- 5 hours ago
GQ sits in on a tête-à-tête between Men of the Year cover star Hailey Bieber and GQ global fashion correspondent Samuel Hine at the Chateau Marmont. Bieber talks about motherhood, collaborating with husband, Justin Bieber, and of course, taking Rhode to unicorn status in less than three years—and cashing in for no less than $1 billion.Credits:Director: Nick CollettDirector of Photography: AJ YoungEditor: Jimmy ChorngTalent: Hailey BieberHost: Samuel HineProducer: Cara MarceanteSenior Producer: Michael BeckertCoordinating Producer: Sam DennisLine Producer: Jen SantosProduction Manager: James PipitoneProduction Coordinator: Elizabeth HymesTalent Booker: Dana MathewsCamera Operator: Shay Eberle-Gunst; Mike MaliwanagGaffer: Lucas VilicichDIT: Lauren WoronaSound Mixer: Paul CornettProduction Assistant: Fernando Barajas; Hollie OrtizMake-up Artist: Holly Silius (for Samuel Hine)Post Production Supervisor: Jess DunnAdditional Editor: Rob LombardiAssistant Editor: Billy WardSpecial Thanks: Chateau Marmont
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00For me, I always said that I would never sell the company unless it was a billion dollars.
00:08I was very determined that I wouldn't do it for anything under that.
00:13900 million is good, but a billion is like, that's a flex.
00:16I was just like, it's going to be this or I'm not doing it.
00:20So, road is obviously a huge part of your life, but you do a lot of other stuff.
00:33Your mother, your model, you have other fashion projects.
00:37When you're in LA, walk me through your average work day.
00:42When do you get up? When do you go to the office?
00:44How are you sort of balancing all these different parts of your life?
00:47It really depends on a day-to-day basis.
00:50A typical day at home for me, get up with my son, hit a workout as much as I can.
00:59I have become a lot more of a homebody than I used to be.
01:02And I think when you have a child that happens, at least it did for me.
01:07I don't want to generalize it like that happens for everybody, but it definitely made me have so much less FOMO.
01:14And I also think getting older does that to you because I have a lot of friends who don't even have kids that feel the same way.
01:19I just don't feel like I'm really missing out on much anymore.
01:23The other night I was at dinner with my best friend and we were supposed to go somewhere after the dinner and it got canceled.
01:30And we both were like, yes, like so not mad to be going home and turning on a show and just being cozy in bed.
01:38And I just, I'm so happy with that now because I used to be a person where I was like, I want to go out to dinner every night.
01:44And you know, I don't want to like skip plans.
01:47And now I'm just a lot more fulfilled with being cozy and being in my space and recharging and energizing in that way.
01:56And then also, I just love to spend time with my son too.
01:59So and he's growing so fast and it's gone by so fast and you just, it starts to become more and more real how much you want to soak up that time.
02:08You and Justin are obviously like very famous and have been under a lot of scrutiny for a long time in the public eye.
02:16Um, and now that you have a son, how do you balance as a family, like the sort of, um, public thing and the private thing?
02:25Like, how do you sort of think about that?
02:27I think we're just taking it a day at a time.
02:29I think we both feel very protective of our son and I don't think that's ever going to change.
02:35But our life is our life and it is really public.
02:39So I think we're just going to cross every bridge that we need to when we get there.
02:44I feel really comfortable about the way we are sharing things and not sharing things.
02:49Yeah.
02:50Is he going to get a smartphone?
02:52Instagram?
02:53Oh God.
02:54How do you feel about the screen time stuff?
02:55These are the big parenting questions.
02:56I know.
02:57I'm not super big on screen time at all.
02:59And honestly, I've, you know, he's seen little movies and things here and there.
03:04He's not super interested in it, which makes me happy.
03:06He would way prefer to play outside and play with his toys and hang out.
03:11So as long as I can keep that going, I definitely am going to.
03:15Yeah.
03:16That's great.
03:17What's the, what's like the one thing that about motherhood that you wish someone had told you before becoming a mother?
