See also
 | This United States corporation or company article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
Drunk Elephant is a Houston-based skincare brand that was acquired by Shiseido in 2019 for $845 million. [1] [2] [3] The brand was originally founded in 2012 by Tiffany Masterson [4] as part of the clean beauty movement, and had its public launch in August 2013.
After its launch, Drunk Elephant became one of the fastest-growing brands ever at Sephora, [5] fueled in part by its popularity among younger consumers, including pre-teens, many of whom found the brand on TikTok short videos of "skincare smoothies".
Drunk Elephant is the fourth most popular skincare brand in the US. [4]
Drunk Elephant was founded in 2012 by Tiffany Masterson, a Houston-based mother of four. [6] The company was established with initial investments from her brother-in-law and brother, the latter of whom became company president. [7] After a year of engaging with consumers and refining the products, the brand officially launched in August 2013. [6]
In 2014, Drunk Elephant attended the Cosmoprof trade show, where it was noticed by Sephora. [6] The brand launched with the retailer in January 2015, becoming a top-selling and fast-growing skincare brand for the company. [8] [9] In March 2017, Drunk Elephant secured a minority investment from the private equity firm VMG Partners and Leandra Medine to fund international expansion and scale operations. [10] By 2018, the company's net sales reached nearly $100 million. [7]
In October 2019, the Japanese cosmetics group Shiseido acquired Drunk Elephant for $845 million. [1] [2] [3] [7] At the time, Drunk Elephant's global net sales for 2019 were $120 million. [11] The valuation was estimated at over eight times the brand's 2018 net sales. [12] Masterson remained with the company as Chief Creative Officer and President. [7] Under Shiseido, the brand expanded its product lines into hair and body care in 2020 and launched in mainland China in 2024. [13]
The brand has since faced challenges. In the first quarter of 2025, Shiseido reported a 65% year-over-year sales decline for Drunk Elephant, attributed to an "identity crisis" which alienated its core customer base. [14]
| | This United States corporation or company article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |