Beauty with Top Girlbosses in the Industry |

Beauty is such a hot topic nowadays. From makeup to skincare to hair the beauty industry is huge, and only getting bigger. Beauty trends are constantly changing. With the changing trends comes thousands of new product releases. It can be so difficult to decipher what trends and products are great, and which fall flat. It is so important to learn about what products work for you, and take advice from experts in the field to stay up-to-date on all the beauty must-haves. With the help of three beauty experts and girlbosses, we have insight on all things beauty for today and the future.

Expert Q&A

We talked to three of the beauty industry’s girlbosses to get the scoop on skincare, makeup, hair and more. Jillian Wright, a facialist for over 18 years and the Founder of Indie Beauty Expo. Mora Namdar an attorney and founder / owner of BAM Beauty Bar in Dallas. And, Maya Crothers, founder of CIRCCELL, a carefully formulated skincare line. Check out everything these amazing women have to share!

Jillian Wright, Founder of Indie Beauty Expo

What made you want to start Indie Beauty Expo?

Indie Beauty Expo was born out of frustration after I launched my own skincare line. When I started my search to find the best place to showcase my brand, none of the shows or platforms resonated with me enough to spend the money to purchase space at a show. My goal was to meet high level retailers and press. I was an amateur at this point and the lack of customer service from the shows I did approach made me feel that all they wanted was my money. What I needed was guidance. One day while walking across Madison Avenue to my spa I thought, “I’m going to do my own show, one that’s right for people like me.”

This is when the vision came to me with Tata Harper, Lotus Wei, Kahina Giving Beauty, Tracie Martyn all in one room— I said to myself, “This is my tribe.” This type of event, something focused on luxury indie beauty, is what I wanted to be a part of. These are the type of people I want to share space with, learn from and be inspired by. It’s one thing to have an idea but another to execute it. I knew I couldn’t do it alone. I asked my then client, Nader Naeymi-Rad, if he wanted to do the expo with me and without any hesitation he said, “yes”. So within 6 months, we produced our first ever Indie Beauty Expo at the Altman Building in NYC. We had 80 brands that exhibited, a packed house. Needless to say, we had proof of concept in 2015.

Indie Beauty Expo Now

Fast forward to 2018, we will have finished the year with over 600 brands exhibiting with us across all our geographical locations. That number will only increase as we add more shows around the world.

I truly believe that the last 18 years of my career was the catalyst for starting IBE and ultimately, the Indie Beauty Media Group. Now, we have 3 domestic shows in NYC, Dallas and LA. We are about to have our inaugural IBE in London, October 24th and 25th. In March of 2019, we are heading to Berlin, Germany. We’ve also launched the digital publication Beauty Independent, and BeautyX Summit which is our educational platform for the beauty entrepreneur. Through Beauty Independent, we have introduced Uplink to our subscribers which connects brand founders with service providers (from packaging, distribution, lab, copywriting, web designers, etc.).

Wherever there is an unmet need, we fill it. We are a self-sustaining ecosystem for the beauty entrepreneur. We want to make scaling a business easier, as it’s very laborious and can suck the life out of a brand and drain a lot of money.

What drives you?

The power of community drives me. The ability to build a positive movement that has a kaleidoscope of benefits to not only people, but to our beloved environment, drives me. I love empowering small businesses and the people behind them. I want to know that what I am doing is creating a domino effect in the beauty industry, to help educate people to be more thoughtful and to think deeper to address the life cycle of a brand from where the ingredients are grown, to how it is formulated, to what resources are used in the process, how it is packaged and how it is disposed of.

My goal is to get better made beauty into the hands of more people from a local perspective. What this means is more local sales, more community driven events, conversations, and a commitment to “use less and love more”, as Jeannie Jarnot from Beauty-Heroes would say. We have a profound responsibility to reevaluate our lives and how we consume. I guess you could call it conscious empowerment!

What is your holy grail beauty/skincare product?

I am fortunate enough to be able to try many different and wonderful products. Since, I am surrounded by them at work and each and every one inspires me and my drive to expand our company to help them.

I follow a very strict morning and night regimen, and I never touch my face during the day. Sunscreen is on my face no matter what. I wash my face 2x a day and exfoliate 1-2x a week. I use eye cream and serum religiously. Along with, a day moisturizer and a night moisturizer as well. They are different because during the day you need anti-oxidant and anti-pollution protection. At night, you need more reparative ingredients like naturally derived vitamin A and plant stem cells. I will have to admit, I like to keep my nighttime regimen simple. I typically use eye cream and an oil or moisturizer and that’s it.

