Latest news with #FionaCoChan
04-08-2025
- Entertainment
Makeup brand Youthforia announces closure 1 year after foundation controversy
Style Youthforia launched back in 2021 and was featured on "Shark Tank." 3:35 Makeup brand Youthforia is shutting down, the company announced in a social media post Monday. "We're closing Youthforia," the company's founder Fiona Co Chan wrote in the announcement. "I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your wonderful support over the past few years. It's been a dream to create such a beautiful brand -- but unfortunately, I've made the hard decision to shut down Youthforia." She added, "I look back at these past few years with such love, and appreciation. THANK YOU for being part of that journey and I appreciate it so much." Chan wrote that Youthforia will hold a final closing sale with all products marked down 50%. In an emailed statement to ABC News, Chan did not specify why the company was closing but reiterated that it was a difficult decision. "My decision to close Youthforia was a tough one -- and heartbreaking one," Chan wrote. "No one prepares you for how much grief you feel when you decide to close down a brand. But starting small businesses, running small businesses, and then deciding to close a small business... all of these different stages are tough, all in different ways. But I'm really grateful for the last four years -- as hard as it was, it was a great journey and I have so many memorable experiences. I'm very appreciative of the last couple of years." "We won't be restocking any of the products again, as we are shutting down," she added. The makeup brand, most known for its color-changing blush oil, launched in 2021, and Chan appeared on season 14 of "Shark Tank" in 2023, pitching Youthforia as a line of plant-based makeup one can wear and even "sleep in." Aside from selling to consumers directly, Youthforia makeup products and accessories were also sold online at Amazon and in stores at Ulta Beauty. Youthforia made headlines over a year ago in May 2024 when beauty influencers criticized the company over the darkest shade of its Date Night foundation, likening it to black face-paint and stating the foundation didn't blend into their skin. Chan first responded to the criticism in a now-deleted video, saying the initial launch was a "proof of concept" to see if the foundation would be a successful product and then later issued another video of apology, adding that more foundation shades were in development.
Business of Fashion
04-08-2025
- Business
- Business of Fashion
Indie Beauty Brand Youthforia to Close
Independent beauty brand Youthforia announced on Monday that it would shutter its business via an announcement on its e-commerce website and Instagram broadcast channel. Its remaining stock is now on final sale. Founded by Fiona Co Chan in 2021, Youthforia gained early traction with its viral BYO Blush, claims that its cosmetics products were safe to be slept in, and secured a $400,000 investment from Mark Cuban on 'Shark Tank', in 2023, his first deal with a beauty brand on the show. Later that year, the brand later a further funding round with seasoned beauty investors True Beauty Ventures and Willow Growth Partners to support its expansion into Ulta Beauty, Amazon and other retail channels. The closure follows a major scandal in 2024, where the launch of its Date Night foundation received widespread criticism, initially for its limited range of shades for darker skin tones, and then for a subsequent line extension of darker shades which appeared to be solely a jet black pigment. Backlash from influencers, cosmetic experts, and consumers prompted retailers like Credo Beauty, Thirteen Lune, and Revolve to pull the brand from shelves, and online traffic and social media engagement dropped significantly. In addition to appearing on 'Shark Tank', prior to its foundation controversy, the line had been featured in publications such as Allure and Vogue. Learn more: What to Do When a Beauty Product Launch Goes Wrong The backlash that follows a botched product launch can quickly spill over from a bad news cycle to an all-out PR crisis. Beauty brands have the power to foresee these events, and stop them happening, providing they're willing to do the legwork.
