Debut raises US$34M in L’Oréal’s BOLD-led funding to scale next-gen bio-cosmetics

05 Jun 2023 --- Synthetic biology company Debut has secured US$34 million Series B in a funding round led by L’Oréal’s venture capital fund, Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development (BOLD). As the exclusive beauty investor in the company, L’Oréal’s investment will scale the biotech’s manufacturing platform to meet the growing demand for “breakthrough ingredients” to be used in cosmetics, skin care and packaging. 

Debut’s proprietary Bio2Consumer platform spans ingredient discovery, cell-free, bio-fermentation, formulation, clinical trials and brand creation. The platform utilizes cell-free and advanced fermentation approaches like continuous biomanufacturing to overcome the limitations of traditional methods, reducing the need for space, water and expensive and unsustainable inputs. 

“Debut addresses one of the beauty world’s fundamental challenges: driving innovation without the resource-intensity and environmental impact that comes with relying on traditional manufacturing alone,” says Barbara Lavernos, deputy CEO of research, innovation and technology at L’Oréal.

“Cell-free biomanufacturing is not science fiction: it is here. We could not be more excited to be the first beauty company to invest in this technology with Debut.”

Harnessing biotech 
The investment builds on existing joint development programs between L’Oréal and Debut, to leverage Debut’s IP portfolio, from which more than 7,000 ingredients can be created to bring more environmentally sustainable ingredients to market faster.

Debut’s proprietary Bio2Consumer platform spans ingredient discovery, cell-free, bio-fermentation, formulation, clinical trials and brand creation.In addition to producing novel compounds, Debut’s technology also improves traditional ingredient manufacturing. The platform comprises a proprietary database of over 3.8 million pre-clinical data points to find and discover new ingredients that address beauty consumer needs. 

“Debut exists to set a new standard in beauty by developing novel active ingredients that herald a new era with regard to performance, sustainability, scalability and cost, and we are thrilled to be partnering with L’Oréal’s BOLD, the beauty world leader that is as invested in this industry’s future as we are,” remarks Debut founder and CEO Joshua Britton. 

“We harness synthetic biology to create novel and higher-performing ingredients that are not accessible by other means in order to advance product benefits and target unmet consumer needs.”

Bio-based beauty is a buzzword this year, as developers recently investigated potential new ingredient sources such as skin boosting properties of fermented tea leaves from Thailand, berries and fruits naturally processed in kombucha, and the fermented honey of a rare and ancient bee species.

Investing in novelty
Participating investors in Debut’s Series B funding include Fine Structure Ventures, Material Impact, GS Futures, Cavallo Ventures, Cultivian Sandbox Ventures and ACVC Partners. 

Debut’s US$22.6 million Series A in August 2021, led by Material Impact, helped scale its ingredient development model, establish its in-house brand incubator and grow into its 26,000-square-foot facility in San Diego, California, US. 

Debut’s portfolio comprises natural and lab-made ingredients to protect the environment from resource extraction. “What science allows us to do is understand how nature makes it and then translate that to an industrially scalable system to provide the same molecules found in trace amounts in nature using synthetic biology,” says Britton.

Last year, BOLD acquired a minority investment in Sparty, a Japanese beauty start-up. 

BOLD is interested in ten areas, including sustainable beauty, personalized beauty, clean natural beauty, health and wellness, new aging solutions, beauty for new generations, beauty tech, multicultural beauty and green science.

Edited by Radhika Sikaria

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