dollar Store Formula That Built a Cosmetics Giant

How I Built This · 29 Jun 2026 · 1h 14m

What this episode covers

Joey Shamah, co-founder of e.l.f. Cosmetics, explains how he and partner Scott Vincent Borba launched a $1 makeup brand in 2004 by cutting out celebrity endorsements and premium packaging to focus on product quality and low-cost manufacturing in China. After initial rejection from dollar stores, a feature in Glamour magazine triggered massive online demand, leading to a viral rumor about a Bloomingdale's acquisition that spiked orders to 18,000 per day. Shamah details the operational scramble to fulfill these orders, the strategic pivot to retailers like H-E-B and Target, and the eventual sale of the company to private equity firms, culminating in a collapsed $225 million acquisition by L'Oreal.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
e.l.f. Cosmetics, Neutrogena, Dollar General, Family Dollar, H-E-B, Target, Bloomingdale's, L'Oreal, Revlon, TPG, Fit for Life, AS Beauty
Products
Hard Candy, Urban Decay, Laura Geller Beauty, Julep
Also
Scott Vincent Borba, Glamour magazine

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