NEW YORK, Aug. 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Indie Beauty Expo (IBE), the largest professionally-curated exposition of independent beauty, lifestyle and wellness brands, celebrated its most expansive and successful show yet from Aug. 22-24 in New York. After launching in New York two years ago with a one-day expo, IBE has evolved into a three-day event spanning three U.S. cities (Los Angeles, Dallas and New York) with segments for Brands, Buyers, Press and Shoppers.
Held on Aug. 22, CONNECT INDIE attracted over 400 attendees to Skylight Modern. CONNECT INDIE focused on education for emerging beauty entrepreneurs with programming that included Indie Essentials structured learning courses in the areas of finance, retail and media. IBE expanded its class offering into levels — 100, 200 or 300 — where entrepreneurs learned different skills for success. CONNECT INDIE concluded with four Expert Dialogue panel discussions with Founders, Buyers, Press, and, for the first time, Investors. Special guest Jamie O'Banion, Beauty Bioscience Co-Founder and CEO, shared her journey from failure to Forbes List of Richest Self-Made Women.
SHOP INDIE and TRADE INDIE, which were held following CONNECT INDIE on Aug. 23 and 24, respectively, took place at Skylight Clarkson Sq., where a record-setting 227 brands in the skin, hair, nail, fragrance, tool, ingestible and lifestyle categories exhibited. The trade show attracted over 500 buyers, 300 members of the press from leading trade and consumer outlets, and 1,500 consumers. The event capped off an amazing year so far for IBE during which more than 400 indie brands exhibited at one or more of its American trade shows, up from 230 indie brands in 2016 and 80 in 2015.
At the third annual New York show, the fast-growing platform for indie beauty brands revealed its future plans to extend its presence and program offerings with:
International Expansion
IBE will head to London for its first international edition October 2018. Branching overseas will give indie brands an opportunity to expand their international footprints while providing European consumers, buyers and investors a taste of all things indie beauty. "Over a quarter of IBE exhibitors and attendees are from outside the U.S., with the EU being the largest contingent," said Jillian Wright, Co-Founder of IBE. "In speaking with European brands, buyers and press, it has become clear that there is a need for the IBE platform in Europe. Within 24 hours of announcing our plans, we have secured over 20 exhibitors for our London debut, and we are very much looking forward to showcasing and supporting indie innovations in Europe."
Launch of Beauty Independent
IBE also announced the launch of its new content platform, Beauty Independent, a digital publication sitting at the intersection of beauty and entrepreneurship. Beauty Independent's mission is to report on the beauty entrepreneurs' journeys and to showcase their innovations, recognize their challenges, celebrate their accomplishments, and deliver the information and insights they need to succeed. Rachel Brown, former WWD West Coast beauty editor, oversees and curates Beauty Independent content as Editor-in-Chief. "As a beauty business editor, I have been tracking the meteoric rise of indie brands for several years, but was always challenged to give those brands the attention they deserved," said Brown. "That is why, when IBE approached me with the opportunity to spearhead Beauty Independent, I jumped on board within seconds. Beauty entrepreneurs have a very specific set of needs, and I am glad that we can concentrate on serving them as a distinct audience."
Beauty Independent profiles indie brands, retailers, influencers and investors, offers insights and expertise specific to the day-to-day needs of small business owners, and supplies daily news covering brand launches, store openings, and hires in the indie beauty, wellness and lifestyle industries.
Neiman Marcus Partnership
IBE is proud to announce a first-in-class collaboration with Neiman Marcus. The iconic luxury retailer will be hosting a pop-up shop both in Dallas and online, bringing IBE's knowledge of indie brands and a differentiated beauty offering to their customers.
"For the past two years, we have worked tirelessly to ensure that IBE is the definitive destination for buyers across mass and prestige categories to find the best brands to help enhance the appeal and competitiveness of their collections," said Nader Naeymi-Rad, Co-Founder of IBE. "The next step for us is to partner with retailers to help curate and onboard a continuous stream of indie brands, and to bring the unique experiential nature of IBE to their doors."
ABOUT Indie Beauty Expo:
Founded by celebrity esthetician Jillian Wright and entrepreneur Nader Naeymi-Rad, Indie Beauty Expo was established to help the fast-growing category of indie brands connect with retail buyers, press and consumers. IBE debuted in New York in August 2015 and has rapidly grown to become the largest professionally-curated exposition of independent beauty, lifestyle and wellness brands.
IBE has helped hundreds of brands from around the world and across different categories along their paths to commercial success. IBE is presented in four strategic U.S. retail markets and Europe: NY, LA, Dallas, and London. IBE provides specific segments for Brands, Buyers, Press and Shoppers. IBE has also launched a range of services to assist and inform various indie beauty audiences, including the Best in Show awards, IBE TV media channel, Anthology show book, CONNECT INDIE entrepreneurial education, Beauty Independent content platform and Retail Advisory for Buyers.
SOURCE Indie Beauty Expo