How Merit Built a Cult Following Before It Had a Name with Aila Morin

Aila Morin is the founding Chief Marketing Officer of Merit Beauty, one of the fastest-growing brands in the beauty industry. On this episode of Process, host Arielle Thomas sits down with Aila for a rare, in-depth conversation about brand building, marketing strategy, and product development, from Merit's earliest days as an anonymous Instagram account to its most recent Clean Volume mascara launch.Aila walks through how Merit built a loyal community before the brand even had a name, why the company skipped paid advertising entirely for its first four months, and how a single UX fix increased sales by more than 100%. She also gets candid about product failures, the emotional weight of building something people trust, and why Merit has no interest in using AI in its creative process.This conversation covers founder transparency, marketing strategy, brand building, product development, and the beauty industry from the inside, a masterclass for anyone building a brand, working in marketing, or curious how one of beauty's most consistent companies actually operates day to day.INSIDE THE EPISODE:00:00 — Intro00:38 — How Merit Came to Be03:15 — Finding the White Space in Beauty05:10 — Building a Brand That Doesn't Need the Product07:17 — Learning to Sell from the Shop Floor09:46 — The Secret Instagram Account That Became Merit11:33 — Skipping Paid Ads for Community as a Focus Group13:12 — Why Great Brands Aren't Built on Virality16:59 — Reinventing the Foundation Stick22:13 — Data Over Market Reports: Building Clean Volume26:11 — The Kaizen Approach to Product Development29:24 — Story First: How a Launch Actually Gets Built34:15 — Why Merit Never Starts With the Grid35:20 — Casting With a Story: Whitney Leavitt & Karen Pittman38:10 — Self-Doubt Behind the Confidence40:28 — Owning Polarizing Reviews42:17 — What Hasn't Worked44:30 — The Unglamorous Reality of Running Merit46:22 — Building a Brand That Lasts 100 Years49:00 — Clean Volume's "See to Believe" Sampling Strategy50:37 — The Future of Social & Why No AI Creative52:41 — Arielle's Personal Encounter With Merit55:36 — Beauty: Shame vs. BelongingConnect with our Guest:• Aila Morin on Instagram: @ailamorin• Merit Beauty on Instagram: @merit • Website: meritbeauty.com Enjoyed this Episode?Join our Community!• Your host, Arielle Thomas, on Instagram,⁠@arielle.thomas⁠: • Us, on Instagram,⁠ @processthepodcast •Whatsapp Community @processthepodcast Follow us to get notified every time a new episode drops every Tuesday. See you at the next one! This episode includes third-party audio used for educational commentary and reference. All rights and ownership belong to their respective copyright holders. This content is utilized under Fair Use principles and does not imply endorsement or affiliation with Process The Podcast. For takedowns or copyright inquiries, please contact hello@cinemathom.com