WNBA Player-Founded Beauty Brand Bets on Athlete Credibility Over Paid Influencers

Co-founded by WNBA player Lexie Hull, Forta Cosmetics is building its marketing strategy around female athletes using and promoting its product

Forta Cosmetics officially launched today, debuting its performance beauty brand with a distribution strategy centered on athlete-led product seeding rather than traditional paid marketing.

Ahead of launch, Forta partnered with Faves to place its hero product, Lock & Go Setting Spray, in the hands of a curated network of female athletes across disciplines including running, boxing, pickleball and basketball. Athletes then generated organic content based on real-world use.

Forta was co-founded by WNBA player Lexie Hull, who developed the brand in response to a lack of beauty products designed to withstand high-intensity physical activity.

Conventional influencer strategies rely on paid placements or whitelisted content to drive awareness, but Forta’s rollout has been built around athlete usage, with content emerging from training and competition environments.

Faves, which partnered with Forta on the launch, operates as a platform designed to support athlete-founded brands by facilitating product seeding, content creation and direct-to-consumer distribution through athlete networks.

As skeptical consumers navigate the influencer market, proof of use has become increasingly important for marketing. The model emphasizes organic reach through athlete voices rather than paid amplification, demonstrating a budding shift in the product marketing landscape.