Beauty Brand Garbo & Kelly Founder Shares Genius Secrets Of Success

Carolyn Fox launched the beauty brand Garbo & Kelly in January 2017.
It was a tough time to make such a bold move. The market was flooded with beauty ranges – some terrific, some not so.
Every week it seemed another company announced it was closing its doors, but Carolyn was confident that her very own brand could not only survive, but flourish and so far she’s only been proved right.
Here, we chat to the very clever Carolyn about how her beauty line is thriving when so many others are finding it hard to stay afloat and talk all things makeup.

 

 The lady herself – Carolyn Fox.

A little history about yourself …

I was interested in beauty from when I was a small girl.
t started with my love for Agnetha and Anni-Frid from ABBA, and I also had three sisters who I thought looked like goddesses.
I saw how makeup transformed them, and tried to copy their style – trying to look glamorous in long dresses and styling my hair, taking inspiration from 80s trends.
That was the beginning of my journey into the world of commercial beauty. From there I became a hairdresser, which later in life led to meeting Anastasia Soare – the woman behind the brand Anastasia Beverly Hills.
I learned the ‘power of the brow’ from Anastasia, who inspired me to focus on ‘wow brows’ and how they can be harmonizing and anti-aging in the most powerful way.

 

Overnight Sensation Eyeshadow Palette, $70.

From then on you thought that …

I became a hairdresser at 15 and opened my first salon in 1995, opening another a year later in 2000. After meeting Anastasia in 2004, I became more passionate about makeup in general and particularly brows. They can transform you.

Today you are …

Obsessed with creating timeless tools and products for well-shaped brows to flatter the length and width of the face, whilst complementing the brows by contouring and also defining the cheeks and lips. That’s Garbo & Kelly – right there.

How did the range itself come about?

We wanted to build a brand that the powerhouse woman would resonate with. A brand that has strength, courage, femininity, and timeless and classic beauty. We knew there was a gap in the luxury brow market, and that there wasn’t an extensive brow range that was vegan – so took a chance to fill this gap in the market.

Selfie Halo Light, $39.

There are so many beauty products on the market already. Brow products and others too. Why launch another?

There are many brands on the market offering brow products, however if you want tyres… you go to a tyre shop, right? I believe it’s the same with brows. We have designed our products to work as we promise they will, with clear, concise messaging and unrivalled quality.

How do we pick a quality product from a possibly shady one?

Just by the touch and feel, I think you get an idea. We are lucky that we have strict Australian regulations in place, so you can trust in the products you purchase.

Brow Brush, $32.

It seems that being an entrepreneur is the way of the future. Agree?

I think women receive a lot of pressure to be ‘successful’ – but have so many roles to fill. I think every woman wants to be strong and independent, making their own choices, and it’s important to be kind to one another on the journey. Being a successful entrepreneur excites me, but it would be useless to me if I didn’t pay it forward.

How do we as individuals make the leap – we’re all terrified no?

The worst case scenario is failure, but you will never know if you never try. I would rather fail than regret, otherwise I would always wonder ‘what if…’
Be courageous and believe in yourself and don’t let anyone tell you you can’t. Surround yourself with good people that encourage and believe in you.

Pomade, $32.

Best way to impress someone in business?

I think being honest is the best way to impress; otherwise people can see right through you. Present yourself well and in a way that is true to yourself, be uplifting and learn as much as you can from others. If you know your craft and share your knowledge and deliver it with passion – you can’t go wrong.

Women are terrific in business because?

We take on more than time allows, but we can multi-task and push ourselves to get the task done. We are patient, intuitive and resilient.

But we do need to look out for …

Sometimes I think we don’t confront bullies in the industry but we can do that constructively. We can also be a little too modest with our achievements; whilst this can be a charming quality, don’t risk being overlooked.

Master of Illumination Kit, $70.

What’s the next big project for you?

Launching into Myer feels like an incredible achievement considering we only launched in January 2017. The response to Garbo & Kelly has been so positive. We embrace our story and love helping our customers to create classic and timeless looks. We are on a crusade to make sure everyone has access to the right tools, information and products to achieve their perfect brows. Once this is achieved, it is a box ticked for life for us.