Overview of 988. - Nick Axelrod
Chris Black and Jason Stewart catch up with beauty and brand founder Nick Axelrod from Paris for a wide-ranging, fast-moving conversation that mixes travel gossip, nightlife nostalgia, family stories, body care business talk, and a deep dive into fragrance, aesthetics, and GLP-1 weight-loss drugs. The episode is equal parts hangout and industry insider chat, with Nick discussing his new fragrance project, Contrapposto, alongside the evolution of Necessaire and the broader beauty market.
Conversation Highlights
Paris, festivals, and post-party exhaustion
- Nick joins from Paris while traveling to a wedding in Biarritz.
- He admits he’s mentally and physically wrecked after a long festival day, little sleep, tequila, and a transatlantic flight.
- The hosts trade notes on hotel life, coffee stops, and the general chaos of working while traveling.
Nostalgic nightlife and club culture
- The group reminisces about old New York and LA nightlife:
- Bungalow 8
- Butter Mondays
- Dimes Square-era clubbing
- Childhood/teen connections to LA music and celebrity scenes
- Nick shares funny, semi-traumatic memories of going out in the early 2010s and the “quality” of MDMA changing over time.
- There’s also a detour into queer spaces, comedy rooms, and the lack of “middle ground” venues in LA.
Nick Axelrod’s Business and Beauty Projects
Necessaire and the body care category
- Nick reflects on co-founding Necessaire, describing it as a brand built around making body care look and feel more elevated.
- He explains that body care is a tough category:
- large product sizes
- lower price points than skincare
- harder margins and more difficult scaling
- He says the brand has done well in Sephora and body care remains a real growth category.
- He hopes for a strong exit, but stresses that he’s still actively working and not simply coasting.
Contrapposto: new fragrance launch
- Nick introduces Contrapposto, his new fragrance brand.
- He explains that the project is meant to be luxurious, aesthetically cohesive, and unisex without being “neutral.”
- Scent notes and reactions discussed:
- Melting Flowers felt too feminine for Chris/Jason
- Lubinite was especially well received
- Another sample leaned into cocoa and cannabis
- He says fragrance is about experience and self-image, not just smelling good.
Product, packaging, and luxury
- A recurring theme is how packaging and presentation shape perceived value.
- Nick cites the idea that luxury is increasingly about:
- process
- appointment-only access
- craftsmanship
- high-touch experiences
- He gives Maison Bonnet in Paris as an example of real luxury:
- custom, made-to-order glasses
- hour-and-a-half fitting
- return visit months later for final fitting
- premium pricing that feels justified by the experience
Personal Life, Family, and Identity
Coming out and family dynamics
- Nick shares a personal story about coming out in his 20s, including:
- writing his parents an email while high on coke
- later talking with them directly
- their response being “surprised but not altogether shocked”
- He talks about growing up as a very visibly gay kid and later moving from New York to the Berkshires, which he hated at the time.
His parents, husband, and kids
- Nick now lives in Los Angeles with his family.
- He has a husband and two children.
- His parents moved to LA after his daughter was born and stayed.
- He says his mother is unusually hands-off and doesn’t want to intrude, which he finds refreshing.
- He jokes that if he and his husband divorced, his parents would probably side with the husband.
Sibling talk and “family batches”
- The episode includes a funny stretch about siblings, twins, and sexuality.
- Nick mentions having a brother and jokes about how many gay siblings he knows.
- The hosts riff on the idea of children being from the same “batch” of eggs, with Nick explaining the IVF/surrogacy process for his own kids.
Health, Weight Loss, and “Food Noise”
Mounjaro/Ozempic discussion
- Nick says he was an early user of Mounjaro/Ozempic and experienced major weight loss.
- He describes the meds as quieting “food noise” and also reducing other compulsive urges.
- The conversation moves into:
- how the drugs changed his relationship with eating
- how they affected drinking and addictive behavior
- the weird early-dosing side effects, including a memorable vomiting incident involving a blueberry smoothie
Broad take on habits and consumption
- Nick frames himself as a compulsive consumer who loves the experience of buying things.
- He says he’s not vain or overly focused on appearance, but he’s very interested in:
- product design
- packaging
- the buying journey
- the emotional effect of objects
- Chris and Jason relate this to their own shopping and grooming habits.
Key Takeaways
- Necessaire and Contrapposto reflect Nick’s belief that beauty brands succeed when design, utility, and experience all work together.
- The episode emphasizes that luxury today is experiential, not just expensive.
- Nick’s humor and candor give the conversation a personal edge, especially when discussing:
- coming out
- family
- IVF/surrogacy
- drug-assisted weight loss
- The hosts are clearly interested in the crossover between beauty, culture, nightlife, and entrepreneurship, and Nick is a strong fit for that world.
Launch / Practical Notes
- Contrapposto is slated to launch on September 9.
- Nick says the brand will be available online and in Los Angeles stores.
- He also hints at skincare coming next.
- There’s a joking mention of a promo code, but the key real-world takeaway is the launch date and the brand’s luxury positioning.