Three emerging brands join Maesa’s flagship incubator as the program enters its fourth year of supporting the founders shaping what’s next in beauty and wellness
NEW YORK, Oct. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Maesa, the Next-Gen Beauty Company, today announced the 2027 class of the Maesa Magic Incubator (MMI), its flagship program created to support the next generation of beauty entrepreneurs from underrepresented communities.
The cohort brings together three early-stage brands spanning sun care, hand care and nail care: BEAME, founded by Eniye Okah; gemi, founded by Hau Yeung and Erin Choi; and Sugar Standard, founded by Monique Claiborne Cardwell. As part of the program, each founder will receive a $35,000 grant, totaling $105,000 in funding across the cohort. Over the coming months, the founders will work alongside Maesa experts and MMI’s powerhouse advisory board to tackle the specific challenges facing their businesses and build the foundations for sustainable growth.
“The founders in this year’s cohort stood out not only for the strength of their ideas, but for the passion and conviction they bring to building their businesses,” said Piyush Jain, CEO of Maesa. “At Maesa, we believe great brands are built by founders who deeply understand their consumers and stay relentless in solving real unmet needs. We are excited to support them with access to our team’s expertise, hands-on mentorship and connections to help them accelerate their growth.”
MEET THE MAESA MAGIC INCUBATOR CLASS OF 2027
Eniye Okah, BEAME
Making sunscreen reapplication visible, easy and habit-forming.
BEAME is a next-generation sun care brand making SPF reapplication visible, easy and habit-forming. Founded by former beauty buyer Eniye Okah, BEAME creates innovative, behavior-led products including color-changing UV Detection Stickers that show when it’s time to reapply sunscreen, and transparent UPF 50+ UV Protection Patches.
Hau Yeung & Erin Choi, gemi
Bringing K-beauty innovation to an everyday essential.
gemi is an AAPI, female-founded beauty brand bringing K-beauty skincare to your hands. Its hero Hand Sanitizer + Serum™ transforms an everyday essential with facial-grade K-beauty serum ingredients, master perfumer-crafted scents, and beautiful, innovative design, eliminating 99.99% of common germs while caring for skin.
Monique Claiborne Cardwell, Sugar Standard
Reimagining press-on nails for the next generation.
Sugar Standard is a beauty brand reimagining press-on nails for the next generation. Designed for kids and tweens, the brand’s playful, age-appropriate nail sets combine trend-forward designs, 3D details and easy application, giving young beauty lovers a fun way to explore personal style with no salon, no mess, and no damage.
THE BEAUTY FOUNDER PLAYBOOK IS CHANGING
Building a beauty brand has never been more accessible. Building one to last has never been more complex.
After reviewing applications from hundreds of early-stage beauty and personal care brands over four years, MMI has seen founders navigate a new set of questions alongside the enduring realities of building a business. From building community before monetization to determining where AI can meaningfully accelerate the business, founders are seeking new ways to test ideas, connect with consumers and build for sustainable growth.
As beauty continues to evolve at the intersection of technology, community and consumer-led innovation, the path to building a lasting brand is changing, too. Now in its fourth year, MMI has seen this shift firsthand: applications reflected new opportunities created by AI and social commerce, while founders continue to grapple with the fundamental challenges of turning an idea into a sustainable business – from formulation and manufacturing to inventory, retail relationships and financial management.
These insights continue to shape MMI’s approach. Each founder selects a “Major” and “Minor” – real-world challenges currently facing their business – to serve as the focus of their work with mentors throughout the program, ensuring support is tailored to where each founder is in their journey.
FUNDING, MENTORSHIP AND INDUSTRY ACCESS
As a member of the 2027 class, each founder will receive $35,000 in grant funding, along with personalized mentorship and hands-on support from Maesa and industry experts. Their individual “Major” and “Minor” areas will inform customized learning tracks, complemented by educational sessions and fireside conversations with leaders across the beauty and consumer industries.
The experience will extend beyond the classroom, with opportunities including an executive education experience at the Harvard Faculty Club focused on the rapidly evolving consumer landscape and the opportunity to attend Cosmoprof North America Miami, including educational programming, networking and Entrepreneur Academy access.
The founders will also have access to MMI’s advisory board, bringing together entrepreneurs, operators and industry experts with firsthand experience building and scaling brands. This year’s advisory board includes Brian Bordainick (Starface), Brian Sugar (POPSUGAR), Kelly Kovack (BeautyMatter), Liraz Evenor (Bain Capital Private Equity Portfolio Group), Olamide Olowe (Topicals), Shai Eisenman (Bubble), Tomi Talabi (The Black Beauty Club), and Maesa leaders Molly Kennedy, Piyush Jain, and Scott Kestenbaum.
The program will culminate in January 2027 with a capstone presentation to the MMI advisory board, giving each founder the opportunity to showcase the progress made throughout the program and the next stage of their business journey. While the formal program concludes in January, founders remain part of the MMI alumni community, with ongoing access to relationships, mentorship and opportunities across the broader Maesa network.
At its core, the Maesa Magic Incubator reflects the entrepreneurial spirit that has been part of Maesa’s DNA since its founding: a belief in the power of a great idea and the people behind it to shape what comes next. Since its launch, MMI has committed $315,000 in grant funding to underrepresented founders, reaching $420,000 with the 2026-2027 cohort. By investing in emerging founders and giving them the tools, perspective and community to turn their ideas into enduring businesses, Maesa is helping fuel the next generation of beauty and wellness brands and the future of the industry itself.
ABOUT MAESA
Maesa is the Next-Gen Beauty Company, transforming the industry by incubating and growing meaningful, innovative brands and making prestige beauty accessible. Maesa believes beauty ignites inspiration, creativity, imagination, and connection, sparking new ideas and possibilities, and meeting unmet consumer needs. Through best-in-class design, formulation, brand creation and marketing capabilities, Maesa delivers new, better and different products with an unsurpassed speed to market. Maesa works with a variety of retailers to create and launch brands across beauty and wellness categories. The current portfolio includes Kristin Ess, Hairitage by Mindy McKnight, Fine’ry, Being Frenshe and MIX:BAR among other brands. For more information, visit www.maesa.com
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SOURCE Maesa