What do you see as the future of beauty and skincare?

I can only control my universe and what I see is people embracing indie beauty in away that is becoming second nature and not a second guess. I am a firm believer in building people up and not taking away from them. We live our lives based on fear or love. Think about every decision you make, every thought you have, it is based on one or the other. Our collective voice can create more love, and positive action that will create a better way to run a business, scale a business and become successful. #weareindiebeauty

Dying to know more about Indie Beauty Expo? Check it out at indiebeautyexpo.com. And if you want a recap from one of their fabulous events, read our blog on the Dallas Expo here.

Mora Namdar Owner of BAM Beauty Bar

What made you want to start BAM?

As an attorney, my work is very gratifying in many ways. I love helping clients achieve their goals and it is a great outlet for my analytical side. However, I have always loved to paint, study fine art and the art of beauty. It has been a passion of mine. When I was in law school and so many of my friends started to get married, they would always ask me to help them with their makeup for their weddings. It occurred to me that there was a demand for a gorgeous, chic, sophisticated place where women can get their hair and makeup done professionally for any occasion (without charging an arm and a leg). This is when the idea for BAM hit me and I decided to make this idea become a reality.

What drives you?

I grew up knowing how lucky I am to have been afforded the opportunities I have been given and the need to be successful in whatever I put my mind to in order to give back and pay it forward drives me. I believe deeply in the virtues of helping other people and using whatever skills and talents you have been blessed with to make a positive impact on those around you. In a nutshell, I love helping people, whether that means through a legal process or helping them feel beautiful on a special day.

What is your holy grail beauty/skincare product?

I love all of BAM’s products. They truly are top-of-the-line, hypoallergenic, non-animal tested, and amazing products as far as being blend-able, build-able and beautiful. The best skin care product/holy grail secret I have is not a product at all, its a mantra my grandmother taught me, and that is to “protect your skin”. Whether that means protection from the sun/elements with SPF, (or a hat, umbrella, sunglasses etc…), from bad products (never use cheaply made or questionably produced products on your skin as the ramifications are just not worth it), and to understand that what happens inside your body has a direct result on outside your body so drink plenty of water, avoid substances that age you and cause havoc on your health.

What do you see as the future of beauty and skincare?

I believe the future of beauty and skincare is to get more and more personalized and quality products to the consumer. People are paying more attention to what is in their products, how and where they are made and if they are cruelty free or not. I believe the future of beauty is better quality and more cruelty free products.

See everything BAM has to offer and schedule your appointment today on bambeautybar.com

Maya Crothers Founder of CIRCCELL

What made you want to get into the beauty/skincare industry?

I’ve always been a skincare junkie. My family and I moved from Dallas to the small mountain town of Jackson Hole, WY. The climate combined with the lifestyle (constantly outside) in JH destroyed my skin. I couldn’t find anything to perform under the extreme conditions. One thing led to another and somehow I ended up with a skincare brand. It was not planned or part of any lifelong dream.

What drives you?

Running a business is like managing a constant stream of puzzles that need to be figured out. Some are easy and can be checked off the list with little effort….and some demand almost super computing levels of analysis and iterations not to mention large amounts of time and capital. These puzzles constantly taunt me! I just keep working on them until the puzzles are solved.

What is your holy grail beauty/skincare product?

Soooooo hard to answer with just one product! Our Dew Perfector is pretty amazing. It hydrates, nourishes, soothes, exfoliates, controls acne….jack of all trades and master of all of them!

What do you see as the future of beauty and skincare?

I envision more and better natural alternatives for preserving, chelating, emulsifying and enhancing texture. Today’s customer is so savvy about what they should not be putting on their skin…and the ingredient companies are responding with technologies to meet market demand. I also envision the continuation of the growth of the smaller, founder owned brands. Today’s customer loves to discover new brands with passion behind them. This proliferation of brands means more choices than ever for the consumer.

Must Haves

Photo by Bob Manzano

Here at KF, there are a few products that we can not live without. Along with that there are a few things KF always does to ensure she looks fabulous. She can’t live without Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara, Dior skin products, highlighter and glycolic treatments. And you can’t forget a little plumping gloss! We have found that finding your holy grail products is the best way to ensure you’re always happy and confident in your skin!

Photo by Bob Manzano

Check out some of KF’s holy grail skincare and makeup products that we couldn’t live with out!