Over 80,000 attend launch pop-up of teen skin-care brand Sincerely Yours

The brand, co-founded by 15-year-old social media creator Salish Matter and dad Jordan Matter, was marking the surprise launch with a pop-up at the mall. During her appearance, Salish Matter drew a crowd of fans that filled up three mezzanine levels. According to the brand, American Dream Mall estimated that over 80,000 people made their way to the pop-up over the weekend, with some lining up outside from 4 a.m. to get in when doors opened at 6. Some hardcore screaming fans even camped overnight to secure their spots. According to the American Dream, the Sincerely Yours pop-up broke the attendance records of past appearances by MrBeast and Hailey Bieber.

Julia Straus, a co-founder and CEO of Sincerely Yours, told Modern Retail that the event’s turnout demonstrates Gen Alpha’s appetite for in-person and community engagement. “It was great to reach this many people, both from an awareness and sampling standpoint ahead of launch this Friday,” Straus said.

The brand says it sold out of merch, and Sephora sold out of Sincerely Yours products within the first hour. Additionally, 20,000 skin-care samples were distributed to fans, and currently, a waiting list for product restocks sits at over 60,000. The fan frenzy also generated media coverage and about 45,000 TikTok videos posted about the event. The pop-up eventhad surprise creator guests like Asala, Brent Rivera and Kaido stop by. 

Straus said the resulting turnout was especially notable since the company did very little promotion ahead of time.

“We didn’t have any [brand] social channels until August 30,” she said. “That’s what also amazed us.” The announcement was teased by Salish and Jordan Matter to a core group through a two-way texting platform. The members-only chat has 60,000 members and was used for feedback to help develop the brand. The American Dream event was then officially teased by the daughter-father team, giving attendees a week to plan their pop-up trip. 

The IRL activation idea came about as a contrast to the way many traditional beauty brands launch, which typically entails a PR and editorial push and inviting beauty editors and influencers to exclusive previews. “Of course, we’ll do those in the future,” Straus said. “But we really want to introduce the brand to the customer and celebrate them by putting them front and center.”

The frenzy around Sincerely Yours’s launch pop-up is a testament to what the upcoming generation is looking for out of a consumer brand.

“With Gen Alpha, their obsession du jour seems to be skin care and beauty,” said Manica Blain, an angel investor and founder of Top Knot Ventures. It makes sense, she added, since this generation has grown up watching social media content and their own millennial mothers’ skin-care routines, with a chunk of that during the Covid era.  

“This younger generation finds that it’s creators they’re drawn to,” she said. Having a social media creator like Salish Matter as the face of a beauty brand is telling, Blain explained, adding that every generation has its own cultural phenomenon. With millennials, that was boy bands and pop stars during the early aughts. Today, it’s all about social media megastars who speak to their followers’ day-to-day needs and issues. 

On the other hand, Blain said, it’s difficult to predict the longevity of hot new brands. “The teen skin-care category is alive and well, and will likely remain so for some time,” she said. As such, only time will tell how sticky some of the retention is among typically discovery-focused young consumers.

Next, Straus said, the brand is looking to expand on the blockbuster launch as it officially debuts at Sephora on Sept. 12. “We’ve learned a lot from this event in a very short period of time,” Straus said. “We’re excited to figure out what this will look like as an ongoing strategy and to meet folks in other parts of the country.”