In the past, Julep gave its Maven subscribers a special beauty box every month with nail-related products that were hand-picked by Julep employees.
Now, though, the Seattle-based cosmetics and e-commerce powerhouse is putting the power in the hands of its customers.
Julep today debuted a customizable beauty box, allowing subscribers of its Maven program to choose from two million possible combinations of beauty products and nail polishes.
“We want women to engage with us each month,” Jane Park, CEO and founder of Julep, said in a statement. “With this new service, we’re bringing the beauty counter experience to our community of Maven subscribers; letting them actively engage in product selection so they receive exactly the combination of monthly products that works for them.”
Maven subscribers will be able to discuss Julep’s latest products with others on the company’s forums and social media, which can help them make a decision about their personalized beauty box for the month.
The box idea is similar to that of Birchbox, a company that selects an array of beauty, grooming and lifestyle products to customers every month based on their personal interests. Park once described Birchbox as a competitor, but she also noted how Julep is different because it sells only its own products.
“We’re only able to do this because we’re a full-stack beauty company,” Park said today. “Since we own the entire customer experience from product development through to fulfillment, we can let customers choose from the over 300 new products we launch every year, including the best of what we’ve launched to date.”
Julep, which employs more than 200, has been on a roll so far in 2014. The eight-year-old startup raised $30 million last month from marquee investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Maveron, and Madrona. It also used a crowdfunding model to raise money for new nail polishing tool called the Plié Wand this past January.
On top of all that, Park, a former Starbucks exec, was honored as CEO of the Year at the 2014 GeekWire Awards last week. Watch her acceptance speech here:
