Manscaped is a

male grooming Male grooming refers to men paying attention to fashion and enhancing their own appearance. This interest has become increasingly apparent in popular culture. Background and history By location According to Statista, by 2024 the global male g ...

company based in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, US. It was founded in 2016 by Paul Tran and produces and distributes male grooming tools and hygiene products under the Manscaped brand.

History

Manscaped was established in 2016 by founder and CEO Paul Tran to provide

products targeted at

pubic In vertebrates, the pubic region ( la, pubis) is the most forward-facing (ventral and anterior) of the three main regions making up the coxal bone. The left and right pubic regions are each made up of three sections, a superior ramus, inferior r ...

hair removal Hair removal, also known as epilation or depilation, is the deliberate removal of body hair or head hair. Hair typically grows all over the human body and can vary in thickness and length across human populations. Hair can become more visible ...

. The company uses the term ''

manscaping Male grooming refers to men paying attention to fashion and enhancing their own appearance. This interest has become increasingly apparent in popular culture. Background and history By location According to Statista, by 2024 the global male g ...

'', a long-standing

neologism A neologism Greek νέο- ''néo''(="new") and λόγος /''lógos'' meaning "speech, utterance"] is a relatively recent or isolated term, word, or phrase that may be in the process of entering common use, but that has not been fully accepted int ...

, as the basis of its branding, and is referenced in the

Merriam-Webster Merriam-Webster, Inc. is an American company that publishes reference books and is especially known for its dictionaries. It is the oldest dictionary publisher in the United States. In 1831, George and Charles Merriam founded the company as ...

definition of the word. It has also capitalized on the shock factor of addressing male

hygiene Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...

taboos A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

, alongside the use of

pun A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...

-based

humour Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...

and paid

celebrity Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

appearances, to build its name. In October 2018, Manscaped was featured in the 10th series of

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's "

Shark Tank ''Shark Tank'' is an American business reality television series that premiered on August 9, 2009, on ABC.Hibberd, James (May 10, 201'Dancing,' 'Bachelor,' and a bigger 'Shark Tank' returning to ABCInsider TV. Retrieved June 24, 2012 The show i ...

", represented by Tran's business partner and co-founder Steve King, who sought $500,000 in funding for the company, and accepted a handshake offer for that amount from

Mark Cuban Mark Cuban (born July 31, 1958) is an American billionaire entrepreneur, television personality, and media proprietor whose net worth is an estimated $4.8 billion, according to ''Forbes'', and ranked No. 177 on the 2020 ''Forbes'' 400 list ...

and

Lori Greiner Lori Greiner is an American television personality and entrepreneur. She is an investor on the reality ABC TV series ''Shark Tank''. Greiner has hundreds of inventions and holds 120 patents. She became known as the "Queen of QVC" as a result of he ...

in exchange for a 25 percent stake in the business. However, the deal never materialized after the show, according to Cuban. In late 2020, the company was reported to be exploring its options for further fundraising. At the time, it was backed by investment firms Kaktus Capital, Longley Capital, Rx3 Venture Partners and Scala Ventures. A prominent

advertisement campaign An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ideas, beliefs, and conc ...

for the company also aired in the same period featuring the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

Rob Gronkowski Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...

and US sportswear supermodel

Camille Kostek Camille Veronica Kostek (born February 19, 1992) is an American model, television host, and actress. She gained recognition for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue, and achieved further ...

. In July 2021, Manscaped was revealed to be in ongoing merger discussion with Los Angeles-based blank-check firm Bright Lights to create a combined entity worth up to $1.4 billion. Led by Michael Mahan, the former CEO of

Dick Clark Productions Dick Clark Productions (DCP, stylized in lowercase as dick clark productions or dcp) is an American multinational television production company founded by radio and TV host Dick Clark. The studio primarily produces award shows and other music en ...

, Bright Lights listed for $230 million on the

Nasdaq The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...

stock market A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange, as ...

in January 2021 on the promise of finding a merger target in the consumer products or media sectors. In November 2021, it was confirmed that the merger would be going ahead at a valuation of around $1 billion "amid a difficult market". This followed reporting in October that suggested the company was considering a $500 million sale. Reuters noted that the merger was all but guaranteed after being backstopped by the actor

Channing Tatum Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor. Tatum made his film debut in the drama ''Coach Carter'' (2005), and had his breakthrough role in the 2006 dance film ''Step Up (film), Step Up''. He gained wider attention for ...

and two investment firms, Endeavor and Guggenheim Investments.

References and citations

External links

* {{authority control Male grooming brands Personal care brands Skin care brands Hair removal American companies established in 2016 Companies based in San Diego County, California 2016 establishments in California