(0:00:00) Brittany: You can look at, you know, data points and be like, oh, it looks like there’s an opening in the market here. The reality is the beauty industry is so saturated with brand, and people aren’t just looking to add in complicate their routines when it comes to beauty. So you really, in my opinion, have to be solving a true problem that they’re currently experiencing, or your product has to be infinitely better than the option that they’re currently using.
(0:00:27) Courtney: Hi, my name is Courtney and welcome to how they scaled it with scaling is done with both sides of the brain. Today I’m excited to welcome Brittany Lo with a passion for entrepreneurship and empowering women, Brittany has built a remarkable career in the beauty and wellness space. She began her journey studying entrepreneurship at Babson College and gained experience with industry giants like L’Oreal.
(0:00:50) Courtney: In 2015, she founded beauty, a luxury beauty concierge specializing in hair and makeup for weddings and events. Listening to the needs of her clients, Brittany noticed a gap in the market, which led to the creation of a high end body care brand designed to support confidence and self-care from head to toe. Brittany now very impressively runs both of these companies.
(0:01:12) Courtney: Brittany, it is such an honor to have you here today. Welcome to how they scaled it.
(0:01:16) Brittany: Thank you so much for having me. I’m so excited to have this conversation with you.
(0:01:20) Courtney: Of course, of course. I want to start with, kind of the spark behind, because I think that you had such an interesting way to identify that, like gap in the market. So tell me about how you came up with the idea for Bayer.
(0:01:34) Brittany: Yeah. So even starting even before I was in college, before I started my first business, I always wanted to go into beauty products, but I wasn’t sure where the weight space was. And so that’s where I decided to take my first step forward by creating a service like Beauty Concierge called beauty, because that would allow me to work with women in person and really understand their beauty pain points like where are the holes in terms of their everyday routine to then figure out like the next steps for what became there.
(0:02:06) Brittany: And so what we found was I’d be working with women, they’d be coming in before our wedding or big event and they’d ask, you know, like the traditional like, oh, what color is this lipstick? But they also be like, ooh, like, I get really sweaty. Is my makeup going to hold all day? Or, you know, I swear I tend to like it a little stinky.
(0:02:23) Brittany: Like, what do I do? Or I had these, you know, blemishes on my dress. I have a low cut dress. Like what? What should we do? And so was all these questions that almost were like little insecurities. But we’re looking for beauty solutions. And so ultimately it sparked the idea because I personally it would run from the office an event or going out and I’d be like, ooh, I stink and have the same little insecurities of like, oh no, I hope this person can’t smell me instead of being in the moment.
(0:02:54) Brittany: And so that’s where they it was born. So there’s like sell skincare that keeps you feeling confident and clean throughout the day.
(0:03:02) Courtney: Yeah. Amazing. I mean, I think that we when we think about like the beauty industry is all face. You see so many products for your face, for the neck and up. Like that’s kind of where everything is focused. But it sounds like you’re like, well, it seems like there’s a lot of other problems that need to be addressed here.
(0:03:20) Courtney: So I love that you I love that you had the experience of beauty to be like, okay, like, I know these people will buy these types of products, so how can we make something that that works really well for them?
(0:03:32) Brittany: Right. And that’s the thing is, like you can look at, you know, data points and be like, oh, it looks like there’s an opening in the market here. The reality is the beauty industry is so saturated with brands, and people aren’t just looking to add in complicate their routines when it comes to beauty. So you really, in my opinion, have to be solving a true problem that they’re currently experiencing, or your product has to be infinitely better than the option that they’re currently using.
(0:04:01) Brittany: And so with that, it was for me, like I don’t want to just use like a body scrub just to use body scrub because all I have all this time. But I need something that’s going to provide effective results and like target those in rooms that are driving me crazy and irritating my skin, in a timely manner.
(0:04:19) Courtney: Yeah, yeah. Well, so tell me, obviously you didn’t just go from I have this idea to making a bunch of money. What were kind of the bigger challenges when you first started back, and how did you kind of work through those?
(0:04:32) Brittany: So the first this was I started Ideating for VR in 2020 when there was a pandemic. So in terms of supply chain and just even understanding like what the future entailed, like that was a whole thing in itself. But once you have the idea, you kind of are like, now. And so I always find based at my time at L’Oreal, even if they had this really fascinating idea for new product, you always start with a baseline, right?
(0:04:58) Brittany: Like what is that baseline product that you’re like, I want something like this. And here’s how I want to make it different. And so with that I kind of started with our our jelly hydrating setting mask because that was what was requested by our clients who were getting married. So it would help their sweat control, keep your skin hydrated so they could just be in the moment.
(0:05:18) Brittany: So first step was finding products that I thought could best suit that solution. And then understanding what would I want to change? What would I want to improve? And honestly, the hardest part was finding a manufacturer to actually make your vision a reality.
(0:05:34) Courtney: Right? How did you go about like testing different? Did you just start calling people or how did you find your manufacturer?