03:23I don't think there's anything someone can tell you about it that will ever, ever, ever prepare you until you do it yourself.
03:30And I think once you do it, you have so much more understanding of like, I feel much more prepared to do it again, as opposed to how not prepared I felt doing it for the first time.
03:46And I think for me personally, it's because there's so much unknown to it.
03:50Um, but you know, so much happens and so much changes and you evolve in a totally different way that you would never be able to prepare for until you do it.
04:00Where are you at spiritually these days?
04:03How's your spiritual practice?
04:05Has that evolved at all as now that you're a mother?
04:08I'm somebody who's always been a quite spiritual person.
04:12I think your depth of spirituality becomes deeper when you bring life into the world, for sure.
04:18It is a very spiritual experience.
04:20And yeah, I don't think that's ever going to change for me.
04:24Spirituality is something for me that I would always love to evolve the depth of it.
04:28But yeah, I don't think that's something that will ever not be so important in my life and close to my life.
04:33Let's go back to your daily routine.
04:36Yeah, that was kind of my fault.
04:37I went really off on a tangent.
04:39We went off the beaten path.
04:41But once you have your nice morning at home, is there a road office that you go to?
04:46Yeah, we have our road headquarters here in LA.
04:49We have an office on Wilshire.
04:51And I think since the pandemic, it's become a lot easier to not have to go do things in person.
04:57Lots of Zooms.
04:59Still a big fan of Zooming.
05:01But the office is really close to me, so I end up in there at least a couple times a month, I would say, depending on how my personal schedule is.
05:10I do really like to go into the office because I like to see everybody and I like to see the team.
05:14And it's a lot easier for me to be in person to touch, see and feel everything and touch samples and look at packaging.
05:23And I just feel like we get a lot more done when we have these big in-person meetings.
05:29So I would say a few times a month I'm in there maybe.
05:33In May you sold Road to the beauty company Elf for a billion dollars.
05:37Yeah.
05:38Where were you when you first heard that number and what was your reaction?
05:42For me, I always said that I would never sell the company unless it was a billion dollars.
05:51I was very determined that I wouldn't do it for anything under that.
05:56900 million is good, but a billion is like, that's a flex.
05:59I was just like, it's going to be this or I'm not doing it.
06:03That was my like goal.
06:06But also it was not always entirely my goal to sell the company.
06:10I thought if the right opportunity came along and the right home for it came along,
06:16then I would definitely consider it.
06:19And I think with Elf, everything really just all of the boxes that I would want to check to find a home for it,
06:26they checked them and then some.
06:29But of course, like when you hear that it's a real thing and the number is real
06:33and that's a real situation being put in front of you.
06:37It's definitely like, well, okay, it's very cool.
06:40Yeah.
06:41Yeah, it was a moment.
06:42Yeah, it was a moment.
06:43When you were thinking about selling, I mean, you found it only three years ago.
06:47Did Elf come first or did the decision to explore the sale come first?
06:53It was kind of like they both happened at once.
06:55There was conversation about potential interest.
06:59And at the time I just felt open to hearing what was possible and what was out there.
07:05So, yeah, it kind of was all just like so many things had to be syncing up at once for that to all make sense and be possible at the time.
07:12And then also in myself, too, like there was fear about is it too soon?
07:17Is it not the right time?
07:19Is it the right time?
07:20But after having met with Elf the first few times as the conversations were progressing, I felt more and more sure and more and more comfortable knowing that if ever there was a permanent home for it, that they would be the ones.
07:34Mm hmm.
07:35You make it sound so casual and like a like another like selling your brand for a billion dollars is just sort of another another day in the life.
07:42It's definitely a really gigantic milestone.
07:44And I am super proud and I'm super happy and grateful.
07:48I just yeah, I guess it's like I mean, I don't know, like it's it's definitely it is a big deal and I am really happy.
07:58Yeah. So there's still some pinch me moments for sure.
08:00Oh, it was a huge pinch me moment. I'm definitely not trying to downplay that it was a massive, massive situation.
