ABOUT:
Glou is a C2C marketplace for rehoming underloved beauty products. Glou is built with the goal of becoming a natural extension of the beauty consumer journey; the first place they check before they buy new, the platform for rehoming stuff they no longer want, and where they learn how to recycle what they are finished.
https://glou.co
https://shop.glou.co
PROBLEM/SOLUTION:
Glou was born out of personal frustration that there was nowhere for Karen to sell her skincare and makeup (all new, from premium brands), and the only real solution were private social media groups where completing simple transactions was a multi-day process.
Additionally, the beauty industry has been left behind when it comes to innovation in sustainability. Small steps are being made to address the beginning and end of a product life cycle, but Glou is addressing the middle of a product’s lifecycle - where majority of waste comes from. Together with our non-profit partner we are making strides to create a brand agnostic circular economy for all beauty packaging.
After extensive user research to understand the pain points of beauty consumers who want to buy and sell beauty products, we zeroed in on designing the fastest listing creation process ever to win over beauty sellers - the user that has the greatest barrier to overcome. We are now confident that with greater brand awareness to drive sales, and speed to market, we will dominate the recommerce space for beauty.
Sellers: Glou's near frictionless seller listing experience is 30x faster than competitors, enabling every day beauty consumers to become power sellers. See it in action on TikTok.
Buyers: Shopping on Glou is a far cry from the typical experience of shopping other consumer to consumer marketplaces. No ugly user-generated pictures, transparent pricing, flat-rate shipping, and one-cart checkout. Shop now!
OPPORTUNITY:
$94B US beauty industry, $14.3B TAM
VALUE PROPOSITION:
Buyers: More beauty products to consumers faster, cheaper (and better for the planet)
Sellers: Get money for products that are not being used.
PROGRESS TO DATE:
- Prototype with over 700 users
- MVP launched July 2021
- Over 1000 different beauty products have been listed
- Launching our "Zero Beauty Waste Campus" campus ambassador program this Fall.
USE OF FUNDS:
- Payroll
- Recycling and admin fees for campus ambassador program
- Marketing
ABOUT THE FOUNDER:
Karen Lee - Linkedin
Karen's entrepreneurial journey began during her six years in competitive robotics where she forged a legacy of sustained excellence out of a team with low resources and ambition.
In grad school her knack for learning on the fly was put to the test when she navigated a new country and new language every few months (4 countries, 5 languages).
With extensive improv training, a penchant for extreme sports, and a namesake meme, there’s not much that Karen can’t overcome.