(0:05:40) Brittany: So the funny part is like, you can’t just Google beauty manufacturers. It’s kind of it’s a pretty archaic piece of the industry where there’s people who’ve been in this industry for decades, and you kind of have to know someone who knows someone in order for them to take the risk on you, because unless you’re doing significant quantity years, which we weren’t doing at the start, they’re not going to really make money or it’s not really worth their time.
(0:06:07) Brittany: So we started googling. We had a bunch of questions and it was almost to the point where you have to, like, beg them to want to work with you and you’re pitching them just like as you would pitch an investor. But it turns out that our first manufacturer came through my intern, who’s family friend knew the CFO of this plant, and so they took our meeting and they end up working with us.
(0:06:28) Brittany: And they’ve been a great partner. And since then it’s all about like who in the industry connecting connect me to with someone else.
(0:06:35) Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. That’s that’s pretty amazing that your intern for like five.
(0:06:40) Brittany: I was never she works full time with me.
(0:06:42) Courtney: So she.
(0:06:42) Brittany: Definitely earned that for sure.
(0:06:45) Courtney: For sure I well and I think also like these manufacturers and these like production companies specifically for the beauty industry. Like they don’t want to be known because the more you look into it, you’re like, oh, this one manufacturer makes the same thing for everybody. So it does feel kind of like this, like very cloak and dagger kind of industry.
(0:07:05) Brittany: 100% evenly finding sort of something that we learned the hard way was you have to be like, if you are looking to create your own product, like it’s really important to own your IP on your formulas and be. But that’s like not always the case with manufacturers. So we have a chemist that we work with solely for all of our formulas, but it is like something that even with an eye, you can always rely on like, okay, who do you know?
(0:07:31) Brittany: And like, who do you think would be like best fit to make this product? Because we now work with several different manufacturers, but it’s there’s a lot of layers. Once you find that person and like, how can you bring the best product to market.
(0:07:43) Courtney: Yeah. So then is your chemist through your manufacturer or was that like a separate person that you had to find.
(0:07:49) Brittany: Separate person that we had to find. And you don’t always need to find a chemist. But for me, I’m like very particular on our formulations and the quality and like my vision for a product that I felt like I’d rather hire someone, you can make truly the product that I love and not based on, like cost or ingredients that the manufacturer has in stock already.
(0:08:12) Brittany: Like if it has to be a difficult, ingredient and sourcing process. So yeah, but we like, you know, being mindful of supply chain. But I wanted to make sure we were creating the best product in formula possible and then do a tech transfer. It’s called to whichever manufacturer we believed would be the best fit for that product.
(0:08:32) Brittany: Right.
(0:08:32) Courtney: Well, and I mean, if you’re not going to use a chemist and come up with your own stuff, why not? Just like white label the stuff they already make, you know?
(0:08:39) Brittany: So yeah, some people can like, find the right R&D, team within a manufacturer to help them. But this is kind of the setup that’s worked really well for us.
(0:08:49) Courtney: Yeah. So you, so you make your product, do you start immediately selling to your beauty customers, or how do you kind of like start getting sales?
(0:09:00) Brittany: So yes, I’d say when. So they, soft like seeded the market with our initial product in 2021, we officially launch like July or sorry, mid June of 2022. So like we soft launch to our networks. And luckily because of Eugenie, we have an incredible client base. We have an incredible vendor base that, has been huge supporters.
(0:09:27) Brittany: And then just like reached into my own personal network of people, I think something that really helped with the success of the sales from the start was bringing people along the journey, so they felt like they were a part of what packaging we chose or the name or the direction that we took. They’re a little bit more invested to buy your product.
(0:09:48) Brittany: And so that was something that I was very mindful of. So that way, by the time our first product was here, we were able to all celebrate that milestone together, which did equate to nice, sales and conversions from the start.
(0:10:01) Courtney: Yeah. So we started to see people actually like buying the product. When you think it’s like when you started in 2020 during this pandemic, it must have been so stressful and so much up in the air. So when people actually started purchasing on their own, like, how did that feel like that must have been a huge moment for you.
(0:10:19) Brittany: Yeah, really? Because yeah, I’ve been thinking. I knew I wanted to go into products, like I said, for years. And so technically, when we launched in 2022, like it was a lot of effort and time and money that I put into it. So and you just don’t know, like you, you could be so obsessed with an idea and you might think it’s really great, but if someone else doesn’t see that you don’t have a business, and so being able to properly launch mid-year in 2022 and see people buy, you’re like, okay, maybe you know, they’re doing it because they like me and they’re trying to support me.
(0:10:53) Brittany: But when you see them do the recipe ordering, then you know you have a customer. And that to me is so cool. And even recently we were at a events, you know, selling via and someone’s like, I’m obsessed with Hermes. And like this is like my sub letter introduced me to your brand. And this is how I found like those stories, like, make me like so giddy because it’s so fun to then see, like, people are really liking your product without liking you.
(0:11:22) Courtney: Yeah, well, and like, you think about beauty having, you know, you have all your customers, which is like not a small amount of customers for beauty or a pretty decent sized brand there. But to go beyond it like it has such a, a much larger impact. Especially around kind of like you wanting to support women’s empowerment and like all these different things.
