Cover FX: 25 years of inclusive foundation — gone in an Instagram post

Cover FX was founded in 1999 in a Toronto clinic by chemist Victor Casale and image consultant Lee Graff. Casale, who had spent nearly a decade formulating at MAC Cosmetics, wanted to create high-performance makeup that worked for sensitive skin. The brand built a loyal following around inclusive shade ranges — it was one of the first to offer 40+ foundation shades — and skin-friendly formulas free of common irritants. Its CosMedic Clinics operated inside prestigious dermatology practices, giving the brand a clinical credibility that most makeup lines lacked.

L Catterton, the consumer-focused private equity firm backed by LVMH, acquired a majority stake in 2011. Under L Catterton, Cover FX expanded distribution and launched new categories. In 2022, the brand was sold to AS Beauty, a New York-based brand management firm that also owned Laura Geller, Bliss, Julep Beauty, and Mally Beauty. The transition was meant to give Cover FX a home where it could thrive as an independent brand within a larger portfolio.

Instead, Cover FX became one of the first beauty brands to shutter in 2026. On January 22, the brand posted on Instagram that it was winding down operations, citing 'new challenges facing the beauty industry, such as tariffs and market shifts.' AS Beauty simultaneously shuttered Mally Beauty, another brand it had acquired. The closures reflected the pressure on mid-tier cosmetics brands squeezed between prestige players and direct-to-consumer startups. Cover FX's remaining inventory was sold through its website and Amazon until supplies lasted.

AS Beauty retained its remaining portfolio — Laura Geller, Bliss, and Julep Beauty — suggesting the cuts were strategic rather than existential. For Cover FX, twenty-five years of clinical credibility and a famously inclusive product line were not enough to survive a parent company's portfolio review.