Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Raymond.
Karen, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
MakeupSincere started in 2015 after I gave birth. It was a stress reliever for me. The two things I couldn’t pry myself away from were my son and makeup. I did a friend’s makeup as a favor and the photo went viral on Facebook. Within two days, I was completely booked out for months.
I took it upon myself to get the education needed to provide the professional services I know my beauty queens would love. I learned different skin tones and textures as well as types of skin and the different effects makeup can cause depending on what skin type you have. While applying lipstick to a bride, her lipstick kept smudging and not giving me the flawless mattifying look, so I executed my vision in starting my own long lasting, non-smudging, ultra-matte lipstick line “MakeupSincere”. With a cash advance and check from my regular 9-5 job, I began ordering samples and trying different ingredients to help MakeupSincere have that special finishing touch. After long months of research with a host of trials and errors, I finally hit the jackpot!
I now host Pop Up Shops, entrepreneurial link ups, and Make up classes to help other brands expand and to help those who are interested in this industry. I have a YouTube following of 38.8K and over 1M views, where I discuss makeup tips, life changes, and storytimes. My goal is to get as much exposure and growth to our small businesses so we can become multimillion-dollar companies. We have to help each other….so why not start now?
“Love of beauty is taste, the creation of beauty is Art” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. The biggest struggle was blindly starting a business solely off of passion and not being educated. You lose money. For example, I got an LLC which I do not recommend for someone who doesn’t have employees (for tax purposes). I began taking classes to obtain an associates in business to grow my knowledge. The goal is to make a money and have a successful business not lose money.
Please tell us about MakeupSincere.
My personality is my work. My motto is “It’s all in the lips” bold looks or even soft ombre combinations will be sure to have all eyes on you. I specialize is in soft natural looks with a little bit of sassy. You know, “keep it cute sis”. My lipsticks are EVERYTHING proof, no smearing, no lipstick stains left behind so even the men can appreciate it.
Do you think there are structural or other barriers impeding the emergence of more female leaders?
The biggest barrier to me across the board is competition. There are trillions of people in this world. There is enough money and clients for everyone. That is why I have these classes and I share resources, so we all can grow. Everyone has different techniques, clients, and special reasons why people support them, Continue to be yourself, if you must compete, compete with yourself. That’s a battle you cannot loose and you can’t do anything except flourish.
Pricing:
- 75$ Full Glam (everything included)
Contact Info:
- Address: 2700 W Oakland Park Blvd. Oakland park Fl 33317
- Website: www.makeupsincere.com
- Phone: 954-918-4043
- Email: makeupsincere@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/makeupsincere
- Facebook: facebook.com/makeupsincerellc
- Other: email: Karen@makeupsincere.com
Image Credit:
Photo By: Team A-Lit Photography
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