Ulta Beauty set to invest 20 million dollars in tech start-ups through new investment fund

Beauty retailer Ulta Beauty has announced the launch of its digital innovation fund Prisma Ventures, through which it is planning to invest 20 million dollars into emerging technology start-ups that focus on developing online and in-store experiences.

The fund aims to help accelerate those selected via long-term, strategic partnerships and providing them with access to the retailer’s resources.

Participants will further be able to access Ulta’s innovation team, consumer insights and in-market testing.

Prisma Ventures has already partnered with a number of start-ups including Haut.ai, Adeptmind and ReStyle, many of which have contributed to a variety of Ulta’s skin and hair personalisation offerings.

In a release, the retailer said not all investments will directly impact its customer experiences but, where relevant, partners could possibly co-create with Ulta on market innovations.

Prisma Ventures will make its selection from start-ups that are primarily Series Seed and Series A companies, either in the industry for personalised and data driven technology, augmented reality (AR) and the metaverse, technology-focused beauty products and services or social commerce.

Applicants will be evaluated based on five key metrics, including leadership compatibility, risk assessment and business scalability.