(0:11:41) Courtney: It probably to me it seems like it would be like, okay, I can I can affect much more change. I can help a lot more people than just with beauty, you know.
(0:11:52) Brittany: Yeah. So that’s where like the fun part is like the scalability of that is limitless. And so it is neat to be able to. We had someone recently say how one of our products, like the body scrubs like changed her life, and she was very specific on some of her struggles and like health conditions and how our products she can actually use.
(0:12:12) Brittany: And I like she doesn’t even I don’t even think she lives near here. And so we’re just like, really neat to see the power of the brand and also being able to be digital, that you can impact people’s lives from all around the world. Whereas like if you have to be in person for service, it’s still can be impactful in the way that we’re working on their biggest, you know, arguably the biggest day, their lives, but it’s not as scalable.
(0:12:39) Brittany: And so that’s what I think is most exciting with building that. Yeah. Is you know, we can touch people’s lives in so many different ways in all different areas that they live in.
(0:12:49) Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. So as you were kind of getting started getting it out there a little bit more, did you try anything that was like a little bit unconventional in scaling and just trying to get the word out there and like, did any of that not work?
(0:13:03) Brittany: So it’s interesting because when I was thinking about how did I grow beauty? Because when you start a business, you’re I, I can make a website and then you’re just like waiting for customers and or like now. And so what really helped us was talking to a lot of people about the idea and like what we’re looking to do and being very open to the feedback and their insights without relying on it.
(0:13:27) Brittany: Right. Like being open and seeing their perspective. And with Eugenie, I realized through peers that the real white space for services was in the wedding space because there was a lot of women on a daily basis, don’t wear a ton of makeup, and they like more of like a red carpet look than a traditional bridal look. And so then the next step was, okay, if I want to reach brides, where are they?
(0:13:49) Brittany: So we started doing trade shows and that being in-person with people had such a meaningful impact. So with, when I thought about similarly, how do we get out there like I want to be in retail, like I want to be in this industry, where do I go? So the first thing we did, we also signed up for a trade show.
(0:14:08) Brittany: And that’s what led us in, like being on target with Neiman Marcus in their intimate care category and then free people, and urban out for it led us to our first big account. And I think that there’s something to be said is like one of my superpowers is really connecting with people and really allows us to, be able to do so, in person from the start, just through the trade show.
(0:14:34) Courtney: Yeah. So you kind of started more on the retail side than the e-commerce side then. Yeah.
(0:14:39) Brittany: Yeah. So I will, preface that, is that when I was thinking about how do we address these intimate concerns, was it sweat, body odor, blemishes? This was a time where like intimate care, sexual wellness was becoming really popular. And my theory was, well, if you’re worried about a blemish on your butt wins. When are you most exposed?
(0:15:01) Brittany: Generally when you are intimate or in the bedroom. And so we leaned into more of this like intimate care category, which did prohibit us from, you know, advertising on meta and like even the word intimacy and like there just so many regulations that we really couldn’t, advertise that openly. And so recently we are currently in a like rebrand re messaging because we realize our audience is way broader than that.
(0:15:29) Brittany: You really just want us to fit into their everyday lifestyle, wherever they might be, to feel clean and confident with these gentle, clean formula laws. And so now we’re going to be leaning more into like the now like Amazon’s been huge our clicks growing because we. So that was where you know being aware of like the direction that makes most sense for where you are is important.
(0:15:54) Brittany: And I knew that like a lot of these retailers were wanting to play into wellness and intimate care. And so that’s why I felt like that was like the biggest step forward. But now that we’re able to broaden into being more skin care, right for face and body, now we’re seeing so much potential differently.
(0:16:13) Courtney: Yeah, I love that pivot. And I mean that totally makes sense to be like, okay, if we can hop on this trend and get in with these like retailers for this very specific thing, you’re probably going to have a better story to tell. But as soon as you’re like, okay, now let’s scale. So now it’s time for us to say, okay, what’s what’s the broadest way we could talk about ourselves.
(0:16:34) Courtney: Yeah, because you’ve already established yourself in intimate care. So now how can you like Brown?
(0:16:39) Brittany: And that’s something to me like, I think when I talk to other entrepreneurs who have an idea, I’m like, be committed on the journey and like, yeah, the mission of our company, but be willing to adapt and adjust based on like how your market is reacting to your products, to your brand. And and it was a good lesson where I fall hard to believed in, like the intimate care sector.
(0:17:00) Brittany: Like I’ve always been very sensually confident and there was a lot there, but then there was a lot of promising retailers and strategies of like how they are going to educate in this category, and that didn’t really happen. And so without the support of like the bigger companies out there as a retailer to educate the customers, it’s too much of a barrier for like an individual indie brand to be able to take on that education.
(0:17:27) Brittany: And we just learned as our customer base grew, it wasn’t necessarily just our body intimacy serum like they love using, and they love feeling confident that they can use our products in intimate areas. It’s gentle enough to use everywhere, right? But they want us more than just in the bedroom. And that was like, we wouldn’t know unless we dived, you know, moved towards that path to then realize, oh, now that we know and have insights here, now we can take that next step.
