If you’ve ever Googled ‘non-invasive lip plumper’ chances are you’ve come ‘face-to-screen’ with the name Huda Kattan. But if you’re a beauty junkie, it’s highly probable that you didn’t need to Google it. You would’ve known without batting a perfectly made-up eyelid that Huda’s Instagram page will have all the answers. The Dubai-based entrepreneur who grew up in America is the highest paid social media influencer and was named by Forbes as one of the most influential people on the Internet, alongside names like Kim Kardashian. The best example of a social media celebrity who turned her fame to fortune, Huda was first a blogger before becoming the beauty moghul as she is known today. This month, Huda will launch her brand Huda Beauty in India through Nykaa.com.
Back to the start
“I got into beauty at a young age and was fascinated by how simple tricks can transform your look, and the way you feel about yourself,” says Huda whose nifty hacks and beauty tutorials are a huge hit on Instagram. Having launched with a line of false eyelashes, the brand now offers eyeshadow and highlighter palettes and lip sets.
Huda takes us back to how it all began. “Being a hairy woman, my first beauty product was a pair of Tweezerman tweezers. Once I learnt how to shape my brows and saw the difference it can make to my face and the harmony of everything, I was fascinated! I then got into makeup and by the time I was 14, I was wearing a full face of makeup to school every day, including false lashes,” she reveals.
But Huda Beauty is not the place for everyday products such as lip liner and lip gloss. At the Dubai-based beauty brand, you don’t simply use a lip liner, but a lip contour. And lipgloss is replaced with lip strobe. One look at the pictures of the products on their website and you’ll be convinced that they aren’t just fancy names but actually live up to their monikers.
Lash about
While Huda’s tryst with beauty began at 14, it was not until much later that her brand was born. “Being a makeup artist and working on clients, I was never satisfied with the style and quality of false lashes that were available at that time. To get the look I wanted, I often ended up stacking and customising the lashes myself to suit the client’s eye shape. After receiving several enquiries about the lashes I had customised, my sister Mona suggested I start my own line which I hand-designed myself. The brand later launched at Sephora in Dubai Mall in February 2013,” recalls Huda.
With over 23 million followers on Instagram, Huda doesn’t take her potential to influence beauty trends lightly. She is careful not to put out too many sponsored posts and doesn’t shy away from talking about and recommending products from other brands. “I feel so honoured and it’s a role I take very seriously. I think it comes with great responsibility to share my knowledge of beauty products and, as a brand owner, to create products that will help shape the beauty industry,” she shares.
Shadow play
While the brand continues to sell its game changing false lashes (some made from cruelty-free mink fur), their collection of eye shadow palettes is currently one of their most popular products. “The Huda Beauty Desert Dusk Eyeshadow Palette is perfect for getting dramatic and mysterious looks. False lashes are a definite must-have! Huda Beauty lashes in Farah #12 are my ride-or-die lashes. They can be re-worn up to 15 times if they are cared for properly. Our Liquid Matte lip colour in Heartbreaker is really popular and it’s a shade that complements darker skin tones well,” shares Huda adding that she also recommends their new #FauxFilter Foundation for flawless matte complexion with a ‘skin-like finish’, and their Lip Contour in Trendsetter.
What makes the Huda Beauty a runaway hit, is Huda’s ability to predict what will be a rage even before it becomes a trend. For instance, she introduced her lip strobes when the rest of the world was obsessing over matte lips and launched her textured rose gold eyeshadow range even before the colour started trending. “I can’t do anything unless I have a vision and different forms of media really help inspire me. Travelling really inspires me too – that’s where I get the best ideas for product development and content,” she says in conclusion.