Today we’d like to introduce you to Destiny Harris.
Destiny, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
It all started in Wilma Rudolph Hall’s dormitory at The Illustrious Tennessee State University. In 2018, I began attending Tennessee State University, majoring in biological sciences. For years I’ve had dreams of owning my very own cosmetics business. However, I never knew the proper steps to do something so big like that. One day I was sitting in my dorm room just thinking about ways to achieve this dream of mine. I started to research how to make my own cosmetics products and where I could get empty lip gloss tubes and just different materials, I’d need to make these products. I found a few different websites with the materials I needed, so I ordered them. When they came, I began trying to make lip gloss, and I failed terribly. Although I failed, I was so happy that I started; I even attempted to do it had me even more motivated. After that day, I knew I was going to own my own business. The next step was trying to find the perfect name for my brand. I knew I wanted my brand to be built on inspiration, so I decided to look up words meant to inspire. I found the word “Charismatic,” and I said, “omg, my name will be Charismatic Cosmetics.” After finding the name, I said wow, now it’s time to make it official, and I want to get an LLC. However, at this time, I was still in school, and I didn’t have a job that could help me afford to pay for my LLC, materials and survive as a college student. But that didn’t hold me back, I joined many mentoring and tutoring programs at school that paid me a stipend, and I began saving my money. After my first year of college, I dedicated my entire summer to working and saving up. I saved up so much money I eventually was able to buy my LLC and all the products/materials I needed before my fall semester of college in 2019. By this time, I had improved on making my lip gloss products, and I was so amazed by my growth that I couldn’t stop. I was working throughout the summer making all different shades of lip gloss. By the time I went back to school, I had so much lip gloss in my dorm room. The only difference now was that it was hard to strictly focus on my business when I had to make sure my grades were immaculate. So, I decided to work extremely hard in my classes on the weekdays, and my weekends were for making lip gloss in my dorm. I eventually set my launch date on my birthday, September 28, 2019, but things didn’t go as planned. I didn’t feel ready, and I didn’t want to rush it. I know there will never be a perfect time, but I just wanted to prepare myself a little more. After pushing back my launch date, I began putting many different things in place for the new launch date, January 1, 2020. I bought materials for an at-home photoshoot, I got a logo designed for my business, and I began finding the perfect platform for my website. I didn’t have a blueprint for any of this, so I was learning as I went. I decided to do an at-home photoshoot in the basement with a few family members on my iPhone on Christmas break. I wanted to save as much money as I could for inventory, so I had to do many things myself. The shoot turned out amazing, especially for it to be my first one on an iPhone. After my shoot was completed, it went on time! I began working on my website every day until it was launch day. Once launch day was here, I was so nervous but excited for the world to see my business. After launching on January 1, 2020, I sold out within a few days. I was so happy and in shock. I couldn’t believe I received so much support and love. When I returned to school after Christmas Break, I had so many customers to advertise to at the university. I even begin participating in pop-up shop events to advertise my business and sell my products. It was such an amazing experience to sell myself to those at my school. However, after a few months of launching, there were a few setbacks due to the pandemic. During this time, I learned how to adjust and keep my business going. I continued to advertise, drop new collections with creative photoshoots, and promote my business on social media platforms. During the entire year of 2020, it was a roller coaster being an entrepreneur and a college student, but I kept going! I used 2020 as my year to prepare to go bigger for 2021 and expand the variety of cosmetics products I had to offer. At the end of the year, I decided to give away all my old products to the Women’s Shelter in Cleveland, Ohio, before the new year came in. Once 2021 was here, I had more than just lip gloss with sticker labels on them. I also had lip gloss with my logo stamped on them, vegan-based lipsticks, and lip liners. I saw my brand transform, and the quality of my products began to get better and better. Fast forward to now, I have sold over 500+ lip glosses, launched more creative collections, created many more lip gloss shades, had a variety of photoshoots, and continued to innovate my brand for the better. My brand is built on inspiration, and I want to continue to “Inspire Through Cosmetics.”
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, it has not been a smooth road. Being an entrepreneur comes with so much, and I always tell myself that I have to keep going. The world is constantly changing, and learning how to adjust can be very challenging at times. One thing I would say I struggled with was time management. When I launched my business, I was still an undergraduate student at Tennessee State University. It was hard making time for my business, doing an internship, having a social life, and maintaining a 3.6 GPA. I was always busy and felt like I wasn’t doing enough for my business. It was hard trying to excel at school and grow my business simultaneously. I felt like I put so much pressure on myself to succeed at everything I was doing. I had to tell myself that success does not happen overnight. I had to learn how to enjoy the process.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Charismatic Cosmetics?
Charismatic Cosmetics is a vegan-based & cruelty-free beauty brand built on inspiration. I want the world to know that I created Charismatic Cosmetics to inspire everyone, specifically through cosmetics. Beauty products have such a significant effect on how we feel about ourselves; they make us feel beautiful, they encourage us to dress up and look good for ourselves! I want my products to make people feel good about themselves; I want them to put on some lip gloss and feel inspired to go out and show the world their pretty face! I want my brand to be an inspiration to those that want to create a business for themselves. I want them to see how you don’t need a blueprint to create a dream you want for yourself. I specialize in creating excellent quality, highly pigmented, vegan & cruelty-free cosmetics. I am known for being inspirational. I’ve faced so much adversity growing up, but I never let the adversity I faced stop my dreams and aspirations. I want to show those young girls that want to have their own business that they can do anything. I want someone to look at me and say I am why they didn’t quit. My ability to innovate and create new ideas for my brand sets me apart from others; I don’t keep my brand in a bubble. I like to think outside the box and bring something new every season. Also, my brand was not just created to sell cosmetics; it was designed to inspire people in any way possible genuinely. I am most proud of the continuous innovation of my brand. My brand is always coming with something new and better than before. I love the process of actually growing my brand and creating things I never made before.
What do you think about luck?
Good luck has played a significant role in my life. Growing up in poverty, I never imagined getting this far in life. I’ve always looked at good luck as if it was a blessing. I feel as though I’ve been blessed with many opportunities. I was fortunate to be accepted into a Historically Black College University, and I was blessed to be able to graduate from Tennessee State University within three years instead of four. I was blessed to gain knowledge through these past years to continue the growth of my business. The good luck I’ve received has helped me get further to the success I’ve wanted my entire life. However, there are times when I feel like I’ve encountered bad luck, but I don’t look at obstacles as bad luck. I look at an unfortunate event as a blessing in disguise. Changing how I view unlucky events has helped me keep going through many hard times.
Contact Info:
- Email: Charismaticcosmeticsllc@gmail.com
- Website: Charismaticcosmetics.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charismaticcosmeticsllc/?hl=en
Image Credits
@Dricolamar
@Dpledgerphotography
