What Made Rhode a Billion-Dollar Brand And Why Hailey Pulled It Off

Hailey Bieber’s Rhode just sold in a $1B deal. Discover how Rhode leveraged intimacy, scarcity, and viral influence to transform from celebrity beauty brand into a billion-dollar cultural phenomenon.

---

When Hailey Bieber first hinted the name Rhode into the beauty ether in mid-2022, the industry’s reaction was less “watch this space” and more “here we go again.” It was the summer of celebrity fatigue. The market was bloated with A-lister launches chasing relevance in frosted tubes, and Bieber—a nepo model married to pop royalty—seemed poised to be just another name slapped on serum.

Yet beneath the surface, something quietly shifted. Rhode wasn't chasing flash-in-the-pan virality. It leaned methodically into Hailey’s own "glazed donut skin" phenomenon. Fast-forward three whirlwind years, and Rhode's subtle branding no longer draws laughter. By the time e.l.f. Beauty placed a $1 billion valuation on the table, no one was laughing.

By the time Wall Street took notice, Rhode had already doubled its customer base between 2023 and 2024, clocking a striking >100% year-over-year growth. By early 2025, Rhode had already reached $212 million in net sales, boasting an extraordinary earned media value of $248 million in 2024, topping all skincare brands with 367% YoY EMV growth.

Unlike its peers who rushed prematurely onto Sephora shelves, Rhode built an air of exclusivity through strategic scarcity, and accessible pricing—every product carefully priced under $40. The Peptide Lip Tint hit 200,000+ waitlists. The Krispy Kreme co-branded lip flavour? 400,000 signups. Even a lip treatment phone case triggered viral demand, signalling demand typically reserved for sneaker drops rather than skincare. The math is mathing because it earns respect from most difficult sceptics.

Rhode didn’t flood into retailers before it had the cultural capital to back it. TikTok creators and Instagram influencers organically gravitated toward Rhode’s minimalist "clean girl" aesthetic, resulting in viral user-generated content that kept Rhode perpetually trending. You could be in the Rhode club without maxing out your card. And you’d want to be because this wasn’t about skincare. It was about belonging to a cooler version of you.

To understand why Rhode soared while other beauty brands languished on exit ramps, consider the valuations of established counterparts: Glossier fetched $1.2 billion after nearly a decade, Drunk Elephant peaked at $845 million after ten years, and Summer Fridays remains in acquisition limbo despite strong visibility. Yet, Rhode commanded $1 billion within three years on just $212 million annual sales, representing a valuation at nearly five times revenue—rare air reserved for genuine disruptors.

Unlike older competitors saddled with legacy debt, bloated SKU counts, and fragmented customer bases, Rhode launched lean and stayed lean. Direct-to-consumer from day one, the brand likely operates with gross margins comfortably over 70%, thanks to its streamlined inventory, minimal returns, and virtually zero shelf-space drag. Operationally agile, Rhode sidestepped traditional retail’s margin erosion, emerging as an asset-light powerhouse.

But financial discipline alone doesn’t explain Rhode’s meteoric valuation, take a look into strategic brand equity. With Hailey Bieber’s 55 million Instagram followers and a viral TikTok footprint driven entirely by organic user-generated content, Rhode cultivated an unparalleled owned audience. Bieber herself became an always-on media channel, achieving a staggering $400 million in earned media value in 2024 alone. Rhode built a cultural flywheel that required minimal paid fuel.

In short, Rhode wasn’t another celebrity-endorsed brand; it evolved into a self-contained media platform, leveraging its founder’s cultural resonance and authenticity into brand trust-capital.

Where legacy brands relied on traditional metrics, Rhode measured itself by cultural currency, effortlessly converting attention into sales. That’s why, while Glossier struggled to scale profitability and Drunk Elephant plateaued post-acquisition, Rhode thrived, continuously reinforcing its desirability through scarcity drops, community-driven launches, and meticulously managed product lines.

Ultimately, Rhode’s billion-dollar deal reflects more than business savvy—it signals the ascendancy of brand as a cultural asset. Where others chased retail expansions, Rhode patiently built exclusivity. While competitors spent millions on traditional marketing, Rhode invested in intimacy. And when others expanded their shelves, Rhode expanded its influence.

In a marketplace oversaturated with SKUs and underwhelming with differentiation, Rhode didn’t just succeed—it became indispensable. Hence, e.l.f. didn’t just buy a skincare brand. It bought the future of how beauty moves.