Sara Happ Gains Minority Investor

James Manso
·2 min read

Sara Happ Inc. has a new investor.

The brand sold a minority stake in the business to BGM Ventures, helmed by Greg Cooper and industry veteran Robert Mihin. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, though Cooper will join the company as chief executive officer.

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It marks the first time the brand has taken outside investment since its founding in 2005, said founder Sara Happ, who will be staying on full time and leading the brand’s creative.

The brand is distributed in 22 countries and has 1,500 doors in the U.S., including wholesale partners like Saks Fifth Avenue, Anthropologie, Thirteen Lune, Nordstrom, Revolve and a fleet of roughly 600 indie retailers.

“We’re a multimillion-dollar company and we’ve done it without any outside capital,” Happ said, adding that the company has grown 30 percent every year since its founding. “We cannot keep up supply with demand, and I’ve never had this much retailer and customer demand for our products. That’s why the acquisition is so helpful with scaling.”

Product development is also a priority, though Happ said not to expect a barrage of new products. “We give each product its moment. We’re never going to put out 18 [stock keeping units] in a month,” she said. “My biggest thing is listening to our customers and talking to our buyers. They tell us what they want, and then they buy it.”

Happ began creating a lip scrub in her kitchen, and her products are solely focused on lip care — a category that has swelled since her brand’s inception.

“I met Sara 18 years ago when she was making the Lip Scrub in her kitchen. I have watched Sara build her brand with such passion, grit and an unbridled will to win,” Cooper said in a statement. “When the opportunity arose to make this acquisition, I jumped on it. I and some of the biggest names in beauty are thrilled to be working with Sara to take Sara Happ, Inc. to the next level.”

Mihin will join the brand’s advisory board, which also counts beauty entrepreneurs like Joanna Vargas, Nyakio Grieco and Leslie Blodgett among its ranks.

Happ was represented by David Grinberg and Emily Zipperstein of Sidley Austin, LLP on the deal.

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