Last week, FounderMade held its second annual Future of Beauty Summit at Spring Studios in New York City, which brought together beauty executives and entrepreneurs for a day-long event dedicated to highlighting and supporting promising beauty brands. Launched last year by co-founders May Lan Dong and Meghan Asha, the event provides an educational platform, as well as mentorship and corporate financing opportunities to entrepreneurs within the lifestyle, wellness and food industries.

More than 20 indie beauty brands showcased their latest creations in the “Discovery Lounge,” a pop-up shop in a tradeshow-like setting, which allowed for exploring, sampling and on-site purchasing of new products. Some highlights in the Lounge included Arya Essentials, an all-natural luxury skin care collection inspired by holistic medicine that aims to heal and rejuvenate the skin; and Prim Botanicals, a line that sources tropical ingredients from the Philippines to formulate hair and skin care solutions.

For inspiration and education, six panel discussions were held throughout the day and featured executives from several leading companies including L’Oréal, GOOP, Red Flower, Refinery29 and ModiFace. Discussion topics ranged from how to build a beauty business to setting a brand up for potential investments.

Perhaps the most anticipated portion of the event was The Future of Beauty Challenge, a mini “Shark Tank” competition which provided entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch their compelling ideas in front of a live audience and panel of judges. Michael Gordon, Founder, Bumble & Bumble and Hairstory; Melody McCloskey, Founder, StyleSeat; Hayley Barna, Co-Founder, BirchBox and Moj Mahdara, Founder, BeautyCon were the judges. Short presentations were given by four impressive companies: Clear for Me, a software that identifies potential product allergens before purchasing; ZIIP Beauty, an at-home skin care device that utilizes nano technology to address specific skin concerns; Plume Science, an all-natural eyelash serum and Sapelo, an anti-aging skin care line that helps restore elastin and collagen.

ZIIP Beauty ultimately took home the grand prize which includes a mentorship with Laura Geller. Laura and her team will host a lunchtime session with the winner at Laura Geller’s New York headquarters in midtown and offer guidance on how to achieve business objectives, best practices, as well as identifying and addressing challenges.