Guest Lecture: Lauren Ratner
rhode's co-founder on what she looks for in new hires and how the Sephora launch is going.
Good morning everyone.
I’m finishing today’s letter from the backseat of an Uber on the way to the airport. Last night, my friend Jeannie gave me some apples that she picked upstate over the weekend and my friend Krithika gave me a copy of I Am the Brother of XX by Fleur Jaeggy (I enjoyed Sweet Days of Discipline, which she also wrote) so I don’t see how anything could go wrong on this flight.
Today’s letter includes: An interview with rhode’s co-founder and president Lauren Ratner, restaurant gossip from EEEEEATSCON, podcasts are increasingly expanding into retail, and the Bravo Housewife selling her show outfits in Substack chats.
Guest Lecture: Lauren Ratner, President and Chief Brand Officer of rhode
Guest Lecture is a Feed Me series that captures the spirit of that (sometimes unhinged) guest lecturer who would come into your class on a Friday, drop more knowledge than you’ve heard all year, and then leave forever. Past guests include Keith McNally, Audrey Gelman, and Jake Sherman.
Today, Lauren Ratner answers your questions about rhode’s Sephora strategy, her approach to hiring, and what role trends play in building the internet’s favorite beauty business.
“Do you try to keep up with what’s happening trend-wise with Beauty in general (and if so how do you do that), or do you focus on your own brand and goals, not thinking about what anyone else is doing?” – Angelica
I spend most of my time ideating around rhode, what’s next for us, and our own brand goals and perspective.
While I definitely keep up with what’s happening in beauty and fashion and the consumer industry more widely, I would say I actually spend more time keeping up with what consumers and creators are posting online and where those trends are going! I learn a lot from this in terms of what people want to see and how that can help inform our content strategy.
“From the beginning, our vision was to create a world of rhode that felt personal and immersive, with high-impact imagery and a two-way dialogue people genuinely wanted to be a part of.”
“How did you approach navigating such a crowded celebrity-based beauty space? Where do you see it going in the next couple of years — is it oversaturated, in your opinion, or is there room for more of what the customers don’t know they need yet?” – Olga
When we created rhode, Hailey wanted to create a brand that was bigger than herself, where someone could pick up a rhode product and be obsessed with it without necessarily knowing it was associated with her. In order to do that, it was really important that we were laser-focused on product innovation and that we stayed true to our curated product philosophy. We focused on products to support skin barrier health, bringing in skincare experts like Dhaval Bhanusali and Ron Robinson to help create efficacious products with hero ingredient franchises like peptides.
Consumers definitely have a lot of options these days but I do think there is always room for more brands that have great products and a unique selling proposition!
“Dream guest! Hi Lauren! Rhode has become such a blueprint for brand building. How has world-building (like the Mallorca summer club) contributed to Rhode’s success and set a new standard for other brands? And when it comes to hiring, what qualities have stood out in candidates — even those without traditional CPG backgrounds?” – Sarah
First, thank you! I think world-building has been such a key part of rhode because it allows us to create experiences that go beyond just products. This has become increasingly important as we translate our online expression to offline and build out the world of rhode IRL in our photobooths, pop-up experiences and now at retail with Sephora.