Meet The Winners of Maesa’s First Beauty & Wellness Incubator

In July, Maesa announced a new incubator for early-stage brands in the beauty and wellness category. The fast-growing company behind Hairitage, Flower and Kristin Ess wanted to provide assistance to underrepresented voices in beauty and wellness to build successful brands from “concept to aisle.”

Officials put out a call for beauty and wellness CPG startups that were pre-launch or had less than $100K in sales to date. Maesa would offer three spots in the Maesa Magic Incubator.

The winners have been revealed—and according to executives in the Maesa c-suite, each are addressing unmet needs in beauty.

“I truly believe in the power of ideas and the passion of entrepreneurs – and this is so beautifully reflected in our winners and finalists. We have a group of visionaries who have found a consumer insight and designed innovative products and solutions to meet unmet consumer needs,” said Piyush Jain, CEO of Maesa, which was ranked No. 40 in Happi's 2023 Top 50 Report.

Maesa Magic Incubator Winners

House Of Foster: Selah Jael

House of Foster is a brand promoting ”unapologetic, explorative” fragrance. The line features clean modern accords with a “non-boring soulful undertone.” House of Foster was born in search of the “untold scent story, with culture-led formulation that redefines the constraints of clean fragrance.”

“We are inspired not only by House of Foster's unique and powerful approach to creating explorative fragrances for the unseen fragrance consumer, but also by Selah's powerful story and journey to cultivate culture-led formulations,” noted Oshiya Savur, chief brand officer at Maesa.

Fuzz Clinic: Keisha Wagner-Gaymon

Fuzz Clinic is hair removal skincare for multicultural customers. The brand’s formulations are infused with botanical ingredients aimed at addressing common issues such as dark marks, irritation and bumps often associated with hair removal. Fuzz Clinic—which says it understands the interconnectedness of hormonal well-being and the challenges of unwanted hair—has an overarching mission to empower customers by boosting confidence and enhancing their self-esteem through “exceptional skincare solutions.”

“We are impressed by Fuzz Clinic's solutions to issues not frequently discussed: the hair removal segment,” said Savur. “Keisha's dedication to building products that serve the needs of consumers dealing with hair removal struggles and hormonal imbalances has been so admirable to us.”

Squigs Beauty: Nikita Charuza

Squigs Beauty is an award-winning, approachable, fun and effective Ayurvedic beauty brand with a mission of “Happy Headcare.” In a fitting tie in, the company donates a percentage of proceeds to mental health charities.

“We love Squigs Beauty's unique ability to bring the beauty and efficacy of ayurvedic beauty to Gen-Z consumers. Nikita's drive to scale Squigs as an approachable, accessible brand while centering products on efficacy is wonderful to watch,” noted Savur.

Mentorship Program

The trio will enroll in a 12-week, intensive mentorship program. Charuza, Wagner-Gaymon and Jael will also recieve $35,000 each.

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