08:07I just think so much value goes on like the actual price tag when it's like there's so many other factors and things that go into it that make the deal what it is, you know?
08:18Right. OK, I'm going to throw out another number, which is so I think two weeks ago Road launched at Sephora.
08:24Yeah. And it's been Sephora's biggest beauty launch ever.
08:30Yeah. And I read in WWD that, you know, the numbers sort of net out to Sephora selling something like three road products per second, which means that as we've been sitting here, my back of, you know, napkin.
08:46Math is correct. Sephora sold like 2000, maybe 2500 road products already. Did you expect it to go that well?
08:54I think for me, everything with road is like I have my hopes for it. And then I feel like it always exceeds my hopes and expectations.
09:03Everything that has happened with this brand has far eclipsed anything I could have ever dreamed of and hoped for, for what has been built.
09:12I think with Sephora, I personally wasn't expecting that to be the result.
09:19Obviously, I really wanted to push it and have it be the best launch that we could have it be.
09:25Of course, I really wanted it to be the biggest launch in Sephora's history.
09:28I was hopeful that we would do that and that we could do that.
09:31But I think I thought because it was going to be on shelves and in store, maybe it would take away a little bit of the desire to get it so quickly because it would be in stock and it would be in stores.
09:44So I definitely was still surprised to see it go the way that it did. And again, hello, sorry to be all up in your space.
09:59I think I was still, yeah, a little bit surprised to see that response to it. And again, it just gives me even more gratitude for our customer and our fan base at road.
10:14And I just like we're nothing without the consumer and the customers like we're absolutely zero without them and without the dedication and just, you know, like the want and the demand for the brand.
10:26So the last 10 years in the beauty industry, there have been lots of celebrity founded brands.
10:31There have been lots of independent brands. There have been lots of sort of outside disruptive brands.
10:35And, you know, road has gotten to this level so quickly. Why?
10:39Yeah, I don't know if I can exactly say why my hope for why I think it might be different and why I actually do feel like it is different in comparison to other brands.
10:51I think that we come with a different point of view when it comes to beauty of our assortment is like super curated, super edited.
10:58I like to make these kind of staple products where it's like one of everything good is is our motto that we go by.
11:05And when I say that, I mean one really good moisturizer, one really good, you know, blush, one really good all these products that when I travel and when I'm going out for the day things that I want to throw in my bag and I want to make the best formula of that thing so that I don't feel the need to go buy it from somewhere else.
11:23That was the whole ethos of launching the brand and also having really good branding and really good aesthetic.
11:30And I feel like for me when I'm building road, it's a whole universe in a whole world that I'm building.
11:36And when I open up that world, my hope for why people have really gravitated towards it is that they feel like they're a part of something that is like bigger than skincare.
11:45It's not just a beauty brand. It's a whole like lifestyle. And that was something I feel like I really saw with the phone cases and, you know, it really integrated into people's day to day lives.
11:57And that's how beauty and skincare is for me. It's like a day to day lifestyle thing for me.
12:02Was the phone case your idea?
12:04It was my idea. We were sitting in a meeting and I think we all kind of together collectively were like, oh, we had this aha moment.
12:13We were sitting in a meeting and I had one of those sticky cases on the back of my phone, the suction thing.
12:19We were sitting in a meeting and I kept sticking the lip onto the suction and we were all sitting there and I'm like holding it up like this.
12:27And I'm looking around the room and everyone in the meeting and I'm like, that was the Eureka moment.
12:32We were kind of like, oh, I'm like, can someone quickly Google if this exists?
12:36Is there like a holder that exists thinking a hundred percent on Amazon? There has to be something.
12:42And it didn't exist. So I was like, let's let's try to do it as quickly as we can. And that's how the phone case was born. Yeah.
12:49Amazing. Yeah. So Harris Dickinson was the first male face of Rode. He looked dewy and awesome in the campaign.
12:56What is your ambition in men's grooming, men's beauty space? Are you planning on expanding Rode into that?
