Three Indie Brands Set To Take The Stage At BeautyX Retail Summit’s Race For Shelf Space

Three Indie Beauty Expo Dallas 2018 exhibiting brands are taking very active roles in next week’s BeautyX Retail Summit.

The brands — hair and scalp care line Groh, bioactive skincare specialist Skin-Probiotics and ingestible brand Wannabe — will vie to win over retail buyers in Race For Shelf Space, a distribution-focused counterpart to Deskside Domination©, the live pitch competition that closed out January’s BeautyX Media & Influencer Summit in Los Angeles. It will be held on the afternoon of May 8, the second day of the two-day BeautyX Retail Summit at Hotel Crescent Court. 

The contestants will give their best brand pitches to buyers from Lena Rose, Neiman Marcus and Free People/Shen Beauty on stage in Dallas. They will be assisted by retail coaches Cathy Carr, managing director of sales at Transparent Brands, Rachel Roberts, founder and CEO of Oyl + Water, and specialty retail expert Grace Davis Damrill. 

“I am so excited to share [my] innovative, patent-pending beauty and health necessity with everyone and, hopefully, to win a chance to be on the shelves of indie beauty giants Neiman Marcus, Lena Rose and Shen Beauty/Free People.”

“Race For Shelf Space is an excellent opportunity for the brands to raise awareness and get in front of high-level retailers,” says Jillian Wright, co-founder of Indie Beauty Media Group, producer of BeautyX and Indie Beauty Expo. “Not only is it an excellent way for them to perfect their pitches, but it’s also a chance to get real-time feedback from retailers and even get picked up by one of them. That type of exposure is priceless.”

The brand founders — Ellie Trinh of Skin-Probiotics, Rebecca Mariolis of Groh and Sara Grey of Wannabe — comprehend the invaluable occasion Race For Shelf Space is for them to court buyers. “I am so excited to share [my] innovative, patent-pending beauty and health necessity with everyone and, hopefully, to win a chance to be on the shelves of indie beauty giants Neiman Marcus, Lena Rose and Shen Beauty/Free People,” says Trinh. “We are a small innovative company with big, bold visions. We want to bring these skin necessities to the beauty world.”

The retail coaches are eager to employ their retail prowess to support the founders’ efforts. “A major milestone for any indie brand is their first meaningful retail partnership,” says Roberts. “It’s been fun to help Wannabe prepare for this competition. I think of it as speed dating for beauty entrepreneurs. There are only a few minutes to make an unforgettable impression and land their dream account.”

During the Race For Shelf Space competition, founders’ brief pitches to buyers will be delivered in a mock trade show setting. After the pitches, each buyer will select a brand winner and present the winner a prize. 

Jessica Richards, owner and founder of of Shen Beauty, and beauty and wellness director at Free People, will provide one of the three brands a six-month mentorship. Jennifer Robinson, associate divisional merchandising manager of Neiman Marcus, will offer a brand the opportunity to officially pitch the Neiman Marcus beauty team. Jenny Duranski, founder and CEO of Lena Rose, will give one brand a one-month feature on her Chicago area store’s shelves with the possibility of a permanent spot in its collection.

“I am honored to be included on the panel of judges,” enthuses Duranski. “I’m excited to hear up-and-coming brands pitch their product lines and share their story with the Chicago market.”