Foundation brands sell base makeup, and the purchase hinges on matching shade, finish and skin type. The category includes Fenty Beauty, Il Makiage, Mented Cosmetics, Milk Makeup, E.l.f. Cosmetics and Jones Road Beauty, each with a different promise: inclusive ranges, quiz-matched shades, clean sticks, low prices or a natural look. Studying their ads shows how brands overcome the biggest barrier, buying a complexion product without testing it. You can see which proof, demos and offers they use, then borrow the structure for your own beauty creative.
Blank ME (blankmé) is a Shanghai luxury base makeup brand founded in 2016 by Yang Boya. Its Little Black Box and Little Silver Box foundations topped Tmall's domestic brand foundation rankings, attracting L Catterton as an investor. The brand competes directly with Armani and YSL on finish quality at a China-native price. Also searched as Blank.
Clio is a South Korean cosmetics brand known for color cosmetics including its Kill Cover foundation and Kill Lash mascara lines. It sells through its own stores, drugstores, and ecommerce across Asia and internationally, and advertises across Meta placements.
Colourette Cosmetics is a Philippine DTC beauty brand founded in 2015 by Nina Cabrera. Known for its inclusive shade range — particularly nudes and foundations for morena skin — Colourette has become a symbol of Filipino beauty diversity and is widely distributed on Shopee and Lazada. Also searched as Colourette.
CoverGirl is an American mass-market makeup brand founded in 1961 and owned by Coty Inc. since 2016. One of the most recognized beauty brands globally, it has undergone a significant brand transformation under Coty with expanded shade ranges, cruelty-free formulations, and an inclusivity-first 'I Am What I Make Up' campaign platform. Also searched as Covergirl.
e.l.f. Cosmetics is an Oakland-based mass-market color cosmetics brand founded by Joey Shamah and Scott Vincent Borba in 2004. The brand pioneered TikTok brand marketing with the viral 'Eyes Lips Face' song in 2019 and has since acquired Rhode Beauty, positioning itself as a DTC-native beauty platform. Also searched as E.l.f..
Ellana Cosmetics is a Philippine mineral makeup brand selling foundation, powder, and other color cosmetics formulated with mineral-based ingredients. It sells through ecommerce and retail channels, advertising across Meta placements.
Espoir is AmorePacific's professional makeup brand, positioned at the intersection of artist-grade performance and DTC accessibility. Known for the Real Skin Founwear foundation range and rich lip products, Espoir targets makeup-literate consumers who want professional results without department store pricing.
Fenty Beauty was founded by Rihanna with LVMH in 2017, launching with 40 foundation shades and generating $100M in sales within 40 days. The brand's inclusivity-first positioning triggered the 'Fenty Effect' across the beauty industry and established a new standard for shade range diversity. It's sold at Sephora, Boots, Harvey Nichols, and DTC. Also searched as Fenty.
Florasis is a Chinese cosmetics brand selling makeup products including lipsticks, eyeshadows, and complexion products with packaging and branding drawing on traditional Chinese aesthetics. It sells primarily through e-commerce platforms in China and internationally. The brand advertises on Meta to reach beauty consumers.
Heme is a Taiwanese colour cosmetics brand founded in the 1990s, offering accessible foundation, blush, eyeshadow, and lip products at budget-friendly prices. The brand maintains a strong presence in Taiwanese drugstores and department stores and runs seasonal social media campaigns targeting young women seeking quality makeup without imported-brand price tags.
Hera is AmorePacific's flagship luxury beauty brand, positioned as Korea's answer to Chanel Beauty. The brand's Black Cushion foundation and collaborations with global K-pop icon Jennie (BLACKPINK) drove massive DTC growth and international recognition, making Hera one of Asia's most aspirational makeup brands.
IT Cosmetics was founded in 2008 by Jamie Kern Lima and acquired by L'Oréal in 2016 for $1.2B. Built on QVC with skincare-infused makeup, it is known for the CC+ Cream and a science-backed confidence narrative. Operates DTC via itcosmetics.com.
Il Makiage is a New York-based DTC cosmetics brand founded by Oran Holtzman and Shiran Holtzman-Erel in 2018 under Oddity Inc. The brand's PowerMatch AI quiz matches consumers to their exact foundation shade online, paired with a try-before-you-pay model that dramatically reduces the primary barrier to online cosmetics purchase.
IsaDora is a Swedish colour cosmetics brand founded in Malmö in 1983. Known for its wide shade range of foundations and long-wear lipsticks, it became a fixture in Scandinavian drugstores and pharmacies before expanding into European and US retail via Walgreens. The brand is rooted in the idea that makeup should suit Nordic skin tones and climate — buildable coverage, staying power in cold weather, and accessible price points. After a period of private equity ownership under Axcel, IsaDora returned to family-backed ownership, continuing its expansion into DTC e-commerce while maintaining its mass-prestige drugstore positioning.
Jones Road Beauty is a New York-based DTC beauty brand founded by Bobbi Brown in 2020 after departing Estée Lauder. Built on 'real skin' philosophy, the brand's Miracle Balm became a paid-social sensation through founder-led creative that rejected retouching and airbrushing. Also searched as Jones Road.