(0:17:55) Courtney: Oh yeah, we can see more opportunities.
(0:17:57) Brittany: Yeah.
(0:17:58) Courtney: Get to the place where you can kind of mountain type top and see everything exact.
(0:18:03) Brittany: And I do think it’s better to be someone, everything than trying to be everyone’s something. And so I do think picking a niche and like understanding how to grow that from the star is important. So then you can build credibility in one vertical and then expand from there. Whether it works or doesn’t, you’ll learn either way.
(0:18:21) Courtney: Yeah. So tell me more about getting in with Neiman Marcus and these other retailers when you didn’t really have like a big brand name behind you. So this is kind of the opposite of what a lot of people do. So how did you approach those conversations?
(0:18:36) Brittany: I mean, I shared the vision with them and ultimately, like the products spoke for themselves. Like if you don’t have a super high quality product like, what do you really have? And yes, the brand awareness wasn’t fully there, but our our the quality of the products, like once you try it and you see it, you’re like, wow, like what?
(0:18:55) Brittany: I, I get it. And that’s what happened with the buyers. Like, oh my, they came back the next day and I can I put your serum on one of my hand and she’s like, feel the difference? She’s like, I cannot get over that. And she’s like, I tried so many products. And so for them, they got to see the results in their own lives or their own routine.
(0:19:15) Brittany: And that’s what really sold them. And they’re also we’re very excited about this intimate care sexual wellness category. So we are basically launching the category with them through their pilot, which was exciting. And I think that they quickly realized maybe their customers don’t want that category. So we ended up being more into like their new beauty.
(0:19:38) Brittany: Indie business. And that was fine. But I think that as their, as their priorities or focus changed, we realized that honestly, an Amazon is like the number one beauty retailer in the United States. And like, there’s so much potential to really grow other ways. And I think omnichannel is where we’ll always be, because I think that you want to be where your customers are.
(0:20:03) Brittany: But, that’s ultimately how we got them to give us a go.
(0:20:08) Courtney: Yeah, that’s I feel like this is true. Anytime I talk to someone, they’re like, we started it in retail and we didn’t have any brand awareness. The answer is always we had a very good product. Like this is kind of like what it comes down to and goes back to when you’re like, all right, I’m going to work with a chemist.
(0:20:23) Courtney: It’s going to be more expensive. It’s going to be harder to do. But that’s what pays off then when you actually launch, because then you have a product that because like these people from like Neiman Marcus and like all of the retailers, they do try so many different products. So to stand out on product quality alone, is pretty powerful.
(0:20:43) Brittany: And that’s where, like I have chosen it because we’ve had some like my dream dream partners reach out and they’re like, you’ve nailed your formulas. Like, we really like we’ve been working on similar our products for like since I start, like probably like four years and we still haven’t launched them because it’s like the more that we can learn about our customers and just like be a little very meticulous of like, okay, like I do like this, but this doesn’t work.
(0:21:08) Brittany: And and even pushing, you know, our companies will push back on us on certain things that he feels like we can improve on. Or he’s like, that’s not gonna work. But then I also push back on like, nope, we’re gonna find this. Like, there has to be a way that we can keep it as clean as it is, but still be super effective.
(0:21:28) Brittany: And it’s it goes back to having a really strong relationship with our partners, with our companies, and being able to have that confidence of like, this is a vision. I’m not gonna launch a product until it surpasses it.
(0:21:40) Courtney: Yeah, well, and so let’s talk a little bit more about like, confidence. I guess you’re a big part of your vision and your brand is empowering women. And so obviously we’ve talked a little bit about kind of in the intimate space like that’s where you’re the most vulnerable. So you want to be the strongest. But tell me more about how you approach empowerment.
(0:22:01) Courtney: And like weaving that into the brand and into the products.
(0:22:05) Brittany: So I took it from my own personal experiences. Like there’s something that even I think about, like middle school where I like my mom, like we went to TJ Max and I got like a new skirt for this, like big speaking.
(0:22:18) Courtney: Yeah.
(0:22:18) Brittany: Thing that I had or, I events like, I felt like I was on top of the world, like, even like dancing at, like two years old. Like I did my own makeup. I looked crazy, yeah, but I felt amazing. And my parents did a really good job of allowing me to embrace that. And so when I think about even today, like when I like, curl my hair, I put on an outfit that makes me feel really good, that confident.
(0:22:45) Brittany: It’s like an inner to outer experience. And sometimes that’s more of like an outer to inner experience. And so even with you, it’s always about how we empower women to look and feel their most confident self. And sometimes, yes, you can do all the work, inner that’s super important. Like you mentally have to like feel it, but sometimes like having your makeup done or like putting on a special blazer like that is how you can channel your inner confidence sometimes.
(0:23:15) Brittany: And so with that, for us, like, I know, like I personally like even right now, I like right before this, I was like, I need one of my refresh whites because I stink. And we’re virtual right now, right? But it’s like, how does it make me feel? Like if I can smell myself and I don’t feel really good about it, it’s going to show with our conversation.
