Blinc captures a share of the world mascara market

by Heather B. Hayes
for Virginia Business
May 2006

Kiss Me Mascara, a beauty product made by Herndon-based Blinc Inc., doesn’t lack for fans. Brides, athletes and professional dancers love it, as do Hollywood starlets like Jennifer Lopez and Jennifer Garner.

That’s because, unlike traditional mascaras, Kiss Me is not paint-based. Instead it relies on an acrylic co-polymer that forms tiny little tubes around the lashes. As a result, the mascara “doesn’t run, smudge, smear, flake or clump,” says Blinc CEO Lewis Farsedakis, who founded the company in 1999 with his wife, Suma. “Women just love it, because they can cry, perspire or be outdoors in humid weather, and they won’t end up with that raccoon-eyed look that they get with other mascaras.”

Initially, Kiss Me’s unusual composition made it hard to sell through mass-market channels. The tubes slide off with water saturation and pressure, but many women didn’t understand what was happening and sometimes thought their eyelashes were falling out. So to ensure customers were educated about the product, Farsedakis began selling directly to spas, salons and beauty-supply boutiques. Not only did customers “get” the concept, but Blinc ended up with a higher profit margin and a loyal following among the professional makeup set.

Today, Kiss Me is used by half of the live show performers in Las Vegas and on Broadway and has been named a mascara of choice by Bride’s Magazine. Angela Sitilides, the president and co-owner of Bella Cara, a high-end beauty products boutique in Arlington, says that Kiss Me is one of her best sellers, despite the fact that at $24 a tube, it’s the most expensive mascara in her store. “The initial education process does take some time, but now I have so much repeat business that it just kind of sells itself,” she says. “And in fact, I have customers who will point it out to other customers and rave about it. I don’t have to do anything.”

Emboldened by its Kiss Me success, Blinc, which has 10 employees, has branched out, offering a co-polymer eyeliner as well as natural hair-care products. With an emphasis on selling “only the best of the best,” Blinc has added to its strong reputation and has grown rapidly. From 2001 to 2004, the company’s revenue rose 307.4 percent, making it the top retail/wholesale company in the Fantastic 50. Last year, company sales increased to $4 million.

Farsedakis has made a career out of starting and selling businesses, mostly in the technology and telecommunications industries. With Blinc, however, he thinks he has finally found a keeper. “After five years with a company, I usually get a little bored because I feel like there’s nothing more to do but keep the company growing,” says Farsedakis. “But here, there’s always something new to do, and it really taps into my creative side.”

Still, the couple’s strong background in technology has helped them excel in this traditional industry. Farsedakis says that running an unconventional cosmetic company allows him to make “out-of-the-box” decisions. These unorthodox strategies have included not using national distributors; developing products whose sales are based on performance rather than color and packaging; and not giving into pressure to sell through national chains and other mass- market channels.

Everything about the business, including customer service and order fulfillment, is performed in-house. Blinc excels by keeping its business operations simple and being careful to manage growth effectively. All new products go through a rigorous selection, research and development process.

“The way we see it is: Why would you want to launch a run-of-the-mill product when you can have a high-quality product to put all your focus on?” says Farsedakis. He notes that Blinc, which is sold in 32 countries, now has 1 percent of the worldwide mascara market. “With so much room to grow, we’re going to put our resources into products that customers can truly love and keep coming back to.”