Inside the Accelerator: How Founder Programs are Shaping the Future of Beauty

Kelly Kovack is the CEO and Founder of BeautyMatter, a noted beauty authority, brand advisor, and strategist.

She began her career in beauty as one of the original executive team at Bliss, taking on the way women view beauty as the Managing Director of the Bliss Catalog. This venture fundamentally changed the way beauty products were merchandised, distributed, and marketed to consumers, leading to the acquisition of Bliss by LVMH.

As Vice President of Marketing for Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare, she was on the forefront of defining the cosmeceutical category.

Kelly also founded consultancy group Purpose-Built, providing concept-to-counter solutions and strategic advisement from startups to Fortune 100 brands.

She has also built her own brands, most recently the award-winning fragrance brand Odin, co-founded in collaboration with the men’s fashion brand.

Jadis Montijo is the founder of Motivo Scar Care, a 2x award-winning brand redefining how we care for scars. A transgender and minority entrepreneur, he launched Motivo after his own top surgery revealed the lack of inclusive, effective scar care solutions. With a background in scaling consumer brands, Jadis is on a mission to make scar care more accessible, empowering, and reflective of real people.

Aziza is the founder of The Potion Studio, a luxury haircare brand dedicated to simplifying and enhancing the natural haircare experience for all hair types, with a special focus on curly and textured hair. Growing up in a culturally diverse environment inspired her to create inclusive, high-performance products rooted in self-care and wellness. Aziza is passionate about empowering others to embrace their natural beauty through clean, effective, and cruelty-free solutions.

Oshiya Savur is Chief Brand/Marketing Officer at Maesa and has been instrumental in the company’s incubation and innovation efforts, driving the expansion of existing brands into new categories and launching trailblazing new ones. Under Oshiya’s leadership, Being Frenshe has become one of the most successful wellness brands at Target, and Fine’ry has experienced unprecedented growth through the implementation of Generative AI technology. Oshiya is passionate about empowering the next generation of beauty entrepreneurs and is one of the creators of the Maesa Magic Incubator Program. Prior to joining Maesa, Oshiya served as Head of Marketing, PR, and Education Strategy at Charlotte Tilbury North America and held transformative roles at Revlon and Unilever. A passionate team builder and tech advocate, she hosts the podcast "wh-the-tech?!??", spotlighting innovation at the intersection of business and technology.

Piyush Jain is Chief Executive Officer of Maesa, the Next Gen Beauty Company. Since joining Maesa in 2022, he has led the company through transformative growth and success including launching & nurturing a strong portfolio of beauty brands and investing in top talent. Piyush is a champion for purpose-driven growth - under his leadership, the company launched the Maesa Magic Incubator in 2023, expanding the company’s commitment to empowerment and social impact. Prior to Maesa, Piyush served as CEO of Hand in Hand, a Bain Capital Double Impact company. Before that, he played integral roles across beauty, hair, and personal care categories at Unilever for more than 20 years. In his most recent role there, he served as Global Brand Vice President for Beauty and Personal Care and ran the North America hair brand portfolio, leading iconic brands including Love Beauty and Planet, Dove, Lux, Suave, TRESemmé, and Nexxus.