(0:23:34) Brittany: So it’s all these little things that we can do or it’s not changing who we are, but setting ourselves up for success. When you feel so good about yourself, that’s when you’re at your most confident. And I’m a big, big believer about that. It’s not like you have to look a certain way based on what society says, that however you channel that confidence for your own self, I think is a really powerful, shift because, you know, you can say, oh, hair, makeup or beauty products are so surface level, the hey, that makes you crushed that meeting or that if it makes you feel so good about yourself that you feel like you can
(0:24:12) Brittany: dominate the world and your dreams can come true, like why not?
(0:24:17) Courtney: Yeah, well, and it’s almost like you’re using all of these, like, expectations that especially you put placed on women to like, look a certain way or whatever, using that kind of to your advantage and be like, yeah, like I do look really good. Yeah. And you’re like, never feel good.
(0:24:33) Brittany: Yeah. And you’re going to lean into it on cheerleader. Like if you rely on other people to be like, oh, you look really pretty today or while you like, right. Crush that meeting today, like you’re only going to get so far. Like you have to channel and do what you like, whether that’s like listening to a certain mantra in the morning or for me, like I have to work out.
(0:24:52) Brittany: It centers me mentally, but I also feel good about myself physically, and it helps me like be like, all right, I’m ready to tackle a day. And when I put a little extra lipstick on or I feel really good about my hair, like it gives you that little like step in your a little, it just gives pick what is it puts a little pep in your body.
(0:25:10) Courtney: Yeah.
(0:25:11) Brittany: Yeah. But a little gap in your stuff. Yeah. Like you like nothing’s going to stop you. And that’s a really powerful feeling to have.
(0:25:18) Courtney: Yeah. It’s kind of like you’re biohacking a little bit. Yeah. Any little incremental change helps.
(0:25:24) Brittany: Like whether it’s like a, you know, your ingrown and or your like smell, your smell or you’re just feeling a little like running off the subway trying to, like, run to a meeting and then, yeah, you have to like, show like present, like, if we can help you with these, like, moments throughout your routine where you’re like, okay, let me to spray myself or mist, take a deep breath.
(0:25:44) Brittany: All right. I’m ready to go like that. Those are the moments in a routine that we’re really focused on, because it’s not just addressing the outer appearance, but it’s like about how you feel. And that’s like our whole thing is like, how do we make you feel more confident? Okay. It’s these little insecurities that we all my experience oh, not talk about a ton that we’re here to help you feel just a little bit more like confident in your day.
(0:26:09) Courtney: Yeah, I love that. I think it’s such a good it’s a good message and I think it’s so relatable. I think that’s probably why customers like get it and like can like understand like what you’re trying to do rather than just another beauty brand. You know.
(0:26:24) Brittany: Brand in the world doesn’t mean just another brand. It’s like, how can you serve just as specific group of people a little bit more intentionally?
(0:26:33) Courtney: Yeah, yeah, I love that. So that’s kind of the vision side of it. But then when you get down to business, ultimately at the end of the day, you are a business woman and balancing the profitability with your brand identity and like bringing in the chemist and having these really unique and and specific formulas that take a really long time to make.
(0:26:53) Courtney: How have you been able to kind of like balance high profitability and make sure that you’re growing the brand in a way that’s actually making money for you?
(0:27:01) Brittany: So it’s funny because similarly with beauty, when I started, we were working out of like equinoxes and trying to do this like quick service concierge. And I’m very quickly realize the quality of stylists I could get at that price point was not aligned with my vision. I wanted people to care about this experience. And also I was like, that’s a volume game.
(0:27:24) Brittany: I want to be competing on quality. And so that’s where we shifted into weddings and special events where people really care about who they’re working with. And so the same thing with that, I was like, I’m not going to just put out a product just to put out our products. It has to be of a certain quality. And when we hit those certain qualities on like, looks like, that means we have to be a premium brand, because I would rather have people who value quality and are willing to pay that price point versus trying to cut corners and be like, okay, like I just need to sell a lot more in order to make this
(0:28:02) Brittany: work. Like I’m always a quality over quantity type of person. And I think that we’re seeing even more and more. I’m willing to invest in a staple piece of clothing that I’ll wear all the time, versus trying to just get a bunch of quick fashion pieces that I can wear once or twice and be done with that. And so I think it just came down to like, what do I value?
(0:28:25) Brittany: And I really like I have so many skin allergy, like I’ve always invested in this and I think invest in yourself. Like if you’re not willing to invest in yourself, then why are we going to try so hard to chase you like we want to invest in women who are men, who are excited to invest in quality products for themselves in all aspects of their life.
(0:28:46) Brittany: And it doesn’t mean, you know, we’re going to be $100. We’re still very much like affordable. Like our wife’s really about $20. Like it’s not. Yeah, absolutely outrageous or unattainable, but based on all the quality formula and everything that we want to do for the brand, it had to be on the premium side.
(0:29:06) Courtney: Right? Right. Well, I mean, ultimately, if you say I want every single person to be my customer, it’s a race to the bottom. And that’s not I don’t work for it.
