27 April 2021|Latest Posts, Meet the Successful Founder
Jessica Blackler is the founder of gender free, vegan friendly makeup brand Jecca Blac. With a background in makeup artistry in film and television, Jessica began Jecca Blac as a safe space studio for those who wished to learn about makeup in a judgement free setting. While building a clientbase of predominantly trans women who wished to start their journey with makeup, Jess noticed the oversight of the beauty industry in not considering the needs of transgender women. Because of this, Jessica decided to launch her own range of products, beginning with the Correct & Conceal Palette which was created specifically for concealing beard shadow and went on to win ‘Best Concealer of 2020’ at the Beauty Bible Awards this year. Since launching Jecca Blac, Jessica has provided a wider support for the community by supporting trans prisoners, collaborating with LGBTQ+ charities, and developing an entire range of user friendly, cruelty free products – always factoring in the needs of the trans community.
Here Jessica tells us more about her journey, inspiration and top entrepreneurial tips.
How did the idea come to you for the company?
With a background in makeup artistry in film and television, my knowledge on how to transform a makeup wearer’s features was what inspired me to share my expertise with makeup wearers who were starting their journey with makeup later on in life. Through connecting with the trans community, I realised the oversight of the beauty world in not considering trans-feminine makeup wearers who sought user friendly solutions tailored to their specific needs. Upon realising this, I launched Jecca Blac as a makeup retailer and our first product to launch was the Correct & Conceal Palette – a simple and effective two step concealer solution. While this product is designed to be versatile and can be used in multiple ways, I developed the Correct & Conceal Palette with makeup wearers in mind who seek beard shadow coverage. This Palette lead to an entire range of vegan, gender free makeup which celebrates makeup wearers of all genders, identities and expressions!
How did you achieve awareness?
We have many different marketing channels which we rely on for brand awareness. As we have a strong community focus, social media is an important part of our networking and we have a focus on social media adverts and paid promotions with influencers that share our values as a brand. Our products have also featured in subscription boxes across the USA and Europe which have resulted in excellent exposure for us, and put our products in the hands of a much broader audience of makeup subscribers who have a passion for growing their collections. We also have a PR agency for press opportunities.
How have you been able to gain funding and grow?
Every brand will have a completely different journey when raising funds. We have some fantastic partners that have contributed to our growth.
What are the key successes?
Our first ever product to launch, the Correct & Conceal Palette, won ‘Best Concealer of 2020’ at the Beauty Bible Awards last year. We have collaborated with LGBT+ charities including Mermaids, Switchboard and AKT Charity, and at the start of 2020 (pre lockdowns) hosted the UK’s first ever Trans Festival – a new annual event for the trans community and allies to come together and celebrate their community. In a way, one of our biggest successes has been in always staying true to our own values and never compromising on what we believe in. This can be seen in our loyalty to our community and our core beliefs that makeup has no gender and that all makeup should be vegan & cruelty free – these are essential elements of our brand which we will always champion and look forward to continuing to pioneer in the future!
What were/are the challenges?
Covid-19 has been a challenge for almost every industry – the beauty world is based on assuming the routines of customers and basing your products on how they can be built into an individual’s routine. The way people feel about wearing makeup has changed over the past 12 months, and while for many of our customers lockdowns have presented a safe space and added alone time to experiment with makeup for the first time behind closed doors, many opportunities to market beauty (such as travel and festivals) have been off the cards, so our industry has had to adapt.
What are your plans now?
We’re continuing to grow our collection of products and we look forward to the return of our annual Trans Festival, which we envisage will be bigger and better than ever when restrictions have eased.
What would you like to share with other women to encourage them to start their own entrepreneurship journey?
Believe in yourself and your vision and others will follow.
Can you share you top tips for entrepreneurial success?
Consistency
Honesty/Accountability
Clear vision
Drive for results
Compassion
Who are the women who inspire you the most?
This is hard..
Met Whitney in the green room of an event, she was great- the youngest woman to have done an IPO!
https://www.instagram.com/whitney/
Tyler Haney is an amazing entrepreneur
https://www.instagram.com/ty_haney/?hl=en
What is your favourite inspirational /motivational quote?
Love Henry Ford quotes..
”The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.”
What are your social handles and website links so our readers can connect with you?
Follow us @jeccablac on social media!
Find out more about us and shop our collection at https://jeccablac.com/
Special offer for TSF readers!
We’d also love to offer readers an exclusive 15% discount when they apply code SUCCESS15 at checkout!
