Goldman Sachs-Backed Virtual Beauty App Developer To Go Public In $1 Billion SPAC Deal
By Zinnia Lee
Forbes.com
Alice Chang, founder and CEO of Perfect Corp.
Perfect Corp., a Taiwan-headquartered virtual beauty try-on app developer, announced on Thursday it is merging with a blank check company to go public in the U.S. at a valuation of $1 billion.
Founded in 2015, Perfect Corp. markets itself as a leading artificial intelligence and augmented reality beauty and fashion tech solutions provider. The applications it has developed allow users to analyze the condition of their skin and virtually try on makeup, hair and nail colors, as well as other accessories.
The company said its technologies have been deployed by more than 420 beauty brands in over 80 countries, including Estee Lauder Companies’ brands Mac and Clinique. It has also partnered with Facebook’s parent company Meta, Snapchat’s operator Snap, as well as Alibaba’s e-commerce sites to offer makeup try-on tools on each of their respective platforms.
Perfect Corp. said Thursday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to merge with Nasdaq-listed Provident Acquisition Corp. The business combination is expected to provide Perfect Corp. with up to $335 million of proceeds, including $50 million raised through a private investment in public equity, or PIPE, from investors including luxury fashion brand Chanel, cosmetic company Shiseido, as well as Snap, among others. The SPAC deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter, Perfect Corp. said.
