May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. And Chinese-American beauty entrepreneur Alicia Zeng sat down with HAPPI to share her eyelash extension brand Lilac Street. 

Named for San Francisco's street art hub, Lilac Street provides smudge-free lash solutions to achieve a desired lifted look with wear-time lasting a week. 

The beauty enthusiast — who brings experience from organic period care brand, This Is L Inc — willed to create a solution for her self-described “stick straight lashes” characteristic of her Asian heritage. Lilac Street makes ultra-light, cluster lash sets that are available in a variety of styles for a daytime and nighttime look. 

Sadie and Abby Bowler, Gen Z-aged sisters and founders of hair and personal care brand Sadie B, have respect for the middle-age male CEOs running beauty and personal care brands. But for their brand, authenticity means being made by the girls for the girls.

Sadie B launched in 2022 and in 18 months landed on the shelves of Target, thanks in part, to Cherie Hoeger, founder of Saalt period care, who helped the Bowlers find a broker at the retailer.

Sadie B has four core collections—the Go-Getter, Athlete, Adventurer and Creator. Each consists of a shampoo, conditioner and body wash that are formulated with ingredients to protect hair from the elements doing the most damage. These include sun, chlorine, ocean water, color and heat styling tools. 

A conundrum in a North Carolina factory in the 1970s to remove oil from yarn spools set the stage for the creation of Charlie’s Soap. Bags of the brand’s Natural Powder Laundry Detergent for which its currently known, can be found on the shelves of Whole Foods, Walmart, Kroger and others. Taylor Sutherland, the grandson of Charlie, for which the soap is named, sat down with HAPPI to discuss the brand’s humble beginnings in the textile mill industry to becoming a household name.  

Witney Carson, of "Dancing With the Stars" fame, sat down with Happi to discuss her new partnership with Jergens for the brand's Second Annual Glow Day campaign featuring its new Natural Glow Instant Sun “Sun Drops” for Face + Body. Carson spoke to HAPPI about surviving melanoma and achieving a sun-kissed glow sans UV exposure and her full circle moment working with The Skin Cancer Foundation. The organization is sponsoring its Destination Healthy Skin program. From May to November, this mobile education feature travels around the US providing free, full-body skin cancer screenings, while educating the public about the importance of skin cancer early detection, effective sun protection and alternate skin-safe options to achieve a sunless tan.   

It’s been said that difficult roads can lead to beautiful destinations.

Julie Longyear, owner of 15-year-old skin care brand Blissoma, had been enduring migraines and irritation as the result of her sensitive skin. Though starting her career in ceramics, these issues propelled her into the world of herbal chemistry. 

In this Indie Inc series, Longyear discusses how efficacy and sustainably go hand-in-hand, in addition to her work with compostable herbs and mindfulness with regards the amount extracted from different plant sources. Products are cruelty-free, vegan, made with solar power, organic and free from petrochemicals. 

Mary Engle, executive vice president, policy, of the Better Business Bureau, discusses fake reviews and testimonials ahead of the Federal Trade Commission’s informal hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 13 on its proposed rule banning the same.

Steve Capitani, president, of men's grooming company Wild Willies, discusses the brand's partnership with The NIL House on Brinx.TV and the secret to the brand's wild success. 

Steve Capitani, president of men’s grooming company Wild Willies, remembers being “sold” on 1990s-era jingles during shave commercials. For Gen Xers and Millennials old enough to remember, who can forget Gilette’s “The Best a Man Can Get.” 

Flashforward to present day, Capitani helms the wildly successful men’s grooming brand founded by Christopher Wilson and Kerry Sebree. On the market for almost 10 years, it prides itself on its line of best-selling beard products catered to the whisker-wearing men who use their facial hair as a form of style and self-expression.

With Wild Willies’ new partnership with The NIL House on Brinx.TV, Capitani says he looks forward to educating Gen Z and Alpha-aged young men about proper beard grooming and the products that can help them achieve their most confident self with Wild Willies.

In the world of oral care, consumers are going the extra mile to achieve a million-dollar smile, and they’re buying into novel ways to do it: from purple toothpaste to LED teeth whiteners, oil pulling and more.

As we head into 2024, innovation is at the forefront of product development, and sustainable packaging in the face of climate change. When it comes to creating a dental product that aims to kill two birds with one stone, husband and wife duo Deepti and Wells Brambl, an engineer and former toxicologist by trade, have created B Corp-certified oral care brand Kaylaan. Loosely translated from Nepalese as a wish for good health, the brand’s hero product is its vegan toothpaste tablets – which, when chomped – create a toothpaste, and teeth get brushed with a toothbrush. The result? Clean teeth and fresh breath without the mess of excess toothpaste in the sink, tubes, boxes, and caps. Sound convincing? Kaylaan’s Deepti Brambl gives us something to chew on.