# The Center

> The Center is a West Hollywood beauty and personal-care accelerator founded by industry veteran Ben Bennett. Instead of chasing a single hit, it spots gaps on the shelf, builds a commercial concept to fill each one, and pairs it with a founder - often a creator or influencer - who holds real equity rather than a fee. The house keeps four to five brands running at a time across skincare, fragrance, color and bodycare, then aims each toward a sale to a larger strategic buyer. Its breakout, Naturium, sold to e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million in 2023.

- **Founded:** 2019
- **Headquarters:** West Hollywood, California, United States
- **Founders:** Ben Bennett (Founder & CEO)
- **Team size:** Approximately 35-51 employees
- **Products:** Brand incubation & acceleration, Shared operating platform, Naturium, MAKE Beauty, Phlur
- **Notable:** Built Naturium and sold it to e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million in 2023 - e.l.f.'s largest acquisition., Raised a $15 million growth investment from Prelude Growth Partners in December 2021., Sold fragrance brand Phlur to TSG Consumer Partners.

## Products & services

- **Brand incubation & acceleration** — End-to-end brand building: concept and whitespace identification, product development, creative direction, and go-to-market strategy, with founders brought in as equity-holding partners.
- **Shared operating platform** — Pooled testing, manufacturing, forecasting, and distribution management across the portfolio, giving each brand infrastructure that a standalone startup could not afford alone.
- **Naturium** — Masstige skincare brand launched with creator Susan Yara; grew into The Center's breakout and was acquired by e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million in 2023.
- **MAKE Beauty** — Color cosmetics brand acquired from Mana Cosmetics and relaunched, led by Carrie Barber.
- **Phlur** — Influencer-led fragrance brand acquired in 2021 and relaunched with Chriselle Lim; later sold to TSG Consumer Partners.
- **Saltair** — Accessible bodycare and personal-care brand built with model and entrepreneur Iskra Lawrence, expanding into mass retail.
- **Prequel** — Skincare brand within The Center's portfolio.
- **CYKLAR** — Bodycare brand created with actress and digital creator Claudia Sulewski, added to the portfolio in March 2024.

## Achievements

- Built Naturium and sold it to e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million in 2023 - e.l.f.'s largest acquisition.
- Raised a $15 million growth investment from Prelude Growth Partners in December 2021.
- Sold fragrance brand Phlur to TSG Consumer Partners.
- Established a repeatable, capital-efficient model for launching and exiting beauty brands.
- Built a portfolio spanning skincare, color cosmetics, fragrance and bodycare with creator-founders.

## Latest updates

- **2024-03** — The Center added CYKLAR, a bodycare brand created with actress and digital creator Claudia Sulewski, to its portfolio.
- **2023-08** — Portfolio brand Naturium was acquired by e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million.
- **2021-12** — The Center received a $15 million growth investment from Prelude Growth Partners.

## Links

- Website: https://thecenter.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thecenterbrands
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecenterbrands/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/the-center
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-15