Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Manda Carco Roy. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Manda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?

I want to be remembered for the way I make people feel.

I take pride in helping people feel seen AND heard. I’m a safe place for people to be themselves, to talk about their hopes and dreams, their past “baggage”, their fears, their biggest accomplishments and anything else you can imagine.

I truly love to hear peoples stories and when people are around me they just feel safe to tell me everything. it’s a strange and beautiful gift that I’ve had since I was young, I just didn’t realize it until I was older. Add a makeup chair to the mix and the vibes are even stronger.

It’s just a bonus is that I get to also help them see how beautiful they are, if they don’t already know. I got into the business of makeup because I loved playing with makeup and doing hair. I am still in the beauty industry today because of my love for people from all walks of life, from all over the globe. For the connection.

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’m the rockstar owner and lead artist at MandaMonium Hair + Makeup Artists. I’ve been a fan of makeup since I was a little girl watching my mom do her hair and makeup in the bathroom mirror in the 80s. I loved seeing her curl and feather her hair and add a swipe of shadow and blue liner to her eyes. It was mesmerizing!

When I was about 11 years old my foster sister Barbara came to live with us and she introduced me to the world of liquid eyeliner. She showed me some tips and tricks and I would sit on my dresser in the mirror for hours putting it on and wiping it off until I could get it right.

I also started dancing at 3, so I was very used to needing to wear a lot of makeup to be seen from the stage. For a long time, I thought I would be a dancer forever, and that would be my career, but my plans got sidetracked after a car accident in high school. I also did a bit of modeling and took a class on makeup for photography which I loved. I didn’t know “makeup artist” was a job, so off I went to college after high school to study computers.

That did NOT work out, obviously, and soon after doing makeup as my full-time career sort of fell into my lap, or was forced on me (with love). While doing some modeling for local photographers I met a woman named, Pia, who was so incredibly supportive of me in all things creative. She loved the way I did makeup on myself for our shoots and asked me to do makeup for one of her other clients. I said, “No way”, and she said, “I will see you Sunday!”. That day I did makeup on my first client who was a complete stranger. I was so nervous leading up to it, but the moment I started working on that woman it felt like everything around me got quiet and my anxiety was suddenly gone, and it felt like the world made sense. So cheesy, but it’s true.

I have since worked in just about every aspect of life where makeup and hair are involved. I have done makeup for babies for commercials, and some of the oldest people in the world for documentaries, movies, magazines, photoshoots, and weddings. I can work on anyone you put in front of me, all skin tones, and hair textures. I can do completely natural makeup that looks like you have nothing on at all, full dramatic glam makeup, and even some pretty cool special effects.

My favorite makeup style is the one I work with my clients to create, something that I love doing and that they love seeing on themselves.

I’m most proud of my “little” business that I’ve grown over the past 24 years. We’re a small but mighty group of artists and we’re passionate about making our clients feel like the best version of themselves.

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

Oooooh man, like so many others 2020 almost broke me. Up until then, I was very content with just making “enough to survive and get by”. I believed that since I had a job I loved that I should not charge a lot of money to do it. I was very much in a place where I let my own money blocks get in the way of my business. I started to work on that a few years before when I realized I wanted to own a home, and no way would happen if I kept on the path I was on. I never in a million years thought I would not be allowed to work for months, without much of a savings at all.

I started networking more than ever online, in various Facebook groups that I had already been in, but we had way more time to connect virtually. In particular one of my besties, Beth, started her own business group on Facebook to keep us all sane and we would meet in Zoom once a week and all share ideas on how to get through.

I took a lot of classes, I read a lot of books, and I was determined that my business was going to grow more than ever on the other side of this. It has, and I’m so incredibly grateful for it.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I learned to do makeup before YouTube existed, and I wasn’t in a position to be able to go to one of the few makeup schools in the country so I picked up every single book written by Kevyn Aucoin. In particular, The Art of Makeup is one every makeup artist, aspiring artists, and seasoned pros alike, should have in their library.

Profit First by Mike Michalowicz – This is a must-read for anyone who runs a business. Makeup artists and beauty pros I’ve known have a really hard time with the business side of this career, but it is a business and needs to be treated like one.

Think Again by Adam Grant – This was an eye-opener of a book that encourages you to rethink your preconceived notions and belief systems and disconnect your thoughts from your own identity. I think when someone works closely with many people with different personalities and backgrounds it’s helpful to keep that kind of open mind.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mandamonium.co
• Instagram: instagram.com/mandamoniumMUA
• Facebook: Facebook.com/mandamoniumMUA
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mandamoniummua
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MandaMoniumMUA

Image Credits
Zev Fisher Kayla Teeves of Monarch Collaborative Susie Boston Photography Tammy Davison Photography Robin Terhune Photography Modern Muse Boudoir