This level of funding allows brands to dedicate 30% to 50% of sales to marketing until hitting $30 million to $50 million in sales and runway before meaningful profitability at $10 million to $50 million in sales. It also pays for inventory, team and operations and supports working capital.

According to the report, every $100 million brand XRC Ventures has come across shares three attributes: “adequate capital, a product that solves a real problem and connects at an emotional level,” and “a founder who can translate intuition into disciplined action, fast.”

But is this capital-intensive approach the only path forward? In a funding ecosystem with limited resources to spread around, Beauty Independent wanted to explore whether XRC Ventures’ estimate holds true—and what alternative attributes or strategies could propel brands to $100 million without large sums of institutional capital.

So, for the latest edition of our No Stupid Questions series, we asked 10 beauty investors and entrepreneurs the following: Do you agree that it takes $15 million to $25 million in funding to build a $100 million beauty brand? If not, what do you think is the realistic capital requirement, and what are key factors that could increase or decrease that number? What attributes or strategies do you believe are critical for brands aiming to reach $100 million in sales with less funding than XRC Ventures suggests?