(0:29:14) Brittany: Exactly, exactly. It’s like, then I’ll just say that with you. Tina was like anyone who might have like, this crazy wedding budget, but really prioritizes weddings. Or someone who does have like this crazy budget was still wants like good quality hair makeup they don’t need like the Kardashians makeup artist right. So I think is finally being very clear on like who you’re targeting and when they do the same thing and someone who maybe like, we have a bunch of college girls who are drawing, they’re they’re not making a salary.
(0:29:42) Brittany: So it’s really someone who’s like saving up their Christmas money or their access money and being like, I want this because it makes like, this is it doesn’t make my skin flare up like, this is worth it. Or you people, you know, women in their 40s who are like, okay, I also want a quality product. And this really works for me as well.
(0:30:00) Brittany: So I think that’s where we come into play of being very mindful of who we’re targeting and aligning our quality to align with that.
(0:30:08) Courtney: Yeah. Well, so that being said, how are you measuring success of B-A? Is it repeat customers? Is it growth year over year? Kind of. How are you looking at the success?
(0:30:21) Brittany: So I think the success that I think is most meaningful is making sure that as we grow, because from the start, I based our products and the brand on our actual cost, like on customers and their insight. And so as we grow, even for our newer products and even our new messaging, like, instead of like looking at, all right, what does the internet like, where’s the gap in the market from an industry perspective, let you go there?
(0:30:46) Brittany: I was like, let’s talk to our customers and see where do they need us? Like where do they, why do they choose us? And like being very curious about our customers. So I think that’s like a big piece for me is like customer insights, where they’re excited to hop on a focus group or a phone call with my team, with myself and give us feedback and then feel like we’re listening.
(0:31:08) Brittany: Like, that is huge. Like that is more than anything. Because if art, if your customers don’t feel like they’re being listened to, you’re not. You might get one repeat order, but then it will stop. And so I think that right now, instead of being so focused on are we need to grow. You know, I definitely have our metrics for our agency partners and for Amazon.
(0:31:28) Brittany: Like we have growth metrics and those are very important. But if you don’t have the fundamentals down where you are really resonating with your customer base, then it’s only going to be time until you do have to force yourself to stop and listen. So that’s probably what we’re right now most focus on. And then as we’ve seen growth in certain channels, then working with our, whether it’s in-house team or the agency partners to figure out, okay, what’s a way to be able to scale responsibly, because profitability for me is like a big metric versus just growth, because we’ve seen that time and time over again where it’s like, oh, we’ve made X amount of
(0:32:11) Brittany: revenue, but what’s your bottom line? And I think that’s where, sure, we can pump money to like hit a certain metric. But I want to grow where I can grow sustainably and be really proud of our margins and our numbers and be able to learn every step of the way versus pouring everything in and hope it works.
(0:32:31) Courtney: Yeah, well, I think that a lot of e-comm brands, there’s kind of like this, like trade off that you have to make where a lot of them start out and they’re like, okay, we need to grow, we need to get enough customers so then we can get repeat purchases. And I think it’s really hard for people to shift from, I need growth, I need customers to when do we start thinking about profitability?
(0:32:51) Courtney: Because at some point you’re going to run out of money no matter how many customers you have. So is there like a moment where you were like, I’m going to focus more on profitability than just pure growth?
(0:33:00) Brittany: Well, the reality is I’m self-funding that. So like I need to be profitable. And I think in the beginning it’s like, you know what? You need an investment, you need to invest, you have to get the customers to get the brand out there to make sure the editors know about your brand. But especially this year, like towards the end of last year, but very much.
(0:33:21) Brittany: And, you know, when you start thinking about your 2025 strategy, I was like, what is our number one theme? And for us it’s like, how do we get more eyeballs that convert on our business? So it’s not just like spending money on events that seem cool, but they have to convert because ultimately profitability, like from the start has been a top priority.
(0:33:40) Brittany: But it’s like now that we’ve invested in top formulas, top quality packaging, getting the right team in place. And you know, that takes money. Now it’s time to be like, all right, before we launch a bunch of different products, let’s let’s think this through. And I love honestly like spending my own money on it, because instead of just throwing products out there every other month or every month, I’m like, wait a minute, do they actually want this product?
(0:34:07) Brittany: If I’m going to bring it to market, how can I make sure is the absolute best product possible? Because it’s very expensive, and so it almost forces you to be a little bit more resourceful and go back to your foundation, go back to your customers and really, really listen. Because you feel that dollar so, so hard.
(0:34:28) Courtney: Yes. Yeah. Well, and I think that’s probably what drives you to be so connected with your customers. I think the way that you talk about your customers is a little bit different than I’ve heard other Ecom founders talk about their customers. Like, I think that you’re doing more check ins and you’re and that that also comes from where how you founded this from happening being so like connected.
(0:34:50) Courtney: So based on that, have you found channels that are just like much more profitable than others, like what are the channels that are working the best for your customers?
(0:35:00) Brittany: So that’s a really good point. And so it’s interesting because even recently, as we were trying to grow and I was like, I know our audience is bigger than what we anticipated. So how do I reach them? And I was going to like different retailers to get their feedback. And I was like, okay, let me talk to all these industry people.
