Entrepreneur Jaimee Lupton never intended to build a beauty empire.
When she launched Monday Haircare in 2020, she saw it as something more aligned to a side project – a beauty idea she thought may have legs, backed by a partner in both life and business with years of experience in the consumer brands world.
Flash forward to 2026, and that proposition is looking a little different.
Monday hair care is now sold across 52 countries, produces more than 70,000 bottles of product a day, and, according to Lupton, is growing at 300% year-on-year.
Instead of seeing its success as a stroke, Lupton recognised the potential and turned Monday into the template for a much bigger ambition: a portfolio of beauty brands built to launch fast, scale globally and sit at accessible price points.
Now, she’s gearing up to launch more than 20 brands over the next few years, with her current roster set to reach AUD $1bn in sales in 2026.
Lupton’s background helps to explain this approach. The founder studied communications in New Zealand before joining a luxury PR agency Black Communications, working with brands including Range Rover and Hermès.
Exclusivity really excludes people
“I learned everything around brand-building there in the luxury space,” she shares.
Lupton credits Naomi Perry, who she worked under at Black Communications, with cementing her footing in the luxury space.
But it was another mentor, her partner Nick Mowbray, co-founder of consumer goods company Zuru, that helped guide and facilitate the next phase.
“I often say I have been at the University of Nick Mowbray for eight years,” says Lupton.
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With Mowbray’s support, Lupton launched Monday – a premium hair care company at affordable price points.
Within mere weeks the brand sold six months worth of stock, giving Lupton and her team a case study they could take to international retailers.
“I think we definitely knew we were on to something special with Monday when we sold out,” she says.
Zuru is now home to four beauty brands under Lupton’s leadership – Monday Haircare, Daise, being and True – sitting under the company’s ‘Edge’ arm, with many more in the build process.
The Monday effect
Lupton's success in beauty stems from her time building Monday
The important shift for Lupton was not in recognising that Monday had become a hit brand, but rather the recognition that its success could be replicated.
Lupton calls it the ‘Monday effect’ internally – a set of principles that can be applied to the next brand, and the next, and the next.
“We launch as if we are a direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand, and then we make sure we can scale with mass retail,” she explains.
While mass market appeal and accessible price points are a key element, Lupton’s luxury background remains visible in the emphasis placed on branding, packaging and storytelling.
“We are really trying to democratise beauty,” she says.
“Exclusivity really excludes people, and that is fro
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