Interview with Lindsey Martin

Lindsey Martin is the founder and creator of Kiramoon. Their goal is to bring joy to skincare, with products that are as cute as they are effective. All of their products are cruelty-free, vegan, and gluten-free.

 

 

You launched your business in response to some major life events, can you tell us about your journey to creating Kiramoon?

I was inspired to create a skincare brand in 2017, which was the hardest year of my life. My mom passed away and I was at the peak of a high-pressure career in tech. During this difficult chapter, my skincare routine became the most cherished part of my day. I couldn’t control the highs and lows of life, but I knew I could start and end my day with 5 minutes of joy, doing my skincare routine.

This practice of skincare as selfcare lived on even after I healed from the loss of my mom and continued to be a highlight of my day. I realized that there should be a brand that is designed to be used this way; because this makes me feel good, and I wanted to help other beauty lovers feel good, too.

Being a researcher at heart, I created social media accounts before we launched a product to see if people were interested in a skincare brand rooted in affirmation, self-love, and joy. This turned into a community of 15,000 beauty lovers who said YES, we want this!

So I created Kiramoon. Our products are fun-to-use, effective, and encourage the practice of selfcare. Our mission is to help our customers look in the mirror and see someone they love.

Where did the name "Kiramoon" come from?

I knew that I wanted the brand name to evoke a feeling, and not sound clinical or serious. I actually heard a podcast with Sarah Blakely who said she named her brand Spanx because the “k” sound is proven to be attractive to consumers (Coca-Cola, Kodak, etc.) So I started exploring with K words, and Kiramoon just fit! Kira to me is sort of a character; she is the confident, happy, playful version of myself when I am doing my skincare. Moon is a slight nod to luminosity or glow of the skin, so together they are the version of myself I want to feel when I do my skincare routine, and it's the same feeling I want for our customers.

 

When creating Kiramoon, what did you consider an absolute must?

Efficacy- You would think this is table stakes to launch a beauty brand today, but the industry has made it so easy to start a brand and crank out products with little or no passion behind the purpose of that product or the formula to back it. As Byrdie put it, “Kiramoon is the skincare brand bridging the gap between cute and effective.” We do want to be cute and make our customers smile just by looking at our products, but it’s really what’s on the inside that counts

User Experience- The core of our brand is about practicing self-love through the use of our products, so everything we create has to hit on sensory notes: visual, touch, smell. We go as far as tweaking the formulas so they feel a certain way on the skin. We want everything about our products to take you on a sensorial journey.

Happiness and Self-Love- From our colors, to our product names, to our copy, we want customers to feel happy and have a positive feeling with every touchpoint of our brand. The northstar for every decision we make is “Does this make me feel happy? Will this help enhance our customer’s 5 minute skincare routine?”

How did you first start sharing and promoting your skincare line? How important do you feel social media is when it comes to your business?

I started social media (IG and Tiktok) a year and a half before ever launching a brand and it was paramount to the success of our launch. ON the day we went live to market, we had 15,000 social media followers, 1,500 email subscribers, and we did $20,000 in sales the first week. We also had several beauty buyers find us on social media early on which was a huge win. Today, we still get the majority of our organic revenue through people discovering us on social media, so it’s very important to our D2C business.

 

 

What is your go-to product from Kiramoon? 

This is so hard! I love them all for different reasons, but I do have a special place in my heart for our gentle cleanser, Silkie Rinse. I created it because I hated washing my face, I always felt that my skin was so tight and dry after. Silkie Rinse was created specifically to solve this problem, by deeply cleaning and removing SPF, makeup, and excess sebum without stripping the skin of all it’s natural oils. It’s truly an incredible product and a consistent best-seller for us!

What is your best skincare secret?

LED light therapy masks! They are commonly used in aesthetic treatments but there are many affordable options for at-home devices. LED light therapy is backed by research and it really can work magic for fine lines, collagen loss, and acne. We may have some sort of LED light treatment on the roadmap for Kiramoon :)

 

 

What are some of your goals for the future; both personally and professionally? What are you looking forward to? 

I really want to help other female founders pursue their dreams. I would love to start a beauty brand accelerator or support community. RIght now there is SO much work to be done for Kiramoon it’s hard to find time for building anything else, but I definitely look forward to spending more time as a mentor in the future.

 

How do you recharge after a long day? How do you prioritize self care?

It can be so hard to disconnect from work at the end of the day but I find that taking a short walk with my dog and getting out into nature helps so much. I also love cooking, it’s part of my PM ritual and keeps me off my phone for an hour or so. My other daily self-care rituals are journaling, working out, and of course: my skincare routine.

 

 

What are some things you do to maintain a healthy work/life balance?

This is really tough, but I do my best to log off and focus on my friends and family. One habit that has helped is making a list of all the things I’ve done in a day before logging off. I will also make a to-do list for the next day so I feel ready to take on what is next. This helps me visually quantify what I have accomplished in the day and feel prepared for tomorrow, instead of trying to keep working all night.

How would you describe your perfect day off?

I would attend a barre class, get a massage, take a few naps, and order my favorite takeout for dinner. Slow and relaxing :)

What is the best piece of advice you have received from someone; additionally, what is your best piece of advice?

This is such a tough question, I have received so much great advice! But one of my favorites is actually a quote from Nelson Mandela: “'May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” My favorite piece of advice to give others (for both personal and professional) is stop comparing yourself to others, you have no idea what resources, help, or amount of time they’ve had to get where they are.

 

 

What women, past or present, have inspired you the most?

All the women in my professional network who are entrepreneurs, investors, and/or mentors inspire me endlessly. It’s outrageous to think that within my lifetime, women had to have a man's signature if they wanted to open a business banking account. In the history of the world, women have never had the opportunities we have today and I am so inspired by any woman who is chasing after them with everything she has, despite the challenges.

What are some things you admire most about the women in your life?

I really admire women’s ability to do it all. We are typically the emotional lead of our household, also the operations lead, and we also have to manage our own career and personal lives. Our roles in society and at home are so complex, it’s really incredible. I’m amazed by everything the women in my life can juggle at once.

 

What do you think it means to be an empowered woman?

I think it means deciding what you want/feel/think, and pursuing it despite the odds being stacked against you, because you know you are worthy and have something incredible to offer this world.

 

What message would you get on a custom Ryan Porter bracelet?

‘YES I CAN’