Jenni Kayne‘s beauty brand Oak Essentials has raised an undisclosed amount in series A funding with Silas Capital and Unilever Ventures. The firms have been strong supporters of the brand since its early days, notes the company, founded in August 2021.
“Since the inception of Oak Essentials, our long-term vision always included raising external capital,” Lauren Harris, chief executive officer of Oak Essentials, told WWD in a statement.
The beauty brand scaled to $7 million in 2022, after making $1.5 million in its first five month, as reported by WWD. It launched with five stock keeping units, go-to basics that lean on hydration, before expanding with serums, balms and more. Reflecting Kayne’s style philosophy, rooted in minimalism, the brand is “clean,” cruelty-free and made with recyclable materials. Everything is manufactured in the United States with ingredients sourced globally.
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“We recognized early on that partnering with seasoned experts in the beauty industry would be instrumental in guiding us through the complexities of scaling the brand,” Harris went on. “Up until this year, our business operated entirely as a direct-to-consumer model. However, with our recent expansion into retail — highlighted by successful launches at Nordstrom and the Beauty Space at Bloomingdale’s, along with an imminent retail partnership — it became clear that the time was right to raise capital.”
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Oak Essentials plans to focus on building out its internal infrastructure, making new hires and enhancing retail experiences.
“This investment in talent is crucial for executing our growth strategy,” Harris continued. “Additionally, significant resources will be allocated to deepening our retail partnerships. We are committed to ensuring that the essence of Oak Essentials — our story, our brand experience — is fully realized in the retail environment. This means creating immersive, in-store experiences that resonate with customers and clearly convey our brand’s unique value proposition.”
Oak Essentials is also concentrating on optimizing its DTC channel while accelerating the retail strategy, Harris added. The brand will host events in collaboration with retail partners Jenni Kayne and Nordstrom, including a large-scale pop-up in New York City next month.
“We’re also gearing up for another major retail partnership that has been in development for some time, and we’ll be sharing more details on that very soon,” Harris said of plans ahead. “On the product front, we have two upcoming launches this year: an innovative addition to our skin care line next month, followed by an entry into an entirely new category in November. Both launches represent significant steps forward in our product innovation strategy.”
“We love how Jenni Kayne has applied tasteful curation to create Oak Essentials as a luxurious beauty lifestyle brand centered around ritual, relaxation, and sensorial experiences reminiscent of a visit to the spa — at your own convenience. The brand delivers for consumers who are increasingly embracing the holistic wellness benefits of beauty products with an appreciation for self-care and beauty routines,” said Anna Ohlsson-Baskerville, partner at Unilever Ventures, in a statement.
“Jenni is the consummate tastemaker, and over the past few years has artfully reflected her ethos in the development of Oak Essentials’ multi-category assortment of clean, luxe essentials,” offered Brian Thorne, partner at Silas Capital, in a statement. “Beyond the elevated aesthetic of these products, they truly do deliver on efficacy — which has been one of the key drivers of the brand’s tremendous growth to date. We’re thrilled to partner with Jenni and Unilever Ventures for this next chapter, supporting both Oak’s impressive e-commerce momentum, as well as its quickly scaling wholesale channel.”