As Molly Sims put it, she’s lived 100 lives. But these days, the model-producer-entrepreneur is concentrating on her production company, Something Happy Productions, and her 1-year-old skin-care brand, YSE Beauty.
The creation of both companies stemmed from a pivotal period in Sims’s life. In the case of Something Happy Productions, after maintaining a series regular role on the NBC show “Las Vegas” from 2003 to 2008, she decided she wanted to be behind the scenes, steering projects from ideation to completion. In 2021, she founded Something Happy Productions, which houses her beauty- and wellness-focused “Lipstick on the Rim” podcast, which she hosts with her friend Emese Gormley. In the case of YSE Beauty, Sims was looking to address her own issues with severe hyperpigmentation and skin discoloration, while also updating the way the beauty industry communicates to Gen-X women. YSE Beauty has 11 products, including a body oil, a brightening treatment and exfoliating pads. YSE Beauty is currently available on its own DTC e-commerce site, YSEBeauty.com. At the time of the launch, industry sources expected first-year sales of the brand to land between $1 million and $4 million, according to WWD.
Speaking with Glossy at SXSW, just ahead of YSE Beauty’s first anniversary, Sims shared what’s next for YSE Beauty and how she feels being bucketed into the celebrity beauty category.
What are you hoping to achieve with YSE Beauty?
“[I hope people] learn a little more than they did before. I had a real problem with my skin between 2012-2017. I wouldn’t have done a Zoom without makeup. I had a serious issue with hyperpigmentation, dark spots and uneven skin on my face. I was the queen of no-makeup, until I wasn’t. It affected me mentally because I was the girl with great skin, until I wasn’t. I’m of a generation not spoken to [by the beauty industry], yet we have the money and the disposable income. And that’s who’s spending the money. But I’m not marketed to. I’m not branded to. Everything is targeted for menopause, and [women my age] are basically dying, according to the marketing that’s out there. I don’t want to be spoken to be spoken to like that. I don’t want to be someone’s grandmother. YSE Beauty is a community. It’s not gatekeeping, and it’s not saying, ‘I slept for 10 hours, and I drink a lot of water.’ It is about honesty and having ingredients that work, but they’re also beautiful. Millennials can’t have all the fun with everything being cool. The message [of YSE Beauty] is that you can have chapter three [of your life] at age 50.”
What do you want your legacy to be?
“My daughter sees me working hard. And she sees me reading when she’s doing her homework. I’m [basically] doing my homework. I think a legacy is like any age: you’re not forgotten. I want to be thought of among my daughter and my community and for my stories to still be heard. I want women to be represented strongly, not just boxed out [as we age]. People like to say, ‘Oh, you’re just a mom,’ or, ‘You’re just X.’ But women can be so many different things.”
What can you share about upcoming projects and YSE Beauty?
“Where to begin? [Something Happy Productions] started filming the [“Kinda Pregnant”] movie a couple of weeks ago in New York City. I’m also going to play a small role in it. I was also invited to be part of the Legends part of Sports Illustrated [swimsuit edition]. Being featured in the issue in 2000 was such a pivotal part of my career, and it catapulted me into being able to have a voice and not just be a face. We have three launches this year with YSE Beauty, and our [first] anniversary will be April 25. In about a month, we’ll start to talk with Sephora and Ulta Beauty [about distribution].”
What are your thoughts on ‘celebrity’ beauty and being bucketed in that category?
“First of all, we can all play in the same sandbox. There was the one question I feared the most on April 24, 2023, the day before I launched the brand, and it was the one question on April 25 that I received the most: ‘Do we need another celebrity skin-care brand?’ I think I’ve done a good job of showing that this isn’t just another celebrity skin-care brand. I have a strong point of view. It is a clinical, problem-solution brand targeted at Gen X. I found my community and my [customer], and I’m speaking to her, and she’s loving it. This is not a white-labeled brand. And this is not an influencer brand, or it would be called ‘Molly Sims Beauty.’ To be truthful with you, that question has motivated me. … I’m proud to be in the sandbox with everyone and to even be able to have a brand. I will continue to work as a founder to create a brand that helps women and where we feel represented.”
