birchbox retail store CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 11: Guests celebrate the arrival of the Birchbox retail experience at Walgreens in Chicago (410 N. Michigan Ave.) on December 11, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Walgreens)
Birchbox was acquired 10 years after launch for just $45 million.
  • Birchbox pioneered the monthly beauty subscription box and was once valued at nearly $500 million. 
  • But after some financial setbacks, Birchbox was acquired 10 years after launch for just $45 million.
  • After a pause, the brand recently resumed shipping boxes, but some customers are not impressed.

Birchbox is back.

The company that pioneered the subscription beauty-box segment in 2011 has resumed shipping products to customers after a tumultuous few years that saw significant fulfillment interruptions as the brand was sold off twice.