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Bender left Rhode last month, the brand confirmed. Bender joined Rhode in October 2022 after serving as the founding president of skin care line Versed. She was brought on by Bieber to scale the emerging brand after its June 2022 launch. Under her tenure, the brand launched colour cosmetics and expanded internationally in seven global markets.
“We are incredibly grateful for everything Melanie has contributed to Rhode during her time with the company. We wish her nothing but the best in the future,” the brand said in a statement to The Business of Beauty.
Inspired by the success of Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty and Selena Gomez’s Rare, newer celebrity labels have increasingly looked to established beauty executives to professionalise their brands beyond their famous founders. Harry Styles’ Pleasing appointed former Goop executive Shaun Kearney as CEO in July, while Tracee Ellis Ross’s Pattern Beauty brought on former Savage X Fenty executive Christiane Pendarvis as its co-CEO in October.
Rhode has seen several other C-suite executive departures since its inception. Claudia Allwood, Rhode founding CMO, left last year after joining in October 2021 and Iván Saragusti, the brand’s founding COO, departed in January 2022.
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