It’s not easy being an entrepreneur. They work long hours, they’re constantly hustling, and pouring their heart and soul into their businesses. Before long, all that effort can take a toll on both one’s physical appearance and spirit, but for Shalini Vadhera, that’s certainly not the case. That’s because, as the Founder and CEO of Power Beauty Living, beauty is Vadhera’s business.
Over the course of her career as a globetrotting celebrity makeup artist, Vadhera has gleaned exotic beauty insights from around the world and even authored a book: Passport to Beauty: Secrets and Tips from Around the World for Becoming a Global Goddess. “I traveled a lot as a young child, and I was truly enchanted with what women were doing around the world,” Vadhera says, “and when I started in the beauty industry here in the States, I noticed that there really wasn’t a lot of people talking about diversity or addressing some of the beauty challenges that people face here in the US.”
Vadhera goes on to explain, “We’re the biggest melting pot in the world… We were really only going after what white women with blonde hair and blue eyes needed, and what women who are African American needed. But what about women in between? So, that’s really what I wanted to focus on.”
As the nature of business has rapidly evolved in recent years, Vadhera’s business model has as well. “For my first brand, we did a very traditional, brick-and-mortar approach. You know, we launched in all the big-box retailers,” Vadhera says. “But now, what’s happening with Silicon Beach, and this emergence of incredible technology, and all these brands that are thriving online, for this brand I really wanted to focus on the online market, and really be able to retain all that margin that I could. And it’s been really phenomenal.”
“One of our best-selling products is a 22-karat gold face mask,” Vadhera says. “With the emergence and trend of Korean beauty, and the sheet mask that everyone’s using, we decided to take it up a level, and make it a very luxurious in-home treatment for women who maybe can’t afford to go to the spa, or don’t have time to go to the spa. So, knowing that gold has been used around the world for centuries to really help repair and heal the skin, we took that and then we married it with Rosa damascena flower oil, which is regarded as more valuable than gold in a lot of countries, and is very soothing and healing to the skin, as well as anti-aging collagen.”
“And that appeals to everyone,” Vadhera says. “It doesn’t matter what your skin tone is, it doesn’t really matter what your skin type is, because it’s really going to help soothe and nurture the skin, and give you all these amazing benefits. But more than anything, we have such a great time seeing girlfriends get together, sipping wine through a straw with their gold face masks on.”
Another treatment uses the superfruit goji berry, which Vadhera explains has been used in the Tibetan culture for generations and a few other ingredients as an anti-aging treatment that she insists is “better than Botox.”
Of course, as any beauty expert knows, the benefits of enhancing your physical appearance are much more than skin deep. “For me, it’s about more than just lipstick and mascara,” Vadhera says. “It’s about giving women the power to feel good about themselves so they have that unmatched confidence to go out there and create unmatched leverage in their lives.
Vadhera also offers her unique acumen to advise and assist other companies looking to build beauty brands of their own. “We take a very holistic approach to beauty, and in doing this, word got out that I was traveling the world. I was sourcing all these amazing ingredients; I was getting inspired by what different cultures were doing. So, a lot of companies started reaching out and asking, ‘Could you help us create our brands?’”
“It was never my intention to go out there and start creating brands for other companies, it just sort of happened” Vadhera continued. “And so, what we’ve done so far is, we’ve just finished creating the beauty brand for the new Baywatch movie, working with Paramount and their licensee, we’ve just finished the beauty brand for Turner Classic Movies, based on all these gorgeous icons… Katherine Hepburn, Sophia Loren. Really, anyone who’s looking to create a product line and doesn’t know where to start – we do everything from concept, to creation, to delivering the finished product.”
As a female entrepreneur and professional, Vadhera certainly serves as a strong role model for many young women with big dreams – the sort of mentor she lacked when starting out. “When I was building my business, I didn’t find a lot of women willing to step up and mentor. And so, I launched a platform called Power Beauty Living, and it’s all about powering your business, mentorship for women, by women. Powering up your beauty, so you’ve got that confidence, then powering up your life – what are you doing for 30 minutes every day? So, you’ve got this warrior mentality, so you can go in there and deal with this contentious boardroom, so nothing’s going to rock you. And so, we do a lot of retreats in Sedona, where we talk about unleashing your inner potential, and really honoring yourself. We launched globally last year at the United Nations, giving 350 different diplomats, country heads and CEOs a taste of what Power Beauty Living is all about.”
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