When beauty giant Sephora approached Reverie about a potential partnership in 2015, founders Garrett and Hillary Markenson did something unexpected—they said no. “We originally said, We’re not ready, we can’t do this,” recalls Hillary, the brand’s president. Fast forward six months, and Sephora came knocking again. This time, the bootstrapped brand took the leap and became one of Sephora’s first clean hair care brands, helping establish the retailer’s Clean at Sephora standards.
Ahead, dive into how Reverie proved you don’t need to raise funds to make waves in the industry—just have an unwavering commitment to quality and a strong affiliate network.
How to run a successful affiliate program
Simplify your offerings
Reverie began as a passion project in Garrett’s salon, where he developed products that matched both his aesthetic vision and his clients’ needs. Rather than rushing to market with a full line, the brand has intentionally released just 10 products over 14 years—each born from identified customer needs and extensive testing.
“We don’t put anything out into the world that we don’t need ourselves and identify a need within our customers,” Hillary says. She cites their Rake styling balm as an example—a product Garrett created because he couldn’t find a hair balm that met his standards for performance and clean ingredients.
Build an authentic network
Unlike many beauty brands that primarily partner with content creators, Reverie built its affiliate program around those who know their products best: professional hairstylists. “Anybody who we identify as a fan of the brand, we will reach out and ask them if they want to join our affiliate program,” says Hillary.
This strategy has proven remarkably successful, with Reverie now partnering with approximately 1,000 salons across the country. The power of this approach lies in the multiplicative effect: Each hairstylist serves multiple clients monthly, creating an extensive network of trusted recommendations.
Lead with education
Reverie invests time in teaching affiliates how to effectively market products while maintaining their authentic voice. “You have to teach them how to use [the sales channel],” says Hillary. “They’re artists. They don’t come with a sales background or they’re not necessarily interested in that aspect of the business.”
Personalized, direct communication also helps create a dialogue between Hillary and the brand’s affiliate partners. She crafts emails like she would text messages so there can be an easy back and forth. “A lot of them write back and they’re asking questions or they’re like, ‘Hey, I saw that video you posted on Instagram. What products were you using?’”
Look for ways to continue scaling
Reverie continues to evolve its affiliate program, recently expanding to include content creators alongside its core stylist partners. The brand is also planning to strengthen community connections through in-person events, recognizing the value of face-to-face interactions in building lasting partnerships. “We really want to get in front of our customers and be with them and spend time with them,” Hillary says.
Tune in to the full Shopify Mastersinterview to hear how Hillary and Garrett overcame their initial hurdles when launching Reverie’s affiliate program, and other creative ways the brand continues to scale.
