Sonia Kashuk, the makeup artist and beauty entrepreneur who built a cosmetics empire before stepping back from the public eye, has launched Funner, a new hair-care brand. The venture marks her return to the beauty industry after years away from the spotlight.
Kashuk co-founded Funner alongside her husband Daniel Kaner, president and co-founder of the luxury hair brand Oribe, and their son Jonah Kaner, who handles day-to-day operations. The family collaboration signals a strategic move into haircare, leveraging the combined expertise of Kashuk's cosmetics background and Kaner's deep roots in the professional hair market.
The timing reflects broader industry shifts. Prestige beauty brands increasingly expand beyond single categories into multi-category platforms. Oribe's presence in luxury salon and retail spaces gives Funner built-in distribution advantages that newer brands lack. This positions the line to compete in the crowded prestige hair category without starting from zero.
Kashuk's return carries cultural weight. Her original makeup line democratized professional-quality cosmetics, bringing artist-grade products to drugstore shoppers. The brand established her as a makeup visionary focused on inclusivity and accessibility. Her absence from beauty's mainstream conversation over the past decade created space for competitors, yet her name remains synonymous with quality and innovation.
The brand name itself, Funner, suggests a departure from Oribe's luxury positioning. It hints at accessibility, playfulness, and perhaps a younger demographic. Whether Funner targets prestige retail, direct-to-consumer channels, or both remains to be seen, but the Oribe connection ensures professional credibility.
For the beauty industry, this represents a notable return of an established figure with proven product development skills. In an era of founder-driven brands and family businesses expanding into adjacent categories, Kashuk's reentry