We recently connected with Kelly Williams and have shared our conversation below.

Kelly, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright, so we’d love to hear about how you got your first client or customer. What’s the story?

Before COVID-19, we had decided to bring our product to life. We worked on our logo, packaging, product ingredients, and marketing strategies. Then, boom, COVID-19 hit, and my job as a makeup artist came to a halt. I was only working two days a month, monitoring products and setting up the talent’s makeup so they could do it themselves.

Once that happened, we realized we needed to use the time to launch Skinshine Beauty! We had our packaging, ingredients, pricing, and website via Shopify all ready to go. We gave all female talent bottles of our Body Blush as gifts, wanting them to enjoy an all-natural product. As anchorwomen, we knew they could use it on their legs, especially since they often wear dresses and need a product that moisturizes their legs.

Our first sales were a complete surprise! Approximately 6:30 am one morning I was awakened by the Instagram follower notification bell. Ping, ping, ping—the sound of new Instagram followers. The pings were back to back. I woke up to a plethora of new Instagram followers and wondered why it was happening. I quickly investigated and realized that one of our female anchors on the KTLA 5 Morning News had mentioned that the makeup artists were no longer able to apply makeup to the anchors. They also mentioned that their makeup artists, Kelly Williams and Suzanna Melendez, had come out with an all-natural body oil called Skinshine Beauty Body Blush. That brief mention on the show created our first 101 orders of Skinshine Beauty Body Blush.

Thankfully, I had set up an account on Shopify to process our orders! Shortly after being woken up to the pings of Instagram followers, the cha-ching sound on my Shopify app started sounding. Orders were being placed back to back! That sound gave me happy chills all over my body, and to this day, when I hear an order being placed, I get the most exciting chills over that beautiful sound of cha-ching!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have always harbored a dream of owning my own business, and after spending 25+ years as a makeup artist, painting faces at KTLA 5 Morning News in Los Angeles, I decided it was time to pursue that dream. Throughout my career, my fascination with beauty and skincare products has been unwavering. Even as a child, I was diligent about moisturizing my skin daily with lotions, creams, and oils to keep it well-hydrated.

As a female founder with extensive experience as a celebrity makeup artist, I have accumulated a wealth of knowledge about different skin types and tones. The journey to becoming an entrepreneur began when my business partner, who is also an esthetician, introduced me to an incredible body oil potion. After trying it and experiencing its remarkable effects on my skin without any harsh chemicals, I was instantly enamored. We realized that this all-natural body oil had the potential to benefit many others as well.

With a shared passion for healthy, hydrated skin, we created Skinshine Beauty Body Blush, with the vision of providing people with a safe and all-natural body oil that doesn’t leave a greasy feeling. Our central belief is that hydration is not only vital for healthy skin but also for overall well-being. We are dedicated to helping people nourish their skin with clean and natural skincare solutions.

I am most proud of our mission, “to confidently help people hydrate and nourish their skin with clean and safe ingredients.” With that mission, we have made a point to give back. We have shown support in our community by donating our products to a residential home for girls who come from underserved backgrounds. We also plan to partner with schools and youth programs to introduce the importance of hygiene and using clean and safe ingredients for the skin to school-age and preteen children.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Each time I hit a hurdle, I used my tenacity to get past it. My largest hurdle to leap over was to compete in a pitch deck competition sponsored by the National Urban League and Courvoisier. What made this such a challenging hurdle was dealing with a MRSA staph infection. On my way to the hospital, I received a phone call from the Los Angeles Urban League asking if I would be available to take part in the pitch deck competition, scheduled to take place in a week.

Despite being in extreme pain, I thought to myself, “Yes, I need this opportunity to keep my business afloat.” I told them that I would love to participate, not knowing if I would even be able to physically compete. I took a chance and committed to the competition. Long story short, I ended up in the hospital for three days. I got out of the hospital that Sunday and had to continue to recover for the next two days. I then prepared my pitch deck and practiced like there was no tomorrow for the competition held two days later.

On the day of the competition, I went back to work bright and early. My shift at KTLA 5 starts at 2:45 am. After work, I hunkered down in an Airbnb to prepare for the competition and nap. Everything came together! It was an amazing event held at the Urban League in Los Angeles. I ended up coming in 3rd place and was awarded a $10,000.00 grant!

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

My favorite sales story goes back to a similar narrative of how Skinshine Beauty was launched. Last Valentine’s Day, Skinshine Beauty Body Blush was featured on KTLA 5’s show, Off The Clock. We were showcased as a favorite gift for Valentine’s Day.

I knew ahead of time when the segment would air. I prepared oil, filled bottles, and ensured I had enough shipping supplies. It was 2 pm on the day the show would air. They introduced our Body Blush on the show, and the “cha-ching” sound from the Shopify app was going off constantly. I was soooo excited!! Orders were pouring in!!

Suddenly, it dawned on me that I needed to make sure all orders would be received in time for Valentine’s Day. There were about 15 orders that, if shipped, would not reach their destination in time. I realized I needed to ensure every customer received their order by Valentine’s Day to allow them to gift it to their loved ones.

So I decided to map out all the deliveries starting at the crack of dawn and drove as far North as Camarillo, CA, and as far East as Perris, CA. It was fascinating to see where many of the viewers and our customers lived. The one delivery that I'll never forget was to a home on a farm property with goats, chickens, and sheep. The driveway was very long, and at first, I thought I could drive up the dirt driveway to drop off the order. Then I suddenly realized I didn’t know what would meet me at the top of that long driveway, so I decided to leave the order at the end of the driveway. I called the customer and let them know.

At the end of this very interesting day, I was satisfied knowing that all of my customers were served. I was one happy business owner! The most rewarding part of being a business owner is providing customer service and making my customers happy. For me, yes, it is important to bring in sales; however, the real reward is making the customer happy and receiving positive feedback from our customers who love our product!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://skinshinebeautystore.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skinshinebeauty1/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SkinshineBeauty1
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skinshine-beauty-store/?viewAsMember=true