13:03Honestly, I really feel like skincare is genderless. Like it doesn't need to be geared towards specifically men or specifically women.
13:13Now, I do understand that with men that there's certain grooming things that are needed beards and all that kind of thing.
13:21But for me, my my whole thing with Rode was that I really wanted it to be a skincare brand that was super elevated and chic in the coloring and the packaging so that this is like what I kept saying.
13:34If your boyfriend went into your bathroom and like wanted to use something, they wouldn't feel like, oh, this is really like girly and everything is pink or like it just felt like it could be for anybody and anyone could use it.
13:47My husband uses Rode and has since the beginning and loves it. And I have a lot of male friends that are obsessed with it and use it.
13:54And I put a lot of guys who never really were into skincare onto the Rode stuff. Tons of Justin's friends and they come back to me and they're like, I ran out of my cleanser.
14:03Like I need more. And that to me, it makes me so happy because I think that skincare is for everybody and everybody should have access to a great skincare routine.
14:11And it doesn't take much to have a great skincare routine. And that was another big ethos for me with Rode is that you could have three things.
14:19Even if you're just washing your face and putting on moisturizer at night, that's doing a lot more than doing nothing.
14:24Yeah. Men, men need some help. So that's good.
14:26Men do need some help. But you know, I do think it, it would be easy for a guy to grab his glazing milk out of his girlfriend's bathroom and do a little something, you know?
14:34Well, I'll have to get some samples later.
14:36I got you. I got you.
14:37So switching gears a little bit, you have 55 million followers, which is like more than the number of people who live in Canada and many other countries.
14:46Whoa.
14:47So it's hard to like generalize anything about that many people, but I'm curious how you sort of think about your fans and your followers and what you think that, you know, what you think they care about and sort of what you think they want from you.
15:02To be honest, I just like to post what feels good for me. I share what I'm comfortable with. I share what I think is interesting, what I think is cool, what I think looks good.
15:15And, you know, I pay attention. I see the way people are posting, you know, I feel like things continuously change on Instagram, like even the way people post photo dumps.
15:27And now we're posting with music on our posts, you know, that was something that posting with music to your Instagram didn't exist.
15:34So I think it's always evolving. And it's also a way that I like to interact to a certain degree. I interact on there with all my friends, you know, we DM each other stuff back and forth.
15:47So it's definitely a beautiful tool. I think it can be a challenging tool, but it's also, I look at Instagram as like this really cool photo diary as well.
15:58And I can scroll back so far and see myself in 2016 and look back on, you know, this girl that I've started as and where I am today.
16:08So you don't archive?
16:09I don't really archive, no.
16:10Good for you.
16:11A little bit here and there if I feel like things are getting a little messy.
16:14Do you feel like you sort of naturally inhabit the role of boss at road?
16:21I feel like, I feel like the road of boss in my title, I feel very clear on as the chief creative officer and on the creative side and thinking about the ideas and concepts for shoots and all of those things.
16:40I feel really, I feel very bossy in that seat, but also I feel everybody who's on the team is also bossy in their seats and in their roles and nothing that I ever come up with or think about gets done or gets executed if I didn't have all of those executors being so good at what they do.
17:01So I feel like we're all bossy together.
17:02So I feel like we're all bossy together and it's a lot of shared work and responsibility.
17:07Right.
17:08This is a boardroom of bosses.
17:09I think so.
17:10There's bad bitches at road.
17:12Do you have a dream male face of road?
17:18Someone who is like bucket list would love to cast?
17:21I mean, I was really thrilled when Harris did our campaign.
17:25I think someone on the older side would be really interesting, like an older male.
17:29And I think that could be interesting and cool.
17:30There's nobody off the top of my head, but you know, maybe like an older actor would be interesting to me.
17:36Yeah.
17:37I could picture like Willem Dafoe having...
17:39Which would be sick.
17:40You know, really glossy skin.
17:42We love, yeah.
17:43Okay, so you've had a long day at the office, being a boss with the bosses.
17:48What do you like to do after to unwind?
17:51Do you go home?
