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When Selena Gomez first started ideating her beauty brand, it turned out focusing on mental health presented a rare opportunity.

At WWD x FN x Beauty Inc's Women in Power Forum Sept. 9 in New York, Rare Beauty's chief marketing officer Katie Welch outlined the brand's original mandate -- eliminating loneliness by creating a community around the brand -- and how it's translated into exponential business success.

"Selena had the idea to start Rare Beauty around 2017, 2018 and I joined the company in 2019 and we didn't exactly know how we were going to do that, how we're going to achieve a safe or welcoming community," Welch said in a presentation. "We knew our brand purpose was going to be aligned with mental health, and after much discussion, research, talking and experts, we concluded that loneliness was where we could have the biggest impact."

Following that imperative begged bigger questions around purpose and the roles brand marketing can play in consumers' lives, she said.

"If a brand sets out to achieve a mission, if they have a purpose, they have to do just that. It can't just be about generating sales, because purpose doesn't do that, and it can't just be about generating marketing buzz, because Gen Z and Gen Alpha see right through it," Welch said.

Gomez unveiled Rare Beauty in February 2020, and it was poised to remedy the ensuing isolation the COVID-19 pandemic would bring.

"Knowing we wanted people to feel less alone in the world and shape these positive conversations around mental health, we knew it was through community Rare Beauty could help people connect, feel welcome and find a place of belonging," Welch said. "After our research and learning about loneliness as the start of what can potentially be a mental health concern, loneliness was the space we wanted to activate."

Though the broader societal landscape posed some challenges -- "There was no playbook about how to start a brand with Selena Gomez from your kitchen table," Welch said -- the brand focused on proactivity and was quick to reach out to what would become its core consumer base.

"We asked them to submit 'what makes you rare,'" Welch said. "We got thousands of stories, and it was beginning."

The initial findings were that consumers craved a brand that listened to them as much as they created resonant products and marketing.

"The key to community building is listening, hearing, valuing and providing resources. Any relationship is having that two-way conversation. We fostered those relationships, there was no playbook, but you do what's in your gut, and you live by your brand purpose," Welch said.

As restrictions receded and consumers could meet in person, Rare Beauty's activations followed suit.

"We met up on hikes, we hosted breathwork sessions, we did soundbaths, gratitude journaling," Welch rattled off. "Rare Beauty was able to foster these individual friendships amongst people. It was exactly what we set out to do."