Hailey Bieber says Rhode's constant sell-outs aren't a marketing strategy. "We're not creating FOMO on purpose," she told Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit on October 14, 2026, as she and co-founder Lauren Ratner laid out how the brand reached about $390 million in annual sales.
Quick facts
| Founded | June 2022 |
| Owner | e.l.f. Beauty (deal worth up to $1 billion, agreed May 2025) |
| Fiscal 2026 net sales | About $390 million, up roughly 80% |
| Next target | $1 billion in net sales |
| Retail | No. 1 brand at Sephora U.S. and U.K., per the company |
| Newest market | Sephora Europe: 500+ stores in 19 markets, from Sept. 30, 2026 |
Is Rhode selling out on purpose?
No, according to its founders. Bieber said some brands deliberately use scarcity to drive hype, but that Rhode isn't one of them. Ratner described the sell-outs as a forecasting problem: demand keeps arriving faster than the company predicts.
The history backs that up, by their account. In the first six months after the 2022 launch, Rhode could keep product on shelves for only 11 days before items sold out. Ahead of its summer bronzer launch this year, it added roughly 160,000 customers in three months, and some bestsellers ran out again.
Bieber said the brand has apologized to customers repeatedly and tries to do better with each drop. Ratner credited e.l.f. Beauty with adding distribution centers and more manufacturers since the acquisition.
Bieber also admitted one hit caught her off guard: she didn't expect the lip-gloss phone case to become as popular as it did.
Why did Hailey Bieber sell Rhode?
e.l.f. Beauty agreed to buy Rhode in May 2025 in a deal worth up to $1 billion. Bieber said the price was not what decided it.
Her biggest fear, she said, was that a new owner would bring in its own leaders, expand the product team and leave her with less say. "It's my baby, it's our baby," she said.
According to Ratner, e.l.f. told the founders it wanted them more involved, not less: "We're not going to fix what's not broken." Bieber stayed on as chief creative officer and also advises e.l.f.
How big is Rhode now?
According to Fortune's account of the summit:
- About $390 million in fiscal 2026 net sales, up roughly 80% year over year.
- The No. 1 brand at Sephora in the U.S. and U.K., and at Mecca in Australia, per the company.
- The next goal is $1 billion in net sales.
The Sephora run started in September 2025 in North America, a launch e.l.f. called record-breaking. On September 30, 2026, Rhode arrived at more than 500 Sephora stores in 19 new European markets, its first physical stores in continental Europe. Ratner said first-day online sales at Sephora Europe beat the previous year's entire Sephora EU Black Friday sales.
"Expanding rhode with Sephora in Europe is a key moment in our journey to being a truly global, omnichannel business," e.l.f. CEO Nick Vlahos said at the European launch.
How does Rhode market itself?
Fast. Ratner said the team moves quickly on social media, favouring short video clips with quick sign-offs, and doesn't measure return on investment for that content.
What to watch
Restocks. Whether the extra distribution centers and manufacturers finally end the sell-out cycle, especially with Europe and the holiday season adding demand.
The $1 billion goal. Rhode would need to grow about two and a half times from its fiscal 2026 sales to get there. e.l.f.'s quarterly results will show the pace.
Bieber's role. She has said keeping creative control was the condition of the sale. How that holds up as Rhode grows inside e.l.f. is the story to follow.
Published Sunday, October 18, 2026. Quotes and sales figures are from Hailey Bieber and Lauren Ratner's remarks at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit as reported by Fortune, and from e.l.f. Beauty's announcements. Rhode's sales figures are company-reported.
