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Getting a beauty brand onto Ulta’s shelves usually takes years of relationship-building most founders never get access to. Ulta Beauty is trying to shorten that gap for eight early-stage brands at once. The retailer announced its fifth annual MUSE Accelerator cohort, a 10-week program starting September 14 that pairs $410,000 in direct funding with mentorship and hands-on retail training for founders spanning haircare, skincare, fragrance, cosmetics, and body care.
Every Brand Gets $50,000, One Gets an Extra $10,000
The funding structure gives every selected brand the same baseline support before adding one extra incentive. Each of the eight brands receives $50,000 to help accelerate growth and prepare for national retail distribution. Ulta Beauty and longtime partner Fifteen Percent Pledge will also select one participant from the cohort to receive an additional $10,000, based on sales growth, whitespace opportunity, and community impact.
This Program Already Has a Five-Year Track Record Behind It
This year’s cohort builds on a five-year track record rather than starting from scratch. Since MUSE launched in 2022, the program has supported more than 30 early-stage brands, awarded over $1.5 million in total funding, and provided more than 150 hours of direct coaching. Several past participants, including Pound Cake, Octavia Morgan Los Angeles, Scarlet by RedDrop, and OCOA, have since launched into Ulta Beauty’s retail ecosystem.
This Year’s Lineup Spans Scalp Care to Luxury Fragrance
The 2026 cohort spans a genuinely wide range of product categories and founder backgrounds. AWARE Hair focuses on scalp wellness, while Blue Water Girls brings Caribbean-inspired sun and body care to the lineup. Dos Mundos is a Latin-owned luxury fragrance house built around cultural memory, and MIA Outdoor Hair created a leave-in serum specifically engineered to protect hair from sun, salt water, and chlorine exposure.
Four More Brands Round Out a Genuinely Diverse Cohort
Rounding out the cohort, Mochiglow draws its fragrances from Asian desserts and drinks like mochi and matcha, while MoKnowsHair offers a curl-focused haircare line formulated by a master cosmetologist. Prados Beauty centers Indigenous representation in cosmetics, and Prereq Care, co-developed with 50 real preteens and teens, makes dermatologist-approved skincare designed specifically for the physical and emotional changes that come with puberty.
Ulta’s Merchandising Chief Calls This a Five-Year Investment in Access
Ulta Beauty’s leadership framed the program as a five-year investment in shaping who gets to build beauty brands in the first place. “For five years, MUSE has elevated emerging voices with the potential to shape the future of beauty, providing founders with greater access to the resources, mentorship, and support that can help them succeed,” said Lauren Brindley, the company’s chief merchandising and digital officer.
The Curriculum Covers What Instagram Never Teaches Founders
The 10-week curriculum goes well beyond a check and a handshake. Participants work through coursework covering brand strategy and positioning, fundamentals for succeeding at retail, and supply chain logistics, skills that rarely get taught alongside product development. The program also includes a chance to pitch directly to Ulta Beauty retail merchants and network with investors before the cohort officially wraps.
Mentors Include Founders Who Already Made It Onto Ulta’s Shelves
Founders in the program get paired with mentors who have already built brands inside Ulta’s ecosystem themselves. This year’s mentor list includes Shontay Lundy of Black Girl Sunscreen, Priscilla Tsai of Cocokind, and Julissa and Tony Prado of Rizos Curls. “We are deeply connected to empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs with the insights and resources that have been instrumental in our own journey as founders,” the Prados said in a statement.
One Alum Went From the Program to 460 Stores in a Year
One 2024 alum offers a concrete look at where this program can lead. OCOA, the first Dominican hair care brand at Ulta Beauty, launched into more than 460 stores and Ulta.com in August 2025. “The program didn’t just prepare us for national retail, it provided the financial investment, world-class mentorship, and internal sponsorship needed to scale into over 460 Ulta Beauty stores just a year later,” said co-founders Cory and Nicol Varona.
Past Winners Are Now Teaching the Next Cohort Directly
New this year, Ulta added Alumni Spotlights to the program specifically so past participants can pass on lessons learned to the incoming cohort, featuring OCOA, Octavia Morgan Los Angeles, Scarlet by Red Drop, and POOM Cosmetics. Since its 2022 launch supporting early-stage brands from underrepresented founders, MUSE has grown from a single Chicago cohort into one of the more structured paths into national beauty retail.