gener8tor Founder Series: Meg Pryde from Brandefy
In this episode of the gener8tor Founder Series, Troy Vosseller, Co-Founder of gener8tor, sits down with Meg Pryde, Founder and CEO of Brandefy, a Richmond, Virginia-based beauty company bringing transparency and fairness to skincare.
What began as a scrappy idea in 2018 — born from Meg’s frustration with price markups and lack of transparency in consumer goods — has evolved into a profitable, data-driven skincare brand trusted by thousands of customers.
From app to skincare innovation
When Meg founded Brandefy, she took a bold leap of faith. She cashed out her retirement savings to build a mobile app that compared high-end name-brand products to affordable alternatives, helping shoppers make smarter purchasing decisions.
“Originally, the app compared everything — from Advil to its generic equivalents,” Meg explains. “But it was the beauty products that really took off.”
Having worked in consumer packaged goods, Meg knew that similar or identical formulas were often sold at vastly different price points. The app’s data confirmed what she suspected: consumers were eager for quality, affordable alternatives in skincare.
By late 2021, Brandefy used that data to launch its own line of skincare products, designed to match the performance of luxury brands at a fraction of the cost. Today, those products account for 99% of the company’s revenue — and have become the foundation of a brand built on trust and transparency.
A data-driven approach to beauty
Meg’s insight into consumer behavior has helped Brandefy carve out a unique niche in the skincare market. The company’s product development process is guided by data and community feedback from the original app, creating a direct line between what consumers want and what Brandefy makes.
That clarity of purpose — and an unwavering commitment to value — has helped Brandefy grow sustainably. The company has raised more than $5 million in funding and reached profitability, giving Meg and her team the flexibility to scale on their own terms.
“Going from zero to a million in revenue is the hardest part,” Meg says. “But getting to profitability — doing it the right way, without just spending your way there — that’s even harder. It’s something I’m really proud of.”
Powered by community and accelerators
Before launching her skincare line, Meg participated in The Brandery Powered by gener8tor Accelerator in Cincinnati (2018–2019). The experience, she says, was transformative — not just for refining her business strategy, but for building the network that would help Brandefy thrive.
“One of the best parts of the program was being surrounded by other founders,” Meg says. “You’re stress-tested every day — pitching, refining, learning — and the people you meet become your peers and mentors for years to come.”
During the accelerator, Meg also had a pivotal realization about Brandefy’s future. After seeing spikes in engagement around beauty content, she ran a data test comparing user behavior across categories. The results were clear: people kept coming back for skincare.
“That’s when we knew we were a beauty company, whether we liked it or not,” she laughs. “It was validated by data — and by our community.”
Building a brand with purpose
Today, Brandefy operates out of Richmond, Virginia, where Meg continues to lead the company’s growth and product innovation. The brand’s mission remains clear: to empower consumers to shop smarter and spend better on high-quality skincare.
Her advice for other founders?
“Accelerators help you find your people — the mentors and fellow founders who will support you through every phase of the journey.”
And her request for fans of the brand: if you see a Brandefy ad online, lend some positivity in the comments. As Meg puts it, “You haven’t made it until you’ve got a true hater — ours just happens to be a sweet older lady in Texas.”
With a loyal customer base, a profitable business model, and a data-driven approach to growth, Meg Pryde and Brandefy are proving that transparency isn’t just good ethics — it’s good business.
