The Best Celebrity Fashion and Beauty Brands You Probably Forgot About
These brands walked so Fenty and Kylie Cosmetics could run, and they're serving us all the nostalgia.
Today, it seems like celebrity fashion and beauty brands are popping up everywhere—Lady Gaga even acknowledged this phenomenon when launching her recent makeup line, Haus Laboratories. Having graduated beyond merch, these entrepreneurial endeavors have brought a new phase to many a star's career. I mean, look at Rihanna (where is R9, but also can you blame her?) or almost any Kardashian.
But we mustn't forget our roots, as early-aughts stars like J.Lo, Avril Lavigne, and Hilary Duff walked the celebrity brand path so Fenty, Goop, and Kylie Cosmetics could run. The buds of the self-branding Instagram culture has taken out of control were there, and while some of these concepts flopped and others had a successful run, they all hold a special place in the heart of nostalgia. Their faces are still everywhere as the world revisits old photos and reminisces about them whenever a video goes viral (Lindsay Lohan dancing in Mykonos), but these celebrities' brands from the last two decades will remind you of a simpler time (and probably a style experiment or two you'd rather forget, but that's all part of the fun, right?). Here's to the stars who made the 2000s so memorable, even beyond the stage or screen.
If you want something badly enough, you can achieve anything you want, as long as you never give up and are born a Kardashian. A prime bit of proof is Khroma Beauty, which Khloe, Kim, and Kourtney launched in 2012. Though it did only last a year, this has gone shockingly far into the cultural backburner for the brainchild of stars who later founded KKW Beauty, Poosh, and Good American. Its lack of success was partly due to name copyright drama—something that would happen later on to Kylie Jenner, but not before she'd built a billion-dollar beauty brand.
Back in 2004, Hilary Duff came out with a clothing and accessories brand called Stuff. Its name is very on-brand. Think glittery nail polish in miniature flasks, strawberry-scented erasers, and all sorts of miscellaneous "stuff" your parents likely threw out of the basement when you headed off to college. Given Lizzie McGuire is getting a reboot with the upcoming relaunch of Disney+, can we expect a revival?
Before the beach club in Mykonos, there was 6126, a clothing line launched in 2008 by Lindsay Lohan. The brand mostly sold form-fitting leggings with creative titles (think Fame, Lust, and Star) among other casual-chic wear. No wonder the Kardashians stocked them in their now-defunct D-A-S-H boutique. Lohan also had a line of spray tans she called Sevin Nyne, so it looks like she was having a lot of fun with numerical names.
Remember a world of yellow plaid, skeletons, spikes, ties, and neon pink: a brand made for the ultimate sk8r girl. It's also through Avril Lavigne's brand that a 14-year-old Kylie Jenner made her runway debut. As we know well, she left modeling to be Kendall's domain and embarked on her own entrepreneurship, but we thank Avril (who, in fact, does not have a stand-in named Melissa) for her service in giving us a very fun way to remember how far we've come this decade.
Before there was Pinterest, there was Lauren Conrad, the queen of D.I.Y. The star from The Hills has an eponymous clothing and lifestyle brand fitting of her sweet-girl, bakes-cupcakes-for-charities image. Launched in 2009 at the height of her reality fame, her collection includes size-inclusive apparel, fine jewelry, accessories, home goods, and more. This is a rare aughts celebrity brand that managed to survive to this day, so we should probably be taking note.
Jessica Simpson has always had a creative mind of her own. In 2004 (yes, smack in the middle of her ever-quotable Newlyweds run), she debuted a line of products that consisted of perfumes, lip glosses, and body shimmers. But what set these products apart is that they were edible (YES). Let's not forget the time she had her then-husband, Nick Lachey, eat lip gloss off her arm to promote her beauty line.
It's more than likely you have seen this intriguing rosé on display at a liquor store, or perhaps come across it at a sophisticated house party. Amidst a string of beautiful children, this record-breaking wine became another by-product of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's relationship. As good as the rosé tastes, we cannot help but wonder: given the couple's divorce, who will maintain custody of the drink's outstanding legacy? Oh, the drama.
Madonna's clothing line, named after the singer's iconic 1985 hit, was conceived alongside her then 13-year-old daughter Lourdes, known as Lola, inspired by the way she dresses. The brand's faces include Taylor Momsen (mid-transformation from Gossip Girl to rocker girl), a Disney-era Zendaya, and Rita Ora and Sofia Richie towards the start of their careers. Now, stars come of age by deciding which TikTok girl they are. Times change fast.
"it's time for the world to wear my look," said the singer after the launch of her clothing label in 2001. If you wanted to look like Jenny from the Block, this would have been your go-to brand. Known for her curve-hugging way of dressing, Jennifer Lopez created a brand that would allow her fans to look like her. Though she recreated iconic looks galore for her line, she never quite got to the Grammys dress, which is fine because Donatella Versace did that big time for its 20th anniversary.
The Olsen twins are now synonymous with luxury fashion thanks to The Row, which has won them several CFDA awards, as well as Elizabeth and James. But in the early years of their transformation, Mary-Kate and Ashley were trying it all, including a JC Penney brand called Olsenboye (named after their ancestral Norwegian surname). The oversized plaid shirts and waist belts give us major 2000s nostalgia.
