She kept pummeling the brand with crisis PR around her antics, which ultimately hurt our ability to scale with partners like Ulta Beauty and Urban Outfitters,” said Webb. “Ultimately, Dragun Beauty was driving sales, not from Nikita, but in spite of her, through traditional marketing strategies and omnichannel approaches. Dragun’s representative disputed these numbers but declined to share any additional details, citing confidentiality. But in 2021, that number shrank to $1 million. Dragun described it as a “multi-million-dollar brand” in a 2020 interview with Glossy.Īccording to a source familiar with the brand, its revenue skyrocketed in the first three years, rising from $2 million in its first year to $5 million in its second, and then $25 million in its third. Its products included color correctors inspired by those used by trans performers. The brand capitalized on Dragun’s large fan base, as she received early access to social shopping features such as Instagram live shopping when it was still in beta.ĭragun Beauty was created based on Dragun’s makeup artistry experience as a trans woman. Dragun told Glossy at the time that she had been approached by both Sephora and Ulta Beauty about selling the brand’s products. When Dragun Beauty launched to fanfare in 2019 as one of the first beauty brands created by a transgender founder, it saw quick sell-outs of newly debuted products. Dragun’s representative stated that Follow Beauty “remains active.” Select Management Group had been an equity partner in the brand alongside Dragun and a “now-defunct” beauty incubator, Follow Beauty, he said. Jake Webb is not involved in the operations of the company nor privy to its business operations.”Īccording to Webb, Slash Management “had negotiated a small stake” in the brand with Dragun’s previous management company Select Management Group. Jake Webb is not part of the executive team, managing director, or partner in the company. The management company parted ways with Dragun a year ago over “ different overall values and standards for how we treat partners ,” he said.ĭragun’s representative responded, stating, “Nikita parted ways with Slash Management due to mis-management,” and “Slash Management and Jake Webb are not shareholders in the company. “As a partner in Dragun Beauty, I can confirm the business is generally on hiatus at the moment, and I’m not sure it will linger much longer unless it gets someone who’s willing to buy the brand to keep it from going insolvent,” said Jake Webb, president and co-founder of Slash Management and Dragun’s former talent manager.
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