Jake Rosenblum believes men’s skincare is at a turning point.
“I have a lot of dads coming to me in their 30s just saying, ‘Hey, man. Like, what’s retinol?’” says the former talent agent, 33, who juggles fatherhood in Westport, Conn., with a career as an entertainment executive at LiveX, the live production and touring division of ATC Artist Management.
The first-time skincare entrepreneur welcomes the icebreaker for it signals that Dividends, the direct-to-consumer line he’s launching officially today after a friends-and-family soft launch in May, has a receptive audience. “The stigma around skincare seems to be breaking a little bit,” he says. “Everyone’s hyper focused on maintaining their health, their wellness, which is like this nebulous term, but people just want to feel and look good for a really long time, and I think that your skin is one of the most important representations of that.”
Nu Skin used to own the trademark for Dividends, and having secured it, Rosenblum’s leaning into metaphors that his peers in finance and business understand. The brand targets customers that he describes as “high-performance individuals, guys 25 to 45” who frequent spots like Equinox and Soho House. Its tagline is, “For the future you.”
“Dividends is a clear nod to that mission of longevity and long-term gains,” says Rosenblum. “If you position this not as a vanity product, but as a longevity product, I think that there’s a lot of trust to be earned with guys.”
The brand’s debut quartet of products contains The Cleanser ($38 for a 6.76-oz. size), The Moisturizer (($55 for 1.76-oz. size), The Retinol ($79 for a 1.01-oz. size), and The Sunscreen ($49 for a 2.02-oz. size.). It touts active ingredients such as tea tree oil, willow bark, bakuchiol, niacinamide and vitamins A, C and E.
A survey from market research firm Mintel found that 46% of 18- to 34-year-old men specify clean ingredients as a key factor in skincare buying. Informed by this data, Dividends omits parabens, sulfates and synthetic fragrances.
On its e-commerce website, newbies can check out step-by-step guides for morning and nighttime routines. In addition, there’s a graph of a 10-year model tracking the results of consistent skincare usage, citing a study published in the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology.
“The stigma around skincare seems to be breaking a little bit.”
The spark that led Rosenblum to start Dividends as a self-funded, two-and-a-half-year project began with product envy. Specifically, he borrowed his wife’s Drunk Elephant products when he forgot his dopp kit during a pandemic-related move.
“From the packaging and the mechanisms, it really felt like something that people were proud to have on their counter,” he says. “And apart from just being clean products and high-quality products that felt good when you use them, there was an emotional attachment to them.”
By comparison, men’s products didn’t inspire him. Rosenblum says, “Companies need to care about branding almost as equally as product. And if you’re going to attract a guy like me, I think they really do need to be really equally well considered.”
He draws parallels between the entertainment and beauty sectors. Tapping into his experience with financing, producing and managing artistic projects, he says, “I’m treating this as an album release. There’s a lot of similarities in the way that you care and develop these sorts of creative endeavors.”
Rosenblum has assembled an advisory to help Dividends as he gets it off the ground. He’s signed up Benjamin Lord, a beauty industry veteran who’s directed digital marketing and e-commerce at brands like Urban Decay and Nars, as the first member of Dividends’ advisory. Rosenblum is offering equity in Dividends in exchange for the advisors’ expertise and services. Other seats he aims to fill eventually in the advisory include specialists in supply chain and finance to assist with issues like tariffs and investments.
In Dividends’ initial year of business, Rosenblum aims to generate roughly $100,000 in sales, enough to break even. In two years, he strives for profitability. He says he may be open to outside investments at some point.
“If you position this not as a vanity product, but as a longevity product, I think that there’s a lot of trust to be earned with guys.”
The early priority is meeting demand for a DTC focus, but Rosenblum has already reached out to retailers. Dividends’ website outlines its retail strategy, highlighting values of “quality, intention and long-term impact” and potential sales channels such as concept shops, gyms, wellness studios and men’s grooming destinations.
“In Fairfield County, I’m surrounded by my target demo,” says Rosenblum. “Most of the outreach for brick-and-mortar distribution has been local, and it’s been very intentional that way.”
To stand out in the growing men’s skincare field, Dividends steered away from the white-on-black packaging favored by established players Clinique, Brickell and Essor-backed Viking Revolution as well as newcomers House of Atlas and Brotege. The brand’s palette is anchored in a navy that Rosenblum dubs “a bespoke Dividends blue.” As he explains, “A lot of brands have pushed black and pushed overtly masculine branding.”
Also bucking a dominant trend in men’s personal care is Dividends’ subtle scent that’s intended to be herbal and refreshing. The texture is developed to be lightweight as well.
“Nothing’s overly masculine in tone,” says Rosenblum, noting that women can buy and use Dividends, too. “My main demographic I’m trying to attract right now is men because I feel like we’re underserved, but nothing about this is, at least in scent and texture, specific to guys.”
In terms of pricing, Rosenblum aligns Dividends to be competitive with higher-end labels like Kiehl’s Since 1851 and Caldera + Lab. Eyeing wellness brands such as AG1 and Seed, he says, “We want to go beyond skincare and continue this metaphor into other products.” Apparel and supplements are possibilities.
For shoppers seeking to try Dividends at a lower price, the brand’s basic bundle with a cleanser, moisturizer and sunscreen is priced at $140 versus $142 for the products à la carte and a set with all four items sells for $195 versus $221 individually. Rosenblum says a surprising finding from the pre-launch wait list is that “a lot of guys really want the full set.”
