Dive Brief:
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Function of Beauty has turned to a marketing veteran to be its chief executive officer. Monica Belsito had been chief marketing officer at Sabra Dipping Company since 2023, after about a year in omnichannel sales and marketing there.
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Belsito will augment the hair care brand’s “existing sales, marketing, and innovation capabilities” across the retail and direct-to-consumer channels, per a company press release.
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Her arrival comes four years after L’Oréal executive Alexandra Papazian replaced Function of Beauty co-founder Zahir Dossa as CEO.
Dive Insight:
Function of Beauty offers a level of customization based on customer preferences and needs. The brand, founded by engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a cosmetic scientist, also taps into what Circana research has found to be consumer attention on clinical expertise in the beauty arena.
Consumers are “gravitating towards brands with a clearer, clinical heritage and backed by experts such as dermatologists, chemists, or other medical professionals,” per a May report from Circana emailed to Retail Dive.
With the announcement of Belsito’s appointment, the brand said it is looking to grow via direct-to-consumer but also expand its retail distribution. For the last couple of years Function of Beauty has turned to wholesale for growth, announcing partnerships with Amazon, Target, Sephora and, most recently, Walmart.
"Function of Beauty continues to expand and strengthen retail partnerships in some of the world's largest retailers," Rob Hawk, the brand’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer, said in a statement. "In partnership with Monica, we are excited to continue to demonstrate to our customers and consumers the benefits of custom made personal care formulas versus traditional incumbent offerings.”
The company has also expanded via acquisition, taking over personalized skin care brand Atolla four years ago.
Both Sabra and feminine products company Lola, where Belsito was founding chief marketing officer, were ultimately acquired by larger consumer product companies. PepsiCo snapped up Sabra in November, and Amazon aggregator Forum Brands acquired Lola in 2023.
