From Pia Whitesell to Zoe Foster Blake: Aussie celebrity beauty moguls making it big
From supermodels to actors, these Australian mega moguls have turned their celebrity into multimillion-dollar skincare and makeup empires. See the list.
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Exclusive: They went from supermodels and influencers to beauty mega moguls, turning their celebrity profiles into skincare, makeup and self-tanning empires worth millions.
Australian models, actors, WAGs and influencers are forging their own paths in the $US511 billion ($A700 billion) global beauty market, signing mega deals with retail giants including Mecca, Sephora and David Jones.
Zoe Foster Blake, Elle Ferguson, Nadia Bartel, and Pia Whitesell (nee Loyola) are among the stars-turned-entrepreneurs who have followed in supermodel and KORA founder Miranda Kerr’s footsteps by launching beauty businesses.
Whitesell is one of the most recent entrants into the market, with her brand, Macabalm.
The model and actor drew inspo from motherhood and her time in the makeup chair on set to create the multipurpose organic macadamia and Kakadu Plum balm, priced from $19.95 to $45.95. It took Whitesell four years to turn the idea for Macabalm into a reality, “sending parcels from my garage” when her business went live in November.
“To take that idea into actualisation is hard,” Whitesell said, of the process. “There is so much back and forth in terms of product development, being there in the lab, tinkering with it until its perfect.
“I felt like there was a gap in the market for an all-purpose balm that was made from all-natural ingredients and was sustainably sourced.”
So what impact did her established public profile – and 689,000-plus Instagram following – have on making Macabalm a reality?
“Because I have been in this industry for as long as I have been, I’ve modelled since I was 14 … I have worked with the most in-demand makeup artists and skin professionals in the country,” Whitesell said.
“You have access to find out what works … and then when you have the product, you have access to give it to colleagues, to have the exposure, to have the ‘reach’ that other people might not have, just by having done what I’ve done.
“I think it’s about access more so than leveraging followers.”
Whitesell said her consumer base is diverse and even her teenage sons Isaiah, 18, and Lennox, 14, and husband, Hollywood agent Patrick Whitesell, use it.
“They always steal them – they’re out surfing a lot,” she said. “Patrick steals it all the time when he’s playing golf and he’s out there … in the elements.”
While it is currently sold direct-to-consumer via macabalm.com, Whitesell has plans to expand the brand.
“There will more and there will be an expansion of Macabalm for sure,” she said. As for whether she will return to acting, Whitesell said launching the brand has been her ”only focus” right now.
“When we first launched there was so much of finding my feet, how to get it out there, customer service, fulfilment, there was so much that I was doing on my own,” Whitesell said.
“There really hasn’t been much time for anything else career-wise and I have really enjoyed stepping back from being in front of the camera, being out there in that way, and being behind the scenes of this brand.”
Former Victoria’s Secret Angel Kerr took her career to the next level with KORA Organics in 2009, going from model to mogul worth $US60 million ($A82.5 million).
Kerr has had huge success in Australia and internationally, as has A-list stars turned founders including Kim Kardashian (KKW Beauty), Kylie Jenner (Kylie Cosmetics), and Rihanna, whose Fenty brand recently landed her on Forbes’ billionaire’s list.
AUSSIE BEAUTY MOGULS
ZOE FOSTER BLAKE
Beauty editor turned skincare founder Zoe Foster Blake launched Go-To in 2014, propelling her to an estimated net worth of $36 million (according to the Financial Review Rich List), with deals including with Mecca in Australia, via Revolve internationally, and Sephora in the US.
“We’re in a really strong and really lucky position. Clean skin care is a huge market right now,” Foster Blake previously told The New York Times.
Such is the success of Go-To that one of the brand’s “Transformazing Face Masks” sells every 1.5 minutes.
NADIA BARTEL AND REBECCA JUDD
The self-tanning industry – valued at $US1.47 billion – is projected to grow by nearly 6 per cent globally by 2025, according to a report by consulting firm Grand View Research.
Social media stars and WAGs Nadia Bartel and Rebecca Judd launched Spray Aus in 2014, with spray tanning salons and an at-home range.
With no parabens or PEGs, Spray Aus – stocked via its own site and in Mecca nationally – has gathered a cult-like following during Covid lockdown.
“A little bit of self-care can make you feel brighter and we have noticed our community expanding their home tanning range since our studios were forced to close,” Bartel said.
JENNIFER HAWKINS
Former Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins started Jbronze, a line of at-home tanning products in 2013 (the brand also supplied professional spray tanning formulas to beauty salons).
The model, TV presenter and brand owner has deals with stockists including Chemist Warehouse and Woolworths.
ELE FERGUSON
In 2016, influencer Elle Ferguson leveraged her 686,000-plus Instagram following into Elle Effect, a line of “sunless tanning essentials”.
The brand includes its bestselling body foundation dubbed “The Tint” ($44.95), which sold out within 48 hours of its launch – online and via Mecca stores – in December.
“I have always had body foundations used on me when I model: it’s foundation for your body, so you can colour in the parts that need to be coloured in, and shower it off,” Ferguson said.
JESSICA HART
Former Victoria’s Secret model Jessica Hart launched her makeup brand LUMA in 2014. The range, stocked at Priceline, features multiuse products based on the “illuminating properties of crushed pearl”.
Los Angeles-based Hart’s brand is sold internationally in Russia and South Africa.
LARA WORTHINGTON
Model and founder Lara Worthington unveiled Share The Base (formerly known as The Base) in 2014, with the cosmetic-skincare hybrid LB Cream.
Share The Base now operates as a not-for-profit enterprise, donating 100 per cent of its profits to Australian charity partners.
ALEX FEVOLA
WAG Alex Fevola launched her makeup brand, Runway Room, in 2012, described as “professional standard makeup” but “without the high-end price tag”.
Her line features more than 120 products, including the Glow Palette and Power Lash Mascara.
NEW ON THE SCENE
KEIRA MAGUIRE
Ex-Bachelor In Paradise reality star Maguire launched Skyn Collective, a line of beauty tools.
Skyn, which launched in May, features a rose quartz cleansing brush that operates at “7000 vibrations a minute” and dermaplaning razors.
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