17:52Do you...
17:53I definitely like to go home after a packed day.
17:56I always want to be with my family.
17:58I always want to see my son.
18:00Maybe a dinner.
18:02Maybe a little martini with the girls.
18:05It really depends on my energy.
18:06You know, I think I'm at the time in my life and I'm at the age where I really...
18:12like to understand when I don't have anything else to give.
18:16And I don't want to waste my time trying to make plans when I don't have anything to give.
18:22You know?
18:23That's very responsible of you.
18:25I do my best.
18:26You actually posted something on Instagram yesterday about how you're an otrovert,
18:31which is a term I never heard.
18:32I never heard that before.
18:33I posted that because I had never seen it before, but it made a lot of sense for how I feel.
18:37I'm very extroverted, but I also really need time by myself to reset.
18:43Yeah, wait.
18:44So walk us through the otrovert concept.
18:46It's someone who's extroverted, but...
18:48Introverted.
18:49I think that's what it was saying.
18:50It's like you're both.
18:51You're both.
18:52It's someone who's really extroverted, but needs introverted time to recharge.
18:57So you go to the...
18:58Recharge.
18:59You go to the function, social...
19:00I go to the function, social butterfly, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk.
19:04Don't...
19:05And then in bed the next day, like, don't leave my house.
19:08Very chill.
19:09I'll give you a good example.
19:11We were just in New York.
19:13Sephora launch, New York Stock Exchange.
19:15Very, very busy.
19:16Back to back to back.
19:17Ringing the bell.
19:18Ringing the bell.
19:19Super cool experience.
19:21Came back to LA.
19:22Didn't want to leave my house for a week.
19:24Recharge.
19:25My sanctuary.
19:27Catching up on sleep.
19:30That feels very...
19:31Otrovert to me.
19:32Did I say that right?
19:33Otrovert?
19:34Otrovert?
19:35I found out about it from your Instagram, so...
19:37Okay, so I don't know if I'm even saying that right, but...
19:40Very...
19:41Both.
19:42Yeah.
19:43Well, you figured it out.
19:44It's great.
19:45Now you know.
19:46I like having a title for those feelings.
19:47Exactly.
19:48So, another creative project you've been working on...
19:51Another thing I saw from your Instagram is...
19:53You've been designing a leather jacket for Justin's brand Skylark.
19:59Yeah.
20:00Tell me about that process and what you're working on there.
20:03So, yeah.
20:04I am doing...
20:06Designing this jacket with them.
20:08And I feel like that's a super fun collaborative process to do with his brand.
20:14Skylark, I think, is incredible and amazing.
20:17Everything they're doing and building there is super, super cool.
20:23And I'm just happy that they want me to be a part of it.
20:29And, you know, that they have asked me to come in and make something with them.
20:36And it's obviously really fun when you get to be able to do anything with the person that you love.
20:41And the team there is really amazing and I feel really inspired by them.
20:45And I think the clothes are sick.
20:47I think the shoes are sick.
20:48I think the point of view is sick.
20:50I don't like doing anything I'm not inspired by.
20:53And I feel super, super inspired by everything that they're doing.
20:56Yeah.
20:57Why a leather jacket?
20:58I know that you're a fan, but was that...
21:00Have you always wanted to make something like that?
21:02I'm just obsessed with leather jackets.
21:03And I thought it would be fun to just make one from scratch that I felt really good about.
21:10And that would be my perfect version of a leather jacket.
21:14I don't want to, like, say too much about the actual jacket because I feel like it'll...
21:19I'll be speaking too soon and I'll, like, ruin the concept behind it.
21:22But I will, when it's coming out, I will explain further a little bit the concept behind it.
21:26But, yeah, there's a couple things that I'm doing with them that are coming.
21:30And then, obviously, you know, he's doing the joint holder case, which I think is really sick and really fucking cool.
21:36So did you approve it?
21:37I did approve the joint case.
21:38I did, yes.
