This week on Earned, we’re spotlighting five founders shaping the beauty industry. Tune in to hear how Sarah Gibson Tuttle (Olive & June), Lilly Ghalichi (Lilly Lashes), Rea Ann Silva (Beautyblender), Taylor Frankel (Nudestix), Courtney Shields (DIBS), and Deepica Mutyala (Live Tinted) share how they transformed personal inspiration into powerhouse brands. Learn how they balance creative passion with business savvy, build standout teams, and tap into creator marketing to drive authentic growth.
In this special episode of Earned, we’re compiling the best moments from our conversations with five powerhouse beauty brand founders: Sarah Gibson Tuttle of Olive & June, Lilly Ghalichi of Lilly Lashes, Rea Ann Silva of Beautyblender, Taylor Frankel of Nudestix, Courtney Shields of DIBS, and Deepica Mutyala of Live Tinted. Tune in to hear how these women transformed personal inspiration and experiences into globally recognized beauty brands. We dive into the emotional and strategic aspects of entrepreneurship, highlighting the role of empathy and leadership in driving brand success, before discussing the importance of flexibility, resilience, and maintaining authenticity amidst growth challenges. We also examine the effective role of influencer marketing in their business strategies, emphasizing the significance of organic promotion and community engagement. Learn how to navigate entrepreneurial challenges, the importance of quality products and strong teams, and the emotional highs and lows that accompany business growth.
Check out highlights from the episode below, or or tune into the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen!
The following interview has been lightly edited for concision.
Taylor Frankel, Deepica Mutyala, and Rea Ann Silva on Lessons Learned as Beauty Brand Founders
Brit Starr: What have been your biggest lessons as a founder and what advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Taylor Frankel, Nudestix: Almost a year ago, we noticed that our competitors were outcompeting us. We went into [CreatorIQ] to see, what are they doing differently? What do we need to level up in order to reach these EMV goals? And it really was about scale. And I remember, one of the first presentations that I went to of yours was actually at the WWD summit a few years back. I remember you saying that the largest percent of your UGC essentially should be organic. You gave the analogy of flipping through a magazine and how if 100% of the magazine is all paid advertorial, as a reader you're going to look at that and say, okay, I don't really trust this anymore. It seems like they're just pushing a lot of things that aren't authentic, and don't feel organic. And the same goes for scrolling through your social media feed. That was really eye-opening for us because obviously we had these paid ambassadors that we worked with consistently, but what is that organic earned strategy that we need to focus on? So a big part of it was scaling our seedings.
Deepica Mutyala, Live Tinted: I think the toughest part of building a company is the actual emotional piece of it rather than will we run out of money? Will this employee quit? Will this product take off? Will the whole world shut down? And then it did. I think it's just a really weird psyche to go from the highest highs to the lowest lows within hours of the same day. I think the lack of stability is probably the hardest part with the Live Tinted side of things. But I have to say, once you cross the eight-figure revenue mark, you do feel a little bit of stability. There's just different phases, right? Carol Hamilton from L'Oréal said this to me very early on: “The hardest to hit is the first million and then the $10 million,” because once you've operationally figured out how you're getting to $10 million, it's a walk in the park to get to $50 [million]. You've operationally figured out where you're at to get you to that next milestone.
Rea Ann Silva, Beautyblender: The very first thing I always say is you have to have a passion to get through the tough times, because there are people that actually create businesses and create the exit plan before they even start the entry. So for me, you have to be able to endure the ups and downs. The trajectory of entering the business as an entrepreneur with the dream of exiting at some point is not a straight line. You're going to have ups and downs. You have to have the catastrophe learning moments. There's no way to avoid them and truly create the product of your dreams.
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