5 tips to start a business in the beauty sector

Before we launched our beauty brand, I reviewed beauty products on my blog. While I enjoyed reviewing these products, I did notice a visible difference in similar products offered by different brands. I also found that some brand claims were far from the actual outcome. Over the years, I saw many beauty companies come and go. I was assessing, consuming, and filtering through a lot of industry information. This process allowed me to observe the habits of successful companies and the uniqueness of their products, and also taught me at an early stage about what works and what doesn’t.. Here are some tips that can help steer you in the right direction:

Have a plan

This one is a must: have a plan. A detailed plan will help wrestle with challenges and identify the alternate opportunities that lie ahead. Keep in mind that as important as it is to have a plan, it’s equally essential for it to be flexible enough to pivot when needed. I cannot stress enough the importance of having a plan that is regularly reviewed. It also helps to remind you of your goals and see how much you have achieved.

Establish a niche

You must develop good-quality products and must simultaneously identify your niche. The importance of quality — be it in product or service — cannot be overemphasised. The product should be of the right quality, and should be safe and reliable. The niche helps you win a specific part of the market who will love your product/brand and spread goodwill. This niche will help differentiate the product from others and establish a unique identity.

Focus on quality over quantity

When you are making something from scratch it takes more time, energy, and resources. Don’t be in a rush to start your business; instead, take your time, be creative, add your own touch to it, make it your own, and I promise you will not fail.

Keep up with regulations and trends

The unglamorous side of launching a beauty brand is the approvals, permits, accounting, and spreadsheets involved, but again, they are as essential as finances. It’s much better to get these things in order before any allegations or negative feedback strike you.

Have faith in your product

Sales is not easy. Sorry, but you are not going to start making huge sales from day one unless you are already very famous or you have a monster marketing budget. Don’t panic; you are going to get there once people trust your brand and your product. Word of mouth is the major key to success; your consumers are going to bring you the majority of future sales, so keep them happy and wanting more. Once you have earned a good reputation in the market, you will get success no matter what. Until then, have patience and stay focused on making people aware of your product.

Apart from the above, one of the most crucial things to consider in the beauty industry is:

Hidden costs of the cosmetics business:

While making a product for your own brand seems exciting and you seem to have the costs under control, product development expenses are still to come. If you are serious about running a cosmetics business, you MUST test your products to ensure they are safe and effective. Testing is a must. It can be a little pricey to start out if you have multiple products, but the one-time cost of this is far less than payment on a lawsuit. Sensitivity testing should be done too, and you should consider budgeting in products that are going to be applied near the eyes or have ingredients like SPF, AHAs, BHAs, etc. These tests are done at some specific labs only. The same goes for makeup applicators like brushes and sponges. Only when you get your product tested will you be able to provide quality products to your consumers. So, the hidden costs of formula development and product testing have now pushed your cosmetic startup costs. Make sure these costs are tracked during development of your product itself.

The beauty industry is advancing and changing very quickly, with new competitors, products, and services arriving each day. It is definitely a fun industry that is full of opportunities for growth and success!

Sheryl Sandberg wisely said, “There is no perfect fit when you're looking for the next big thing to do.” The way might be steep but the road to entrepreneurship is 100 percent worth the hike.

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)