Join us for an engaging discussion on “Clean Beauty and Sustainability” with two beauty industry leaders: Gregg Renfrew, CEO of Beautycounter and Kelly Kovack, CEO of BeautyMatter.
Our panel will focus on the evolution of the cosmetics and beauty industry as consumers lean towards clean beauty products and sustainability. Learn how these two powerhouse women started their businesses and built their brands.
Clean Beauty and Sustainability
Tuesday June 8th, 12 pm PST / 3 pm EST
Hot topics we’ll cover:
- What is clean beauty?
- How to “go clean."
- What are the new advances in Anti-aging products?
- Transparency in toxic-free cosmetics.
- Ingredients and FDA regulations for beauty and skin care products.
- What are the next big trends in beauty?
Moderated by C-Sweet Executive Committee Member - Maria Malavenda, Partner, KOL Ventures.
About our Panelists
Gregg Renfrew, Founder & CEO, Beautycounter
Gregg Renfrew is the founder and CEO of Beautycounter, a leading clean beauty and skincare company which she founded in 2011. The multi-channel, direct to consumer brand is recognized as a pioneer of the clean beauty movement advocating for stricter regulations for the entire beauty industry.
Before launching Beautycounter, Gregg established herself as a retail leader. She sold her successful bridal registry company, The Wedding List, to Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in 2001. She then led new-concept, brand, marketing, merchandising and operational consulting engagements with Bergdorf Goodman, Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson, Intermix, Sugar Paper, and Lela Rose, among other high-profile corporate and entertainment clients.
Recognized as a strong advocate for women, Gregg has inspired thousands as a champion of both clean beauty and women’s entrepreneurship. Gregg has spoken at Vanity Fair’s Founders Fair and Fortune’s Most Powerful Women and NextGen Summit, as well as top business schools, including Wharton University of Pennsylvania), Tuck (Dartmouth), Stanford and Columbia. Beautycounter has received numerous awards including being named to CNBC 2020 Disruptor 50 list, Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, Allure Best of Beauty, Glamour Beauty Awards, Refinery29 Innovators List, New Beauty Awards, NewBeauty Awards, WWD’s 2019 Best-Performing Beauty Company (small cap), and the CEW’s 2019 Indie Brand of the Year.
Gregg currently serves on the Board of Directors for The Nantucket Project and previously served on the boards of organizations including GOOD+ Foundation, Healthy Child Healthy World and her alma mater, Miss Porter’s School, where she was the commencement speaker in 2014. Gregg lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three children.
Kelly Kovack, Founder & CEO, BeautyMatter
Kelly Kovack is the quietly loud renegade of the beauty industry, with 25 years of experience and an ability for intuiting emerging trends. Kelly started her career in beauty as a member of the original executive team of Bliss. As Managing Director of the seminal Bliss catalog and product division, Kelly took on the way women bought beauty. Joining MD Skincare (Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare) in its nascent stage, she was responsible for the foundational branding and marketing strategies that positioned the brand as one of the premier cosmeceutical brands in both the retail and professional arenas. In addition, she launched Dr. Gross’ book Your Future Face, which helped establish him as a leader in the field of dermatology.
Kelly launched BeautyMatter in the fall of 2016 with the firm belief that in a fast-moving world, information is knowledge, but context matters. She set out to use her experience building brands and scaling businesses to offer a new perspective and holistic approach to B2B content, filling a void in the beauty industry.
As an advisor and strategist, Kelly has consulted dozens of organizations of all sizes, from emerging start-ups to iconic institutions including multibillion-dollar brands like Old Navy, Banana Republic, Procter & Gamble, Estée Lauder, and Mattel, as well as notable independents like Carol’s Daughter, Zirh, MD Solarsciences, LOLI Beauty, One Love Organics, Jimmyjane, and many others. She advises Venture Capital and Private Equity on beauty transactions, and executional and operational strategies.
Maria Malavenda, Managing Partner, KOL Ventures
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Maria Malavenda is a transformative leader in Los Angeles who drives innovation by understanding customers deeply and leading through empathy. She is a serial entre/intrapreneur, building successful initiatives at ZoomInfo, Monster, Deloitte, Accenture and Johnson & Johnson. She is currently Managing Partner at KOL Ventures, investing in startups with products or services to expand women's power and influence. This includes health, consumer products, and technology. Prior to KOL, Maria founded EVVEMI, the first ever data-driven care management platform for beauty and wellness which exited to Unilever.
Maria has conducted her career as a strategy and corporate development executive, architecting successful acquisitions, mergers, and exits with the most recent being VP, Strategy & Corporate Development for ZoomInfo. During her tenure, she solidified various strategic partnerships that later led to successful acquisitions (NeverBounce, Komiko, EverString, Datanyze, Clickagy) and positioned ZoomInfo to become one of the most successful IPO’s in 2020 out of COVID, performing at 52% above market expectations with a valuation of $17B.
Maria catalyzed several award-winning high-growth ventures in healthcare, consumer products and technology – including companies acquired by Microsoft, Bosch and IMG. She has raised over $4B in seed, venture capital, Private Equity, IPO and post IPO financings’ and achieved considerable returns for investors. In addition to Maria’s career success, she continues to provide her thought leadership as an advocate and mentor for women and serves as a board member for Planned Parenthood and Partner’s Healthcare Innovation.
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