Marcia Kilgore did not plan to start a business after dropping out of Columbia University due to tuition fees. In her twenties, she began giving facials in a small New York studio to pay her way, eventually bootstrapping the operation into Bliss, a full skincare and day spa brand. Drawing in celebrity clients including Madonna and Oprah Winfrey, she sold Bliss to LVMH for an estimated $30 million in the mid-1990s. With those funds, Kilgore launched Soap & Glory, which she sold to Alliance Boots in 2014 for a reported 40 million pounds, and shoe brand Fit Flop, which turned over 168 million dollars in revenue last year. She is perhaps best known for launching cult cosmetics firm Beauty Pie in 2016, which raised a total of 170 million dollars in her first-ever venture capital fundraising. Dubbed the "Costco for beauty", Beauty Pie offers a monthly or annual subscription that allows members access to cosmetics for less than market price. Based in London, the brand now ships 60,000 orders each week in the UK and plans to launch its first retail warehouse in King's Cross. Beauty Pie posted 64 million pounds in revenue in 2025 and has more than 100 employees. Kilgore has recently returned to day-to-day operations after a year away for personal reasons.
Born in Outlook, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1968, Kilgore dropped out of Columbia University after finding teaching assistant-led classes poor value for money. She paid her rent by offering personal training and facials, eventually founding Bliss. Reflecting on her childhood, she recalled financial instability after her father's death when she was 11, saying she did not want to be stressed about cash. She moved to New York at 19 and, unable to ask for money or secure traditional employment without a degree, relied on her hustle and discipline. She famously stated she does not do business plans, instead bootstrapping each venture.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing