We were lucky to catch up with Samantha C. recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Samantha thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Sra’aem Beauty initially started in 2019 as an avenue to showcase my passion for the beauty industry as a brown skinned, Southeast Asian American woman. Growing up, I did not see any representation of people and celebrities who looked like me on television or in magazines. The struggle to see representation is still ongoing today. By 2020, my small business blossomed into a full range of beauty products. I am proud to be the first Cambodian American woman-owned beauty brand in the United States.

Opening a business has always been one of my life’s goals. My first exposure to business was in middle and high school out of my garage. I braided hair and did fancy hairstyles for a fixed price to my classmates, friends, and neighbors. Then in college between 2007-2008, my sister and I created an urban streetwear inspired t-shirt business that focused on our cultural heritage. We were the first Cambodian American women to create t-shirts at that time which led to our success because we offered something different and unique. Fast forward 12 years to 2019, the business itch came back. Skincare and beauty have always played a huge role in my life. I love that I can showcase my creativity through makeup. Not only that, but I also enjoy hand making natural products to use on my skin. Makeup is a way to enhance my natural features and skin color, not hide it and that to me, is so important.

Samantha, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was born and raised in San Francisco, California to Cambodian refugees. Growing up, we didn’t have much. I remember my parents couldn’t afford to buy my siblings and I Christmas presents, but we were so happy to be given presents from the local toy drive in our neighborhood. My humble beginnings have shaped who I am today as an ambitious, compassionate, motivated, hard worker.

Sra’aem Beauty is more than just a beauty brand, it is a movement. A movement for change and empowerment. Colorism is an issue we see today around the world, even here in our communities. In Asia, fair skin is more desired. Meanwhile, those with darker skin are prejudiced against. My brand’s focus is to empower others to practice self-love and embrace their skin color. We have enough things to worry about, why should the color of our skin be one of them? The products I create are inclusive, providing a wide range of color palettes and shades to cater to all skin-tones. One can find eyeshadow palettes, lipsticks, eyeliners, and eyelashes on my online store.

My brand’s inspiration comes from my cultural heritage. Each eyeshadow palette has a theme and color story in relation to Khmer mythology, history, or culture. I get really excited when I get messages from people of different backgrounds and age-groups telling me how much they appreciate my brand and its inconclusiveness. The positive support drives me to continue to put in the work and make a difference, one person at a time.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Building an audience was not very easy. It takes extra time and effort, especially since I also have a full-time career. When I first created my Instagram account, I only had about 20 followers. Most of them were my family and friends. Now, I can happily say that I have gained over 3,000 followers!

I started off creating simple posts about skincare tips and tricks and showcasing the beauty products I offered. I realized that in order to gain following, I had to produce unique content that stood out from other beauty brands. Eventually, I became better at designing my posts and making them more eye-catching. Later on, what made my social media different from other beauty pages were my educational content about Cambodian beauty, history, and culture. I offered educational information to my followers that many expressed they did not know or learn of. Many of my supporters look forward to learning new things about my Cambodian heritage and that is where I stand out.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

I sell my products through my own website. Having my own online store gives me the ability to customize my page the way I like, allowing me to use specific color schemes, fonts, images, buttons, pages, and links. I find that having my own website, I have to drive my customers in organically, compared to other platforms. One day, I would like to expand to other platforms such as Amazon or Etsy, but as a small business, I am content with my online store for now.

Contact Info:

• Website: sraaembeauty.com
• Instagram: sraaem.beauty
• Facebook: Sra’aem Beauty
• Other: Tik Tok: @sraaembeauty