(0:35:20) Brittany: And I found myself being so overwhelmed and so confused because they all had very different, feedback. And I’m like, this is confusing. You have to do it. This way. Because when you’re merchandise, like it has to look like this. And I kind of I really talking about confidence, I really lost my confidence because I was like, people are telling me to go bring that into ten different directions and I don’t know which one.
(0:35:43) Brittany: Right, right. And I see that because right, there is no like I’m the one who has the vision. It’s like my business. So it’s like, which one’s actually right for me. And I had a conversation with someone in the industry and I was like, listen, stop listening to everyone because they have a rear view of what has worked in the past.
(0:36:03) Brittany: Go directly, like go talk to your customers again, like see what they want, like what’s resonating with them. And honestly, ever since I had that check in with myself and like, remembered that. Like, I’m like, why? Like why would I like now I have so much more clarity. And that’s where I think sometimes as you grow, it’s hard to stay so connected.
(0:36:24) Brittany: I mean, we can only do better and better with that. But I love learning from our customers and being so inspired by them. And so ultimately, like a big piece of our our number one channel, which has been insane, is like our Amazon because people feel like they can buy from us directly. They’re learning about us through social or, you know, our website as well, and whether they purchase right on our website or Amazon, like, it makes us feel a little bit more connected versus selling to a retailer and then not having any idea who that person is.
(0:36:59) Brittany: So like DTC will always be the, the, the best, best channel for us. But I think Amazon has been fascinating because their overall strategy for beauty is really, really interesting. They’re not people aren’t going to Amazon just to refill, you know, their products. When people are going there to discover they are using it as a search engine.
(0:37:20) Brittany: And so that’s where we’re trying to if customers are on there every single day, well, why don’t why aren’t we there. And like really trying to be as present and visible as we can on that platform.
(0:37:32) Courtney: Yeah. Well and I think they also use it for like checking your reviews. So like making sure that you have that presence and you’re getting people to kind of everywhere is super important. And as much of a pain as Amazon is where you don’t.
(0:37:46) Brittany: Know the right.
(0:37:47) Courtney: Data and you have to pay so much, it it really is worth it to just be where, where the consumers are and where they’re actually like pulling the trigger and buying.
(0:37:57) Brittany: So yeah. So like that’s what I realized from all the retailers. I always thought, oh, you go into a store and you walk around and you discover new brand. Yeah. No. There, before someone walks into the store, they’re discovering brand on social media and through word of mouth, through their friends, and then they’re checking their reviews or reading through what everyone has to say.
(0:38:17) Brittany: Then they might go on Amazon, then they might go in the store and then be like, oh, let me try this brand. But the education starts so much earlier than even I realize that. It’s like, interesting to see, like how how much education, how many touchpoints there really are before they actually want to even discover you.
(0:38:40) Courtney: Right? Right. And it’s so true for beauty.
(0:38:43) Brittany: Yes. Oh my gosh. Yeah.
(0:38:45) Courtney: So many options. Well, I kind of want to talk a little bit about how you’ve built some really impressive teams. I think beauty you have like 80 stylists, like how, what leadership principles have really stuck with you as you scaled both of these businesses so successfully?
(0:39:03) Brittany: So I think it’s really being self aware as a leader is first and foremost like understanding what I’m good at, what I like doing and then what I don’t like doing. And that being said, it’s like try to like hire to buy back your time is really important. And then finding people who have like a similar work ethic.
(0:39:24) Brittany: So I, I’ve learned that I personally value someone’s like personality and like their work ethic and the qualities of them over who has like the right experience. Because if you are dedicated to figuring it out and learning, you’re going to be way more valuable than someone who comes in and has a certain way of doing things based on past experiences.
(0:39:47) Brittany: So I do very much lean into higher. So yeah, I lean in a lot with hire slowly, fire Fast and being very open. Like I recently, was trying out someone for a role and I was very much like, hey, here’s a role. Like, this is what we’re looking for. And that’s not something that you feel like you want to really focus on.
(0:40:10) Brittany: Maybe it doesn’t align with your forte. That’s okay. But like, we need to be on the same. Let’s get a different role. You know I’m not that’s not we’re not joking. Like exactly.
(0:40:21) Courtney: Literally what I need exact.
(0:40:23) Brittany: And you’re like, no, this is like it’s on, you know, work for me. You know, we we will always we will always operate a startup like you have to be like. You have to be brand obsessed. You have to be like, have a really strong work ethic where it’s not like you just shut off your computer at 5 p.m. and you have to be a good person where you’re willing to be, like, all hands on deck to figure things out.
(0:40:44) Brittany: Because we don’t have these big departments for every area of the business. Like sometimes things and opportunities arise and we together have to, find a solution. And I think if you’re excited about that entrepreneurial spirit, you’re gonna succeed on our teams. But if you want something a more rigid and structured where you’re only responsible for a few different things, we’re not the right fit.
(0:41:08) Brittany: And I think being clear that we’re not the right fit for a lot of people and understanding that we’re probably not the right fit for a lot of people to like, I think it’s like, okay, there’s a lot of people who are not the right fit for us, and there’s a lot of people who think that they’re not the right fit for us.