Jungsaemmool is a Korean professional makeup brand founded in 2015 by celebrity makeup artist Jung Saem Mool, known for her work with top Korean celebrities since the early 1990s. The brand pioneered accessible 'natural beauty' and glass skin aesthetics, earning Red Dot, iF Design, and Allure Best of Beauty awards. Distributed through Ulta, Amazon, and official DTC storefronts globally.
Kay Beauty is an Indian makeup brand co-created with actress Katrina Kaif, selling foundations, lipsticks, and other cosmetics. The brand is sold through Nykaa's retail and online channels in India, advertising across Meta placements.
Make Over is Indonesia's leading professional-grade cosmetics brand, owned by PT Paragon Technology and Innovation. Founded around 2010, it has built a reputation for bold, highly pigmented formulas and editorial-style advertising campaigns closely tied to Jakarta Fashion Week, appealing to makeup artists and beauty-forward consumers across the archipelago. Also searched as Make.
MAOGEPING is China's premier luxury cosmetics brand, founded by celebrity makeup artist Mao Geping around 2000. Known for Peking Opera-inspired packaging and professional artistry credentials, the brand listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2024. It competes with Charlotte Tilbury and Armani in premium positioning. Also searched as Mao.
Mented Cosmetics is a New York-based color cosmetics brand co-founded by KJ Miller and Amanda E. Johnson in 2017. The brand launched to fill the nude lipstick gap for deeper skin tones and expanded into full-face color products, distributed DTC and through Target and Ulta. Also searched as Mented.
Merit Beauty is an LA-based minimalist clean makeup brand launched in January 2021 by Katherine Power, co-founder of Who What Wear and Versed. Backed by L Catterton with $20M, Merit focuses on everyday essential makeup — foundation, mascara, balms — with clean ingredients and Sephora exclusivity. Also searched as Merit.
Milk Makeup is a New York-based makeup and skincare hybrid brand co-founded by Mazdack Rassi and team in 2016. Born from the Milk Studios creative community, the brand popularized stick-format makeup-skincare hybrids and cannabis-derived ingredients, distributed through Sephora and Ulta. Also searched as Milk.
RMK is a Tokyo makeup brand founded by makeup artist Rumiko Kosuge in 1997. Known for natural-finish foundations, artful color palettes, and premium skincare-infused formulas, RMK operates through own boutiques and department stores across Japan and via a global DTC site.
Vult is a Brazilian mass-market makeup brand under Grupo Boticário, launched to serve the high-volume color cosmetics segment. Offering foundations, lipsticks, palettes, and more, Vult positions itself as the go-to affordable option for Brazilian consumers who want trend-forward looks.
Westman Atelier is a New York-based luxury clean makeup brand founded in July 2018 by celebrity makeup artist Gucci Westman and her husband David Neville, co-founder of Rag & Bone. The brand achieved $100M in retail sales by 2023, five years post-launch, with Sephora, Nordstrom, and Neiman Marcus distribution. Also searched as Westman.
Foundation advertising is demonstration-heavy. The strongest creative shows application on real skin, usually close up, with the product blended in and the finish visible. Brands talk about shade range, coverage level and how the product wears through the day. Each player claims a different territory. Fenty Beauty and Mented Cosmetics center on inclusive shade ranges and deeper skin tones. Il Makiage uses a quiz to match shade, turning a guess into a guided purchase. Jones Road Beauty speaks to women who want a natural, un-retouched look. Milk Makeup appeals to creative younger buyers through stick formats and clean positioning, and E.l.f. Cosmetics competes on accessible prices and trend-led launches. Formats that fit include tutorial-style video, before and after swatches, creator reviews and split-screen shade comparisons. Offers are often tied to sets, minis or shade-match guarantees that lower the risk of trying a new base.
Begin with the shade problem. Notice how each brand shows range: a lineup of swatches, diverse models, or a quiz. This is the single most repeated proof point in the category. Then watch the demo. Is the product applied with fingers, sponge or brush? How quickly does the ad show the finish? Compare hooks that open with a complaint (cakey, patchy, wrong undertone) with hooks that open with a result. Check who delivers the message: founder, makeup artist, creator or everyday customer. This reveals the trust model each brand prefers. Also compare claims carefully. Beauty ads are regulated, so look at how brands phrase benefits like coverage and wear rather than making absolute promises. Finally, track how often creative refreshes around launches. A brand with a steady stream of new angles is usually learning quickly, and its ad library shows you what it learned.
The brands listed here include Fenty Beauty, Il Makiage, Mented Cosmetics, Milk Makeup, E.l.f. Cosmetics and Jones Road Beauty. Open any brand to browse the ads it has run on social platforms. Open any brand page above to see its live ads and compare creative side by side.
Many show a wide lineup of swatches or models across skin tones, while others use a quiz to match shade. Fenty Beauty and Mented Cosmetics are positioned around inclusive ranges, and Il Makiage is known for quiz-based matching. Open any brand page above to see its live ads and compare creative side by side.
Browse the brand pages above, compare the hooks, demos and offers of each, and save the strongest examples. Look for patterns like application close-ups, creator reviews and risk-reducing offers rather than copying a single ad. Open any brand page above to see its live ads and compare creative side by side.
Search and save ads from every brand above across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and more.
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