Arcaea, The Beauty Company Pioneering Innovation Through Expressive Biology, Announces Strategic Investment and Partnership from OLAPLEX to Deliver New Technology in Haircare

BOSTON, Jan. 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Arcaea (Ar-kay-uh) announced OLAPLEX (NASDAQ: OLPX), an innovative, science-enabled, technology-driven beauty company focused on delivering patent-protected premium hair care products to professional hair salons, retailers, and everyday consumers, to target transformation in the hair care industry, made a strategic investment in the Company during the third quarter of 2021.

Arcaea's mission is to build a new, regenerative future for the beauty industry through expressive biology—where biology is used as a creative tool for self-expression. Arcaea will grow new ingredients and product experiences for beauty by leveraging technology such as DNA sequencing, biological engineering, and fermentation to activate unique storytelling.

Arcaea is initiating hair and scalp care programs to expand the tools consumers have to strengthen and protect their hair and scalp across the professional, specialty retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

"We are thrilled to have OLAPLEX as a strategic partner and investor as we grow Arcaea," said Jasmina Aganovic, founder and CEO of Arcaea. "Their insight and expertise in hair care, as well as a shared desire to see new advances to improve consumer health in an industry ripe for innovation, is reflective of the shared future we want to see; and makes them an ideal partner."

"Innovation is a part of our OLAPLEX brand DNA and we are committed to providing cutting edge technology that will help to solve real consumer problems," said JuE Wong, OLAPLEX president and chief executive officer.

By culturing industry-leading, safe, and sustainable ingredients, Arcaea intends to create a new supply chain for the industry that does not rely on petrochemicals or on harvesting and depleting natural resources. This approach enables Arcaea to tap into the entire tree of life to develop new and previously unimagined or inaccessible ingredients using current practices.

Arcaea has raised $78 million in Series A funding from a consortium of strategic and financial investors including Cascade Investment L.L.C., Viking Global, OLAPLEX, CHANEL, Givaudan and Wittington Ventures. This Series A financing round brings together a mix of expertise across the value chain of the industry, and will enable Arcaea to initiate multiple technical programs across key categories in beauty to develop a pipeline of ingredients and brand launches; and create a world of previously unimaginable possibilities in beauty.

About Arcaea (Ar-kay-uh)
Arcaea, LLC (Ar-kay-uh), a company launched on the Ginkgo Bioworks platform, with the mission to build a new foundation for the beauty industry through expressive biology. Arcaea sees biology as a valuable creative tool for self expression. The company will grow new ingredients and product experiences for beauty through technology such as DNA sequencing, biological engineering, fermentation and more. By culturing industry-leading, safe, and sustainable ingredients, Arcaea intends to create a new supply chain for the industry that does not rely on petrochemicals or on harvesting and depleting natural resources. By harnessing the power of biology, Arcaea is poised to produce highly sustainable products that can deliver new functionality and performance across skincare, bodycare, haircare, and aesthetics. Arcaea was incubated on the Ginkgo Bioworks platform and formed under the name Kalo Ingredients LLC.

About OLAPLEX
OLAPLEX is an innovative, science-enabled, technology-driven beauty company with a mission to improve the hair health of its consumers. A revolutionary brand, OLAPLEX paved the way for a new category of hair care called "bond-building", the process of protecting, strengthening and rebuilding broken bonds in the hair during and after hair services. The brand's products have an active, patent-protected ingredient that works on a molecular level to protect and repair hair from damage. OLAPLEX's award-winning products are sold through a global omni-channel platform serving the professional, specialty retail, and direct-to-consumer channels.

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SOURCE Arcaea