Tiffany Masterson, Houston Mom Builds A Beauty Empire

Elbow room on retail shelves is not easy to attain in a massive beauty and cosmetic industry.

As reported at statista.com. “In 2016, the global cosmetic market grew an estimated of four percent in comparison to the previous year.

Skincare was the leading category, accounting for about 36 percent of the global market. Skin care has been forecast to remain the most profitable product category, as its market value is projected to grow by 20.1 billion U.S. dollars between 2014 and 2019.”

That being the case, elbow room is one thing but obtaining face time so that people know your brand and the benefits of purchasing it can be a massive challenge in a 20.1 billion dollar industry, especially if you are the new skincare girl on the block.

Discussing it is like having an elephant in the room.

Add to that, a growing number of consumers are rejecting chemical-filled cosmetics for pricey, plant-based alternatives. It’s a thriving sector, one that some experts think could change the beauty industry for good.

While there are a number of ways to try and stand out, creating a name that is easy to remember is paramount.

Give a Chief Creative Officer like Tiffany Masterson credit.

fciwomenswrestling.com femcompetitor.com article, drunkelephant.com photo credit

She came up with a name that virtually none of us will forget.

Why don’t you take a guess? No not that one. Neither of those. Alright, we won’t continue to torture you. Here it is.

Drunk Elephant.

Oh no you didn’t? Oh yes you did read that right.

The beauty and cosmetics site racked.com provides some additional information. “Drunk Elephant has garnered a near-cult following since its launch in 2014 without the help of ads or celebrity co-signs. Instead, the brand has gained buzz thanks to its transparent, no-nonsense approach to skincare, and the fact that it focuses on effective, clinical ingredients over exclusively natural or organic ones — even with natural beauty being one of the most booming categories in skincare.”

On May 30, 2017, the business leaders at Forbes.com enlighten from a financial point of view, “Sales grew 600% to an estimated $30 million last year. Internal projections predict revenue could more than double again by the end of this year.”

Now that’s enough to make a lot of people and elephants have a celebratory drink.

A devoted mother of four from Houston, Tiffany needed to make extra money during the recession, so she started selling a luxury bar of soap from Malaysia in 2009 to sell in the U.S. She soon realized the bar wasn’t good for skin. That led her onto a journey to find better ingredients than used in common beauty products.

Her journey ended in success.

Ecstatic, Ms. Masterson smiles at drunkelephant.com, “Before I developed Drunk Elephant, I had all sorts of skin issues: combo, oily-in-the-T-zone, “sensitive” (or so I thought), occasionally break out prone, out-of-balance, with mild rosacea and visible pores. I was a frustrated, confused brand-hopper searching for a solution. Nothing ever really worked and if it did, it wasn’t for long. I started selling a bar cleanser on the side, while teaching myself about ingredients, how skin reacts to them and what roles each play in a formulation. I identified 6 ingredients that I believed were at the root of my issues. Today I call them the Suspicious 6 because once eliminated, my skin returned to a clear, healthy and balanced state. I couldn’t find products without one or more of the Suspicious 6 so I decided to make them myself.

When skin is exposed to irritants and sensitizers, damage can be imperceptible and cumulative, leaving it in a reactive mode. We believe we have “sensitive” skin, but it’s often really just skin that has become sensitized over time, which is easily addressed.

With D.E. I isolated both great synthetic and natural ingredients that are only there to directly benefit the health of the skin.

I formulated with high percentages of actives at the ideal pH levels, and make sure all the ingredients were easily absorbable and recognized by the skin. The result is a new category of skincare: clean-clinical. It really works. It’s safe.”

The goal of the company is to deliver clean, yet efficacious skin care. The levels of hazardous chemicals and irritants found in everyday products is problematic.

She adds, “Skin care brands generally fall into two categories: Natural and Clinical. Most consumers believe that “all natural” means a product is all good, clean and safe and that “clinical” means it is effective. We want to change the way people view skin care.

Regulations today continue to allow companies in both categories to use harmful, toxic ingredients. Drunk Elephant always aims for its products to be as natural as possible, but it is more important for them to be effective and safe for your skin. So, we consistently formulate with low-hazard ingredients regardless of their “synthetic” or “natural” status. Many companies today are touting the “all natural”, “clean” skincare thing, be we took it a very significant step further than the others. We left out the allergic sensitizers and irritants that the vast majority of brands still contain in the form of natural fragrance, better known as essential oils.”

Very well thought out. All of it.

Okay, but what about the name Drunk Elephant?

fciwomenswrestling.com femcompetitor.com article, pexels.com Nilina photo credit

After they get drunk, do they fight other elephants?

Intoxicated, do they cheat with other elephant’s spouses?

Do elephant couples purposely get each other drunk so that they can make love afterwards?

Do elephants drink and ram, crashing down trees?

In elephant culture do they have to take a timeout away from the herd if they are drunk and run over another elephant?

Searching questions for certain. We’re sure those questions have kept you up all night.

So what about that name anyway? How did Tiffany come up with that one? Had she previously been drinking?

Inquiring minds would like to know.

In her interview with instyle.com she answers that burning question. “As I was choosing ingredients, I came across Marula oil. I loved the way it soaked in and felt on my skin. I went home and googled it and found videos of intoxicated-looking elephants. The myth is that the African animals eat the fallen Marula fruit and become drunk. Probably not true, but certainly made for a catchy, light-hearted name.

I named it Drunk Elephant after polling several friends and family members. Some said “cute, but no way”, while other said “cute and you should totally do it”. Of everyone though, nobody said it wasn’t cute and I knew that adding an edgy vibe would create curiosity and attract attention. For the first year, there were people who tried to get me to change the name. I’m happy today that I didn’t listen.”

So are we Tiffany.

In praise of beautiful healthy skin everywhere……