Powered Brands, the special purpose acquisition company [SPAC] founded by serial entrepreneur Katherine Power (the creator behind Merit, Versed, Who What Wear, Avaline) and Dana Settle (a co-founder of Greycroft), has named former Shiseido executive, Mito Yamada, as its new Chief Operating Officer, effective August 30. One of the few SPACs to be founded and funded by women, Powered Brands is aiming to acquire between $800 million and $1.5 billion-plus worth of next-generation brands in beauty, wellness and personal care, challenging beauty conglomerates such as Estée Lauder and L’Oréal. Mito will report to Katherine and work closely with the Powered Brands management team to define the company’s long-term strategy and lead the execution of its founding business combinations.

“I am excited to join Powered Brands and to partner with Katherine and Dana in creating a next-generation consumer holding company. I am passionate about authentic consumer-centric brands that truly respond to consumer needs and believe there is a white space for a new type of group company that combines exceptional brands in beauty, wellness, and other adjacent consumer industries,” said Mito. “Powered Brands’ management team and board of directors have extensive experience in identifying and growing outstanding consumer brands as well as a vast network within the beauty and wellness industries.  With our combined experience and relationships, we will be able to successfully partner with founders and management teams of similarly-minded high-growth companies to execute an effective combination and create long-term value for our shareholders.”

Mito has 15 years of experience in the luxury retail and consumer products space, and brings a combination of mergers and acquisitions, finance, strategy, and operations expertise to Powered Brands. Most recently, she served as Vice President, Global Mergers and Acquisitions at Shiseido, where she worked on various mergers and acquisitions projects, including the acquisition of clean skin care brand Drunk Elephant in 2019.

“Mito’s longtime experience leading mergers and acquisitions strategy and brand integration within a large consumer brand portfolio will be of great benefit to us and the businesses that Powered Brands seeks to acquire,” said Katherine. “Her reputation within the industry and her passion for our vision makes her the perfect thought partner for me as we build out our operational plan going forward.”

The company, which was founded in 2020, completed a seven times oversubscribed IPO earlier this year as it set out to raise $200 million but raised more than $1.5 billion in orders by the end of its first pricing day. It is listed on the Nasdaq under the symbol POWRU.