Skin care brand Faace has been put up for sale after nearly five years in business.
Founded by PR boss Jasmine Wicks-Stephens, the brand’s goal aims to offer skin solutions to stresses brought on by tiredness, sweat and periods.
The idea proved to be a success, as Faace has received investment from three Dragons’ Den hosts, launched into over 50 retailers and saw multiple celebrity endorsements.
With all of these milestones, Wicks-Stephens said the decision to sell has been a difficult choice.
Running the business as an independent brand founder meant raising hundreds of thousands of pounds of investment while also maintaining and growing the brand.
“Nothing was ever enough,” said Wicks-Stephens.
“You actually can’t do everything – run a business, be a parent, a good partner, friend, colleague, family member, look after yourself - and not get burnt out.
“But unfortunately, as a small business owner that isn’t properly funded, you will have to, and you can end up feeling pretty low.”
Jasmine Wicks-Stephens, founder of Faace
It is an issue which is not spoken about enough in beauty, says Wicks-Stephens.
“This is the kind of statement that businesses might not necessarily want to put out there because you do not want to deter investors,” she continues.
“It is the same for retailers, as they want you to come on board and be commercially viable for them.”
This is all being exacerbated by a far more fiercely competitive beauty industry in 2024, claimed Wicks-Stephens.
Over 15,000 new beauty products were introduced to the market globally in 2023, according to management consultancy McKinsey.
The British Beauty Council also reported that, in the UK, the beauty industry has seen around 500 new beauty brands launched each year since 2014.
“I think it’s important that we discuss how challenging it is for indie brands to make it,” added Wicks-Stephens.
“Whilst beauty is booming, the reality is an unlevel playing field, and there is a lot of smoke and mirrors in the industry in that most of the time, it comes down to cash.
Achieving "multi-millions" in turnover through purely organic means is tough, she continued, and those who do have had carefully constructed routes “laden with paid partnerships and big budget spending”.
Faace’s range includes cleaners, moisturisers and face masks
Despite the difficult market conditions, Wicks-Stephens is optimistic about the brand's future.
Her dream is a buyer who can take the business she has established to new heights.
“The goal is to find a buyer that is properly set up to make Faace as successful as I know it could be,” she adds.
“It needs the infrastructure to make it work – marketing teams, R&D, logistics – everything needed to capitalise on the success we’ve achieved so far.
“It could be someone who already has a solid customer base and wants to add new skin care products to its portfolio.”
However, it will be “business as usual” until the brand finds a new owner.
Wicks-Stephens will be releasing a new product and is also in talks with a retailer about a nationwide retail rollout.
The latter is an aspect of the business she feels has always been missing from her business.
“While we have had some amazing prestigious retailers back us, we've never had that opportunity to launch in multiple doors nationwide,” said Wicks-Stephens.
“They are brilliant to have, but they are not necessarily going to be the thing that drives real commercial success.
“Getting a nationwide rollout could potentially be that and it was always my goal after Dragon's Den to try and secure that.”
Wicks-Stephens believes in the potential of the brand “wholeheartedly” and is confident a buyer will be found in the “wonderful beauty community”.