We recently connected with Kelsi Ziemann and have shared our conversation below.

Kelsi , appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

I wish I would have started my creative career sooner. 20 years ago being a makeup artist wasn’t viewed as a career. I waited to go on my own for almost 13 years because I was afraid of failing. I was afraid to let go of the security of working for someone else. My biggest piece of advice is to start doing what you are passionate about in whatever capacity you can as soon as you can!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have been working as a makeup artist for over 20 years. I started off working in retail where I fell in love with makeup. I started Kelsi Ziemann Artistry in 2015. Now I have a team of 5 artists. We provide makeup services for weddings, photoshoots, special events and production. We work with over 1,000 clients and over 100 wedding parties a year.

Through my love of makeup artistry I grew interested in creating a line of cosmetics. I listened to every single client to learn what types of products they were looking for or what changes they would make to existing products. I used this research to develop KZA Cosmetics which is a line of vegan and cruelty free lip stains and glosses that stay on and feel comfortable. I also invented a lipstick tube that makes it easier to store and locate coordinating colors of lip stick and lip liner. I was granted two utility patents for this invention and I am still working on producing and manufacturing this item.

I started both of my businesses with the mission to empower women and make people feel look and feel their best. I love connecting with my clients on social media where I can share tips and tricks they can incorporate into their everyday lives to boost confidence and hopefully just make them laugh and smile. At the core of KZA Cosmetics and Kelsi Ziemann Artistry we live by the motto: Be Kind. Add Value. Give Back. We donate 5% of product sales to charitable organizations, programs, animal shelters and more.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One lesson I had to unlearn was forecasting too far into the future. I had several courses that started by taking me through an exercise to map out where I wanted to be in 10 years. I think it’s most important to make smaller goals for the week, month, or even the year and grow from there. They are more realistic and those little goals add up fast to make a big impact for you and your business.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

When I first got the idea to develop my own line of cosmetics I was told over and over again that it’s too competitive and that I wouldn’t be able to do it. I pitched my idea at an entrepreneurship competition in 2015 and made it to the finals but didn’t win. The judges gave the same feedback that everyone else had stating it was too competitive for me to make an impact. I went back to the same competition in 2016 and pitched to the same panel of judges and won! In fact, I went on to participate in a few local entrepreneurship pitch competitions and secured $20,000 to start my business.

I had to learn how to communicate the value of my business. Find any opportunity to pitch your business and get feedback. It will help immensely. You never know who you may meet and it is a great way to network and get involved in the community too.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.kelsiziemann.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelsi.ziemann.artistry/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kelsi.ziemann
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvF9F_ZhEXEEsfPLFMRESbA

Image Credits
Main Photo with full face paint – Kelly Jo Sedivec-Ealy B&W – Paige Peterson Pink line on face – Kelly Jo Sedivec-Ealy Me holding lip stain – Kelly Jo Sedivec-Ealy Group of lip product – Maggie Gulling Lip stain by itself – Rick Lozier