Today we’d like to introduce you to Jae’ Wiley.
Hi Jae’, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Lipstyck Lab started when my daughter turned five years old. I realized there really wasn’t anything like this for young girls. We found a place where they did nails and pedicures, but they didn’t do lipstick.
Me being a girly girl, I instantly went home and started writing down all these notes: there’s not this for girls, there’s not that for girls. Then I went online and started researching.
After about two days of researching, I found a custom lipstick company in Cali. And that’s when it clicked for me.
My mom used to sell Avon, and when I was younger, I used to mix her little Avon lipstick samples together. So I said, “Wait a minute. I could do this.”
I started doing more research, and when I tell you I was knocking on doors, I was knocking on doors. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nobody wanted to give up the information. People would have the answer, but you had to pay for it. It was that type of thing.
Finally,
I found my distributor.
I could have gotten started with a little bit of money, but I wanted everything. I didn’t want to keep adding things and nickel-and-diming myself later. I said, “I want the ultimate package.”
So I put it on my credit card. I just went for it.
At the time, I was working at a nightclub, and the owner was selling. I knew my guaranteed $1,500 a week was about to be gone. I’ve always believed in having a Plan B, so I knew I needed to get my Plan B in action because Plan A was about to disappear.
My daughter’s birthday is in July. By October 2019, I had my package and equipment at home. I officially started Lipstyck on December 1, 2019.
And I never looked back. I went full throttle.
Mind you, I started December 1, 2019. Not long after that, Kobe Bryant had his tragic accident, and around that time I also started hearing rumblings about COVID.
My uncle was an anesthesiologist in Florida, so I reached out to him. I said, “What’s going on with this COVID thing?” He told me, “Wash your hands. Wear your gloves. Put on a mask.” So I was paying attention, but none of us knew what was about to happen.
On March 7, 2020, I had my first successful event.
SOLD OUT!!!!
I was so happy and so proud of myself. Everybody was asking, “When’s the next one?” Because we live in a world where people see people having fun, and they want to be a part of it.
I was ready. I was like, “Oh, the next one is coming!”
Then COVID hit.
When I tell you depression hit me hard, it hit me HARD.
I had taken my emergency credit card and invested all this money into a lipstick business.
Now COVID was here.
And nobody was wearing lipstick.
Baby, everybody’s eyelashes were popping, and I was sitting there with all this stuff to mix lipstick, sad as hell, thinking, “What did I just do?”
I had lost one of my favorite uncles. My dad was sick, so I was running back and forth to VA hospitals and his apartment, making sure he was okay and trying to make sure he didn’t catch COVID. I was taking care of my mother.
And on top of all of that, everything I did for a living was considered non-essential.
I did hair. Non-essential.
I did makeup. Non-essential.
I managed a nightclub. Clubs were non-essential.
Everything I had was gone in the blink of an eye.
And there I was with all this money sitting on a credit card for a lipstick business that I had literally just started.
But somehow, I kept going.
Lipstyck Lab started because of my daughter, an idea, and a memory of me sitting there mixing my mother’s Avon lipstick samples.
I didn’t have somebody handing me the blueprint. I researched. I knocked on doors. I figured things out. I invested in myself, and then, right when I thought I was getting started, the entire world shut down.
But I didn’t quit.
And I’ve been going full throttle ever since.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It was never a smooth road from the beginning because I had a profession for 26 years. I could have easily just copied and pasted and did the same thing, but I didn’t want to do that. I wanted something different and unique.
So I bet on myself, and I took everything I had to try to make this work.
And the road was not smooth AT ALL!!
I lost both my parents six months apart. And it seemed like every time I wanted to start my business, somebody died. So I was like, “No. I’m not. I’m done.”
I took one complete year off. I drained every account. I made sure that I could just live. I did not do hair, makeup, anything. I needed to figure life out.
There was one event that was held downtown in Pittsburgh called the Black Market, and everybody said, “You need to be a part of it.”
I was still giving up on life. I wanted to have a whole pity party.
Instead of me having that pity party, I did submit, and I got in.
That was probably one of the best things that I did for myself.
One night, Shayla Hawkins called everybody. She was like, “Hey, we’re gonna be on PTL tomorrow, Pittsburgh Today Live. Do you have some products you wanna put on there?”
I put my products on there.
Next thing you know, the producers were calling me to have me on the show.
Once I was on the show that first time, by the time I got in the parking lot. My phone has not stopped ringing. That was the biggest blessing.
I would go to everybody’s houses. I could not keep going to everybody’s house. I needed one fixture.
So I went to this one place, and I loved it. It was in a quaint neighborhood on South Braddock Avenue. The floors were done, everything was done. I just had to move in.
