Painted in youthful zest
ANGELYN Chong, 27, and Celine Bow, 26, are huge beauty fans. But they could not always afford to buy the beauty palettes they covet as they were too expensive.
So, they decided that they would come up with their own range of affordable beauty products.
In 2016, Chong and Bow teamed up with their friends Adam Fayyadh, 27, and Yap Sue Ann, 26, to start their lipstick brand, PAINTed.
“We decided to debut with a matte lipstick collection as it was in trend. We chose the colours carefully so that customers can mix them to suit their skin colours. We also take pride in our sleek packaging because they make nice gifts,” says Bow, adding that they also named their lipsticks after famous artists. So, they had Pinkcasso, Van Brown, Reddy Warhol, Choko Ono, Ai Purpur and Michelangerose.
Bow, who describes herself as a beauty fanatic, says they were all involved in creating their lipstick range.
“We experimented with the ingredients and went through lots of trials and errors before achieving our final product,” shares Bow, adding that the most crucial test was whether they were happy to use their lipsticks.
Adam is working full time on PAINTed but the others are still holding on to their jobs. Each of them invested RM5,000 to launch their line, and the four close friends are committed to making PAINTed a success.
“We are friends but we are very clear on the delegation of our responsibilities as business partners,” says Bow. It’s tough juggling their schedules but it has also been exciting to launch and build their own brand.
The young team was aware that they’d face tough competition but they are also eager to present a range of lipsticks that will appeal to their peers, so that they would be bold to try out new looks.
For now, they are reaching out to their customers and marketing their lipsticks on Instagram, and having a blast growing their business.
“Do not listen to naysayers. If you truly believe in your product, others will do too. Stop trying to get fool-proof plans as it’ll never be 100% and just take action no matter how big or small it is,” says Bow, offering some lessons they have learnt.