Erly Skincare has landed its first retail partner, launching at 750 Ulta Beauty stores and online on April 19.
The Austin-based skin care brand was founded by two friends and mothers, Dr. Hallie McDonald, a dermatologist, and Jamie Chandlee, who has a background in marketing, when they became concerned about what their young daughters were putting on their skin.
McDonald said: “About five or six years ago, I started noticing that patients were coming into my office with adverse effects from their overly complicated skin care routines. People were using too many products at a time, mixing actives, not really understanding what these actives did. At the same time, our daughters were starting to get into skin care at a very early age. When I was trying to redirect either my adult patients or my own child towards better options in skin care, none of them really were interested in what I was recommending. They looked medicinal, and they didn’t want to use them.”
So McDonald and Chandlee set about creating their own fragrance-free, hypoallergenic products with creative names and housed in fun, bright packaging designed by illustrator and graphic designer Lotta Nieminen.
They describe the brand as multigenerational, with a focus on Gen Z and Gen Alpha. “I wanted to create something that would be safe and appropriate for all ages and skin types,” said McDonald. “Our sweet spot is Gen Z, Gen Alpha, and that sort of hybrid range where we want to meet them from their first face wash to their first fine line, and we have ingredients that can address all sorts of skin care concerns in a very gentle barrier-boosting way.”
Of launching the brand in retail, Lisa Tamburello, vice president of merchandising at Ulta Beauty, said: “Erly’s dermatologist-founded roots and streamlined approach to skin care tap into a shift we’re seeing across the category — guests want effective, thoughtfully formulated products that simplify their routines without sacrificing performance.”
All seven stock keeping units will enter the retailer, including Daily Dew Illuminating Serum, $38; Daily Soothe Calming Serum, $38; Night Moisturizer with Peptides, $42, and Face Foam Gentle Facial Cleanser, $24.
“We dreamt up Erly to empower our community with simple formulas that can build routines — from first wash to first fine line — inspired by our motto, ‘doing less does more,’” said Chandlee. “Entering Ulta Beauty feels like the perfect next step, meeting its skin care enthusiasts at the intersection of simplicity in skin care formulas and maximalist packaging design that is coveted and collected.”