21:39And it's just been a fun process to see him in his bag with the Skylark stuff and what he's doing, what he's building,
21:45and being able to both have things that we're really excited about and passionate about alongside each other
21:51and supporting each other and just could not ask for more, you know?
21:55Did you have to think about the approval for the...
21:57No.
21:58Or were you like, okay, it's fine.
21:59Of course not.
22:00No.
22:01Okay, well, that's great.
22:04But it was a fun little gimmick.
22:06Yeah, I liked the sort of back and forth on Instagram about that.
22:08Yeah.
22:09Okay, so that's breaking news.
22:10Is the leather jacket that you're designing, is that a sign of ambitions in the clothing space that you might have?
22:16I know that before you founded Rode, you'd always imagine doing a clothing brand before, you know, first.
22:24And then, obviously, the beauty happened first, but is there... I don't know, are the gears turning?
22:30I think I feel more comfortable dabbling in one-off situations.
22:34And, of course, having fun with Skylark and being able to do that is a version of that and is an example of that.
22:43I don't know if I think I would do a clothing brand from scratch and start from zero.
22:49I also am somebody like, I don't want to over consume this consumer.
22:54I don't believe in over consumption.
22:55But I do think getting to do collabs and one-off collabs and especially with a brand that's so close to me like that, is something I definitely want to do more of.
23:06I mean, you started Rode from scratch, so...
23:08I did, and I felt like that was because I had a really different POV for the skincare and beauty space.
23:15And I think as I expand my world of business and brands, I am most interested in expanding it in a way where I have a very specific and different point of view.
23:31And I think having a very specific and different point of view in clothing is very hard to do.
23:36When I do something, I want to know that 150,000% of me is behind it and knows that that is the thing that I want to do and put everything into it.
23:46I do think the beauty and wellness space is somewhere that I continuously feel passionate about.
23:54But, you know, I'm still so focused on Rode and all my attention is there other than these other projects that I can give myself to and can make space for.
24:07Yeah, yeah. I mean, how else are you expanding your business interests and other projects like you mentioned?
24:13I mean, I do little things here and there in the investment space and, like I said, the one-off collaboration space.
24:20That's something that I definitely think I'll continue to do.
24:23When I feel really passionate about something or someone comes to me,
24:26Hey, would you like to collab with this or do you want to do a campaign for this?
24:30Unless I'm sure that I feel passionate about it and I think I can lend a different lens, then I'll do it.
24:38But if I feel like I can't bring anything different to the table for that brand or for that person, then I won't.
24:45Right. So it's really sort of a creative dialogue.
24:48Yeah.
24:49How do I, you know, like, why me? Why should I actually do this?
24:52A hundred percent. And also, I'm in a place now, too, where if I'm going to do something with a brand,
24:59I really like to give my creative input and give my taste and my point of view to it.
25:05And I've been really lucky that everybody I've done campaigns with and it's been a super collaborative process.
25:11Speaking of campaigns, it really feels like, you know, I got here from New York yesterday
25:17and I felt like I was arriving in Hayley Bieber's LA because there are no fewer than four billboards
25:24with you on them between like Mel's Drive-In and the Chateau Marmont.
25:28Does that feel significant to you? Does that, you know, like, does that kind of thing never get old?
25:33It's still very pinch me. I was walking into Sushi Park last night and it was so ridiculous.
25:39It was like there was the Sephora one here and the DKNY and then the Chase one was right behind it.
25:44And I was like, what is going on right now? It was such it still is very, wow, that's so cool.
25:50And like a proud moment for me. I don't think it does ever get old, to be honest.
25:56If you don't think the GDiet High School is out.
25:57This is the Sushi Park.
26:01Just.
26:02What does that mean?
26:04Just.
26:05Diegobea New York City.
26:06Just.
26:07D Nine Rocks.
26:10I can also.
26:11Ditch.
26:12Diobea New York City.
26:14The Thank.
26:15Divoa New York City.
26:16The Great West.
26:17D Beautiful.
26:18D Cheers.
26:19Diento.
26:20Diento.
26:21Diento.
26:22Diento.
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