On Tuesday, private equity firm TSG Consumer Partners announced a definitive agreement to acquire indie fragrance label Phlur, The Business of Beauty can exclusively confirm. A value for the deal was not disclosed; the brand is expected to generate over $150 million in retail sales this year, according to chief executive Elizabeth Ashmun.

The masstige line was relaunched in February 2022 by brand accelerator The Center, founded by Ben Bennett, and influencer Chriselle Lim. It has become known for mood-centered scents like the best-selling Missing Person, which was inspired by Lim’s divorce and a longing for an ex lover.

“I was in a very broken place at the time, and I couldn’t find any inspiration outside of my deep pain … it was different from the typical fragrance, where they put everything on a silver platter and they make everything beautiful,” said Lim. “What we were able to offer with Phlur was really something different that hasn’t been done in fragrance, which was rawness and vulnerability and transparency.”

Phlur’s evocative fragrances and marketing has resonated not only with scent-obsessed Gen-Z and Millennial customers but also choosy shoppers looking for elevated products. Ashmun, who joined the brand in 2024, said that 50 percent of its customers are net new to the category. Phlur is reportedly the number two growth brand at Sephora US and Canada, and jumped from the top 20 fine fragrances to top 10 in the last year. At Space NK, it has broken into the retailer’s top 10 overall lines and has seen triple-digit growth.

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With the acquisition, TSG Consumer pushes further into the influencer-founded space, a tricky but recently lucrative sector of the beauty industry. Last year, it invested in skincare and makeup line Summer Fridays, founded by influencers Marianna Hewitt and Lauren Ireland. It previously held a stake in Huda Kattan’s Huda Beauty. Prior TSG beauty investments have included megabrands E.l.f. Beauty and It Cosmetics.

In a challenging M&A market, which includes a slew of cosmetic brands in holding patterns, a select few celebrity- and influencer-fronted brands have broken through. The most notable example as of late is Hailey Bieber’s Rhode, acquired by E.l.f. in May for an eye-watering $1 billion. Mona Kattan’s Kayali was purchased by private equity firm General Atlantic and Kattan in February, and Susan Yara’s Naturium, also developed by The Center, was acquired by E.l.f. Beauty in 2023.

Phlur, which only began its sale process this year, was “aggressively pursued” by TSG Consumer, said Hadley Mullin, senior managing director, and became the obvious partner for the brand early on.

“It was coming up time and time again as a standout,” said Mullin, adding that the firm chooses to work with beauty brands that have been productive in existing retail, with wider untapped distribution.

“The most important voice in the room when we’re evaluating which brand to invest in is the consumer, followed by the retailer,” she said.

Phlur founder Chriselle Lim (left) and chief executive Elizabeth Ashmun. (Phlur)

A Non-Traditional Approach

Phlur’s origin story is unusual in today’s cut-throat beauty landscape.

Originally launched in 2015 as a digital-first, “clean” fragrance proposition by entrepreneurs Cynthia and Eric Korman in Austin Texas, Phlur was purchased Bennett in 2021. Lim joined as co-owner and creative director that same year.

Lim was also an unexpected partner for Phlur.

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For starters, the 40-year-old influencer was better known for her fashion sensibility than her taste in perfumes. Lim was part of the original wave of bloggers-turned-influencers, launching “The Chriselle Factor” on YouTube in 2011. While beauty partnerships factored into her content, it was only as a byproduct of her style focus.

She previously told The Business of Beauty she “never ever thought I would own a fragrance company or even be a part of anything related to fragrance.” Lim will stay on with TSG Consumer as creative director along with Ashmun and Phlur’s roughly 20-person team.

As product and marketing have become interchangeable in beauty, Lim’s creative lens and personal touch has made Phlur a hit. The line’s first scent after its relaunch, Missing Person, recalled the feeling of longing, so the brand sent out press and influencer gifting with oversized men’s t-shirts drenched in the fragrance. She also spoke candidly on social media about her divorce and subsequent depression.

Lim credits the success of Phlur not only to timing, but also due to its aesthetic. The brand’s three best-sellers, or Phlur “icons”, are “Missing Person,” “Vanilla Skin” and “Father Figure”; body mists include a scent dubbed “Heavy Cream.”

More recently, Lim has stepped back from campaign imagery to let the line stand on its own, something buyers need proof of when looking to invest, with the hope of building a forever label.

“Phlur is a brand; it’s not just Chriselle’s fragrance line,” said Mullin.

The Smell of Success

Since the pandemic, fragrance has remained beauty’s fastest-growing category. According to BoF’s The State of Fashion: Beauty report with McKinsey & Co, the sector is expected to grow by 6 percent by 2030, outpacing skincare and makeup.

Buoyed by a younger customer base, cheaper prices and new formats, a fresh guard of challengers has upended the previously dominant designer playbook.

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While scents like Dior Sauvage, Creed Aventus and Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle remain top sellers, customers are ditching the idea of a signature scent in favour of scent layering. Accessible prices make that kind of outfitting much easier; a Phlur 50 ml fragrance is $99 versus $143 for Coco Mademoiselle.

“The model’s elegant price architecture allows the brand to be profitable from a corporate standpoint while providing an accessible price point for trial,” said Colin Welch, managing director and head of New York, at TSG Consumer Partners. Phlur reported that sales are split roughly 50 percent between retail and e-commerce. Sales grew 65 percent year-on-year in 2025.

Bodycare brand Sol de Janeiro became a breakout success on the strength of its next-gen fragrances, and since the label’s acquisition by L’Occitane in 2021, buyers have been on the hunt for the next indie powerhouse.

Many have tried to fill that void, including Glossier, which remains focussed on the category versus its once-core skincare and makeup, and Dedcool, which offers fragrances in an array of formats including detergent. Phlur moved from eau de parfums into body mists and ancillary products like deodorant and body oils in 2023. It has ditched the traditional fragrance flanker approach of staying true to a core scent, launching two original EDPs and up to seven extensions each year.

Ashmun said that new formats, a push towards men and a broader global footprint are top of mind for the brand as it transitions to new ownership. (50 percent of Lim’s followers are based in Europe.)

While the relevance of famous founders ebbs and flows, Lim said those with longevity are “more intentional” with how they speak to their audiences. She cites her evolving career as proof.

“Storytelling is one of my superpowers,” Lim said.

Editor’s Note: This article was revised on 22 July 2025. An earlier version stated that Phlur is expected to see 65 percent growth in 2026. This is not correct; the brand saw that increase in 2025.

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