The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
The brand had been stocked in Nordstrom and Amazon, as well as available direct to consumers. It had also attracted awards and plaudits from GQ and Forbes.
According to social media posts by Smith, the shuttering has left shareholders with “nothing,” as well as disbanding its team. “Thousands” of consumers were left without products, and “countless” vendors were not paid, Smith said.
Disco was founded in 2019, and raised over $8 million in funding throughout 2020 and 2021. But by 2022, access to capital dried up, as interest rates began to rise and investors began to shift focus onto profitable brands. The company considered restructuring and pursued three failed acquisitions to try and save the business, according to Smith.
In his post, Smith said the brand “never resonated with men at scale” and that persuading men to adopt new behaviours is expensive. Rising customer acquisition costs were also cited, as well as overreliance on its hero product, the Repairing Eye Stick.
ADVERTISEMENT
Learn more:
How Beauty Brands Cut Through the Holiday Noise
Analysts predict a gloomier season with limited spend. Brands are having to get creative to capture share of wallet.
The company reported a long-awaited lift in net sales in its third quarter results, with increases from skincare leading the way, but clouds persist over its China recovery.
As awareness grows about the perils of sleep deprivation, beauty and wellness brands are flooding the market with an array of products to cash in on the booming opportunity.
Going public is usually a pivotal moment in a company’s history, cementing its heavyweight status and setting it up for expansion. In L’Occitane’s case, delisting might be a bigger conduit for growth.
Brands say they’re barreling ahead with marketing and commerce on the app, even as the clock starts ticking for owner ByteDance to sell it or shut it down.