Men are about two times more likely than women to get skin cancer in their lifetime. A mother-daughter duo from the Triangle is looking to change that with their Chapel Hill-based ecommerce startup, Get Mr.
Elianna Goldstein (as CEO) and her mother, the prominent dermatologist Dr. Beth Goldstein who serves as the startup’s Chief Product Officer, launched Get Mr. last November and have already sold over 3,000 units of their flagship product: a 3-in-1 face lotion for men called “The Daily” that serves as a moisturizer, spf 30 sunscreen and aftershave.
Dr. Goldstein owns one of the largest dermatology networks in North Carolina, with locations in Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Sanford. As a skin cancer surgeon, Dr. Goldstein has treated many male patients with skin cancer over the last 30 years. After her husband (and Elianna’s father) was diagnosed with it in 2018, she set out with her daughter to make a product for men that helps reduce their risk of skin cancer.
After graduating from UNC in 2018, Elianna worked for Boeing in St. Louis as a Venture for America Fellow. When Elianna’s mom told her she wanted to create a daily product to help men protect themselves against skin cancer, Elianna said she saw it as an opportunity to bring her knowledge about high-growth, early-stage startups to help her mom on a mission that was personally important to both of them.
Of course, there are several non-preventable factors that make some men more susceptible to getting skin cancer, like family history. Get Mr’s mission revolves around reducing the likelihood of the preventable factors contributing to a diagnosis. For instance, many women wear makeup every day, which, depending on the product, can be an automatic way to provide protection from the sun.
“The majority of men do not have that same habit,” Elianna said. “And when you think about sunscreen and skin protection, it’s really more about your day-to-day coverage than if you wore sunscreen once on the Fourth of July.”
Through The Daily SPF lotion, Elianna and her mother want to make it seamless and automatic for men to incorporate skin protection into their daily regimen. Unlike many sunscreens that are chemical-based and greasy, The Daily is a mineral-based, non-greasy, zinc oxide sunscreen that feels lightweight on the skin, Elianna said.
In addition to selling direct-to-consumer on their website—where customers can also opt into a monthly subscription—Get Mr. also sells The Daily wholesale through some dermatology practices.
By 2040, melanoma is predicted to be the second most common cancer in the U.S., right behind breast cancer, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Today, less than a quarter of men in the U.S. see a dermatologist regularly.
That’s why the Goldsteins believe that achieving Get Mr.’s broader mission includes more than offering their skincare product, Elianna said. A large part of their focus is on education and encouraging their customers to take actions like performing skin checks and adding dermatology services, such as risk evaluation and check-ins, which can be life-saving.
“At the end of the day, our health is really a product of all of the little things we do every day,” Elianna said. “And we’re making it a no-brainer to easily incorporate this one small action into your daily routine that could save your life.”