Barry J. Beck ’90 has been named the 2023 Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year, Entrepreneurship at Cornell announced Jan. 23.

Beck co-founded and served as the chief operating officer of Bluemercury, the nationwide luxury beauty brand that was acquired by Macy’s in 2015. He will be honored on campus April 13-14 at the Entrepreneurship at Cornell Celebration Event and will also speak Nov. 3 at the Eclectic Convergence Conference at Cornell Tech in New York City.

“I’m thrilled to be honoring Barry Beck as this year’s Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year,” said Zach Shulman ’87, J.D. ’90, director of Entrepreneurship at Cornell. “Bluemercury’s growth was guided by Barry’s leadership and passion for innovation and entrepreneurship, and he is widely recognized for disrupting the beauty industry.”

Beck is also the founder and CEO of Evenly Technologies, Inc., a technology and telemedicine orthodontic platform, and co-founder of M-61 Laboratories, creators of M-61 Skincare and Lune+Aster Cosmetics, the first clinical vegan and sustainable cosmetic brands. 

At Cornell, Beck established the Marla and Barry ’90 Beck Entrepreneurship Fellows Program in 2016. The program provides funding for Cornell students to pursue their entrepreneurial ideas without having to support themselves in a traditional paid job setting.

Beck was the 2020 recipient of Cornell’s Alpern Distinguished Alumni Award, the 2017 Retailer of the Year Award and the 2016 Retail Innovator of the Year Award. He currently sits on the Advisory Council of the ILR School and served on the Cornell University Council, the Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and the Board of Advisors of the Fashion Institute of Technology. Beck currently resides in Bethesda, Maryland.

The Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year award is given annually by Entrepreneurship at Cornell to a Cornellian who exemplifies entrepreneurial achievement, impact on humanity and an inspirational story or business outcome.

Kathy Hovis is a writer for Entrepreneurship at Cornell.