I filled out my application. I submitted everything they wanted, dang near dna. They wanted to see my live bank account, my business bank account, my credit. I had everything lined up for them.
They wanted my business plan, Do you know how naked and venerable you are?
I had been working on this business plan since 2019. At this time, it was 2023.
I was ready.
Do you not know that man came back to me after two weeks of delaying and said, “The owner does not believe in your vision.”
And they actually refunded me my application money.
I was pissed because I gave you everything. Even my business plan. Now you have my idea at your disposal.
How do I know that you won’t use that against me later?
So when you wanna talk about struggles and hope, I have some stories.
Finally, the next day, I took one day off.
I have a motto: Take one week to be weak.
This time, I didn’t have time. I took one day.
The next day, I went to the next spot.
I did not want this building because I had to do all the work myself. The floors, the walls, the construction, the build-out.
They said, “We have the space for you, but everything else is on your own.”
And I had to do it.
And child, I have some stories for you.
One day, I fell in paint. Trying to get up off the floor in wet paint is more than comical.
And I stood up and I said, “This better work.”
And here we are, three years later, still rocking and rolling at 2713 1/2 Murray Avenue.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in making women love themselves.
That’s what I do.
Yes, we make lipstick and lip gloss, but Lipstyck Lab is so much more than lipstick. I created an experience where women can come in, sit down, play in makeup, create something that is completely their own, and just feel good about themselves.
When you come to Lipstyck Lab, you’re not picking a lipstick off a shelf. You create it. You pick your colors. You mix them. You choose your finish, your fragrance, your shimmer or glitter. You get to make something that nobody else has unless you want them to have it.
That’s why our motto is, **”Don’t Be Basic, Be Exclusive!”**
I am known for creating Pittsburgh’s first custom Lipstyck Bar. I brought something to Pittsburgh that we didn’t have.
But what I’m most proud of is the experience.
Women come through my door for all different reasons. Birthdays. Girls’ days. Bachelorette parties. Mother’s Day. Date nights. Sometimes they’re celebrating something, and sometimes they just need a day to feel good.
And I love watching the transformation.
A woman can sit down and say, “Oh, I don’t wear lipstick,” or “That color isn’t going to look good on me.” Baby, give me a minute.
By the time she leaves, she’s looking in that mirror, taking pictures and feeling herself.
THAT is what I specialize in.
What sets Lipstyck Lab apart is that I never wanted to just sell you another lipstick. You can buy lipstick anywhere. I wanted you to have an experience attached to it.
You made it. You named it. You were there for the entire process. So when you pull that lipstick out later, there’s a memory attached to it.
I’m also proud that Lipstyck Lab has grown beyond just me making products. We do private parties, children’s experiences, mobile events, corporate events, and wholesale manufacturing for people who want to create their own beauty products.
But no matter how much Lipstyck Lab grows, the heart of it will always be the same.
I specialize in making women love themselves.
The lipstick is just the tool I use to do it.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
The beauty industry continues to evolve toward personalization, experience, and education. Consumers are no longer simply looking for another product to purchase; they want to be part of the process. They want products that feel personal, experiences they can share, and brands that create a genuine connection. That shift is exactly where I believe Lipstyck Lab is positioned to grow.
My long-term vision extends far beyond operating one location in Pittsburgh. Franchising is a major part of the future I see for Lipstyck Lab. I created a concept and customer experience that can be taught, standardized, and duplicated in other markets while still allowing each location to feel personal and connected to its community. I would love to see Lipstyck Lab locations in cities across the country, giving women the opportunity to create their own custom lip products while also creating opportunities for other entrepreneurs to own and operate a unique beauty business.
I also see tremendous growth through our mobile experiences, educational programming, private events, corporate and community partnerships, and our wholesale and manufacturing division. These different areas allow Lipstyck Lab to serve individual consumers while also working with organizations and other beauty entrepreneurs.
The goal is not simply to sell more lipstick. The goal is to build an ecosystem around beauty, creativity, education, entrepreneurship, and experience. Pittsburgh gave me the opportunity to prove the concept. The next chapter is about building the infrastructure that allows Lipstyck Lab to expand beyond Pittsburgh without losing the personality and intentional experience that made people fall in love with it in the first place.
Ultimately, I want Lipstyck Lab to become a recognizable beauty experience and a franchise opportunity that can exist in multiple markets while still carrying the heart of where it began.
Pricing:
- 35 per kids
- 50 per Adult
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.lipstycklab.com
- Instagram: Www.instgram.com/lipstycklab
- Facebook: Www.faceboo.con/lipstycklab
