Nudestix

Nudestix is a Canadian colour-cosmetics brand founded in Toronto in 2014 by sisters Taylor and Ally Frankel together with their mother, chemical engineer Jenny Frankel [4]. The company built its name on minimalist, multi-tasking makeup sold mainly in stick and crayon form, marketed under the idea of "no-makeup makeup" for a natural, neutral-toned look. A skincare line, NUDESKIN, operates alongside the makeup range under the same team.

In September 2025 the company was acquired by an unnamed US-based private group, with founders Jenny and Taylor Frankel staying on in leadership [4]. By that point Nudestix was sold in more than 30 countries and, according to the company, had reached eight figures in revenue [5].

The brand grew out of Jenny Frankel's long career in cosmetics. She had developed products for MAC and co-founded the makeup brand Cover FX before turning to a new idea: nude-toned makeup pencils that felt light on the skin and were quick to use. The concept was prompted by the preferences of her teenage daughters, Taylor and Ally, who favoured a pared-back look and felt existing brands did not match their approach [5].

Each of the three founders took a defined role. Jenny Frankel serves as founder and president; Taylor Frankel acts as chief brand officer and spokesperson, overseeing brand vision and creative; and Ally Frankel, described by the company as its chief inspiration officer, is positioned as the voice of a younger, sustainability-minded generation.

The brand has framed its own story as a deliberate bet against the heavily contoured, maximalist makeup that dominated when it launched. Jenny Frankel has recalled a retailer warning her that talking about "less" would not sell product — a stance the company contrasts with its later commercial success.

Nudestix launched in 2014 and gained early traction in markets already leaning toward minimalist beauty, including Canada, Scandinavia, Southeast Asia and Australia. The following year it was named Prestige Launch of the Year at Women's Wear Daily's Beauty Inc Awards.

The turning point came in 2017 with the Nudies range — multi-tasking colour sticks for blush, bronzer and highlighter. According to FASHION Magazine, Nudies sell roughly every 60 seconds and account for about 35 per cent of the brand's sales across 35 shades [5].

In 2022 the brand brought on Sofia Richie Grainge as an investor and its first "Nude Beauty Director" [5]. When she wore Nudestix in her widely shared wedding videos, sales rose across markets; the company has said the partnership contributed to 65 million US dollars in earned media value in 2024 [5]. Around the same period the brand marked its tenth anniversary with a limited-edition set.

Nudestix was independent and founder-owned for its first decade. In September 2025 it was acquired by an unnamed US-based private group; the buyer was not publicly disclosed [4]. The brand's origin remains Canadian — it is headquartered in Toronto — while its new owner is described as US-based, a distinction between where the brand was built and who now owns it rather than a disputed fact.

Both founders remained after the sale. Jenny Frankel continued as co-founder and chief executive, and Taylor Frankel as co-founder, with the company framing the deal as a way to expand distribution and supply-chain capacity. Jenny Frankel described the decision to sell as wanting Nudestix to be "a Canadian success story" [5].

Nudestix centres on a "less-is-more" approach it summarises with the hashtag #gonudebutbetter. The company says natural skin "should thrive" and that a person needs only to cover "here and there" for a polished but unmade-up result. Products are pitched as easy, fast and multi-tasking — crayons and sticks for face, eyes, lips and cheeks rather than a kit of compacts and brushes.

Clean-beauty and ethical claims are part of the positioning. The brand states that its products are paraben-free, gluten-free and cruelty-free, with vegan options, and it markets its reusable tin packaging — fitted with a built-in mirror — alongside a "Save-A-Tin" take-back program. Priced at the prestige tier, Nudestix is sold through a multi-channel model that includes retailers such as Ulta Beauty, Sephora, Selfridges, Macy's and Shoppers Drug Mart [4].

The brand's range is dominated by stick- and crayon-format products in wearable, neutral shades. Its signature item is the Nudies colour stick, also sold as the All Over Face Color Stick, which doubles as blush, bronzer and highlighter. Other notable products include the Tinted Blur skin-blurring stick, available in 11 shades with a cream-to-powder finish, and the Nudescreen Blush Tint SPF 30, a tinted sun-protection product for cheeks, eyes and lips.

The NUDESKIN line extends the same approach into skincare, with items such as a peptide serum and a salicylic-acid and niacinamide gel moisturiser. Hybrid skincare-makeup products, particularly tinted mineral SPF formulas, sit between the two ranges.

The stick format itself became a point of differentiation. FASHION Magazine reports that many brands later adopted versions of the makeup-stick format Nudestix used, and that the founders have publicly noted imitations of their products [5].

Beyond its 2015 Prestige Launch of the Year award, Nudestix has drawn sustained press coverage [5]. BeautyMatter reported its 2025 acquisition, and FASHION Magazine published an in-depth founder interview covering the brand's history and finances. Reviews in Refinery29 and CNN Underscored framed the brand largely around Sofia Richie Grainge's influence, with several shades reported to have sold out following her viral wedding coverage. Press accounts have also named Hilary Duff among the brand's celebrity users.

Nudestix remains an operating brand following its September 2025 acquisition by an unnamed US-based private group [4]. The founders have stayed in leadership, and the company has signalled continued activity into 2026, including an expanded presence in more than 550 Shoppers Drug Mart locations and a refreshed look for the Nudies range while keeping the stick format.