Cult Beauty co-founder exits after THG buy

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Apr 18, 2022

Eight months after THG bought Cult Beauty in a £275 million deal, its co-founder and co-CEO Alexia Inge has exited the business.

She said she was proud of the business she’d helped to create and added that she’s “excited” to watch it develop as a standalone offer within the THG portfolio. She also said she would be spending more time with her family and work out what her next move might be. 

Inge — a former model, fashion writer and PR — founded the business with entrepreneur Jessica DeLuca 14 years ago with an investment of £1.75 million.

Its USP was the offer of ‘cult’ products from indie brands and items from established names that couldn’t usually be found online. It also came with a promise that the Cult Beauty team had tested all the products on its site and with a heavy focus on editorial content.

THG clearly saw value in that proposition when it was put on sale last year with rumours that ASOS had also been interested.

But THG won the prize for £275 million, adding to its giant beauty ops that also include Glossybox and Lookfantastic.