(0:41:24) Brittany: And I think that’s like the fit piece is just like very it’s not a criticism, but it’s something to be really curious about. And until I feel very confident in the assessments that we’ve seen from them, we won’t, you know, just bring them on. But ultimately it’s like just trial now. And if it doesn’t work, it’s okay, especially if you’re contractors.
(0:41:45) Brittany: Like, it’s easy to be able to be like give a testing period test, learn, see, be honest and then make decision from there.
(0:41:54) Courtney: Yeah, yeah I this is definitely like a challenge for for us and growing our agency where I used to be like, well this person is really smart and they’ve got all these like skills that I, I know we need. So I’m going to like try to bend the agency to fit like what they want. And it never worked.
(0:42:10) Courtney: It always blew up. And they this realization of like not everybody can work for right left agency and that’s that actually.
(0:42:16) Brittany: Yes. Like that was like the hardest thing for me to realize too, is that like, we’re not going to be the right fit for everyone. Yeah. And that’s okay. Like, it’s okay if there’s not another if you try to bend your business to make them fall in love, it’s only going to last a long. And when you’ve anyways.
(0:42:33) Courtney: Yeah. No, that’s so true. It’s so true. And hiring is so hard. People are so challenging. But when you find the right people.
(0:42:41) Brittany: Hold on to them.
(0:42:42) Courtney: Changing. Oh my gosh, huge difference.
(0:42:44) Brittany: So I agree. And when you have a bad egg it’s like it really impacts the rest of the team. So you owe it to your company and you owe it to your team. If someone’s not leveling up as everyone else is, is knowing that it’s time to move in separate direction.
(0:42:59) Courtney: Yeah, let them go find a place where they can level up. You know.
(0:43:02) Brittany: Exactly.
(0:43:03) Courtney: Due to them.
(0:43:04) Brittany: Absolutely.
(0:43:05) Courtney: Yeah. So looking ahead, where do you see Baixa in the next five years?
(0:43:11) Brittany: So we, I have big aspirations. I’m very excited about the pipeline of products that we have. And for us, like, I really believe that we are an array of tools like face and body skincare products that you can seamlessly integrate into your routine, where it’s only leveling you up in your life, and that you can easily pack us wherever you go.
(0:43:35) Brittany: But we can be, you know, in a cold environment. We can be on or on the plane as you leave for your meeting. And just providing like insane products. The dream is we, you know, naturally, we’ll be crushing it in Sephora. That is like the, you know, the North Star. But in addition to that, just, like, doesn’t matter what retailer or like, which channel that we’re there for, but I think just having more women experience our products is probably like my main focus on, like, whatever, wherever you are, we want to find you and we want you to discover via and we want to be there for all of your different life
(0:44:12) Brittany: stages and, wherever you may be.
(0:44:15) Courtney: I love it, I love it, and then looking back, if you could go back to the first day when you were just starting bare, what is one piece of advice you would give yourself?
(0:44:26) Brittany: Give me like be confident in my vision. Yeah, but be flexible with finding the answers. So being able to trust myself that I am onto something is something that I had to learn the hard way. But then being flexible based on opportunities or just like as you learn through your customers or through the process knowing it’s okay. To change and pivot and figure it all out.
(0:44:56) Courtney: Yeah, yeah, I think, the destination’s going to kind of be the same. The vision is just like how you get there. There’s so many different ways of knowing and who who you listen to versus who you kind of take with a grain of salt. Those are the challenging parts, is figuring.
(0:45:13) Brittany: That’s honestly the biggest part is like, I love learning from people and I love absorbing information and insights, which is, I think, a like a really great quality because that’s how we’re learning the same time, having boundaries. I like who you listen to and who you don’t listen to. Shape your perspective because you don’t want to then lose your own vision, your own identity because you’re trying so hard just to make everyone else happy.
(0:45:43) Courtney: Yeah, yeah, very good advice. So, where can people find their online?
(0:45:50) Brittany: You can find Dia at VR Beauty on Instagram and TikTok. And if you have any other follow up questions, I’m Brittany Brie and y l o on both Instagram and TikTok. And you can also find us on major beauty.com as well as Amazon and see different retailers.
(0:46:09) Courtney: Perfect. And we’ll link you on our website. Everything’s people can can find you.
(0:46:13) Brittany: Thank you.
(0:46:14) Courtney: And thank you so much for doing the show. Bringing this is a great conversation. And I feel like a lot of really good insights, for for growth.
(0:46:22) Brittany: I hope so. And thank you so much for having me. I loved chatting with you, and, I can’t wait to do it again soon.
(0:46:29) Courtney: Amazing. And thank you to everyone at home or on the go for listening. And if you enjoyed today’s episode, please make sure to subscribe, share with a friend, leave us a review and if there’s anything that you’d like to hear, just let us know. For more insights, follow us on LinkedIn or visit right Left agency.com and we’ll be back next time with more stories of success, innovation, marketing strategies, to help you grow, please, follow along.
