Sol de Janeiro is an American skincare and fragrance brand founded in 2015 by Heela Yang. Sol de Janeiro products are inspired by Brazilian beach culture and are known for its signature scent base of almond and

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

History

Co-founder and CEO Heela Young worked as a director of marketing at

Clinique Clinique Laboratories, Limited liability company, LLC () is an American manufacturer of skincare, cosmetics, toiletries and fragrances, usually sold in high-end department stores. It is a subsidiary of the Estée Lauder Companies. As of 2019, C ...

and as a manager at

Lancôme Lancôme () is a French perfume and cosmetics house that distributes products internationally. A subsidiary of L'Oréal, Lancôme offers skin care, fragrances, and makeup. History Founded in 1935 by Guillaume d'Ornano and his business partn ...

before moving from Brazil to New York with her husband in 2012. Yang, a

Korean-American Korean Americans () are Americans of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America () may refer to all ethnic Koreans residing in the United States, the specific designation of Korean American impli ...

and

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

alumna, founded Sol de Janeiro after living in Brazil and experiencing its

inclusive Inclusive may refer to: * Inclusive disjunction, A or B or both * Inclusive fitness, in evolutionary theory, how many kin are supported including non-descendants * Inclusive tax, includes taxes owed as part of the base * Inclusivism Inclusivi ...

beach culture firsthand. In 2021 L’Occitane Group acquired a

majority stake A controlling interest is an ownership interest in a corporation with enough voting stock shares to prevail in any stockholders' motion. A majority of voting shares (over 50%) is always a controlling interest. When a party holds less than the maj ...

in Sol de Janeiro, valuing the company at US$450 million.

Marketing

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

had a major effect on the brand's business, collaborating with social media influencers such as Katie Fang. ''Euphoria'' star

Barbie Ferreira Barbara "Barbie" Seppe Ferreira (; born December 14, 1996) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Kat Hernandez in the HBO series ''Euphoria'' (2019–2022). Early life Ferreira was born in East Harlem in New York ...

was chosen as a brand ambassador in 2023.

Awards and honors

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is an American business magazine published monthly in print and online, focusing on technology, business, and design. It releases six print issues annually. History ''Fast Company'' was founded in November 1995 by Alan Webb ...

named Sol de Janeiro to its 2024 list of the most innovative companies.

2023 Delicia Drench spider pheromone hoax

In December 2023, a review of a Sol de Janeiro moisturizer went viral, claiming it attracted spiders. Other users backed up this claim by saying the cream contained

pheromones A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavi ...

sexually attracting male spiders. Sol de Janeiro later denied the rumors, along with experts labeling it unlikely to be true.

References

External links

* {{cosmetics American companies established in 2015 Cosmetics brands Cosmetics companies of the United States