Risking it all for a lip scrub; with Sara Happ

The Brand is Female

Sara Happ is known as the innovator who redefined the lip care category. Her incredible brand-building story started in her kitchen, where Sara mixed sugars and oils to create her now-iconic lip scrubs. With just $6,000 in personal savings and a job at ESPN that wasn’t inspiring her as much as she had hoped, she launched her namesake brand in 2005—but the big break came when Reese Witherspoon was spotted using her products in People magazine, sparking a wave of demand that threw the brand into the spotlight.

Now sold in 22 countries and featured in over 1,500 retail locations, including Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom, but more importantly, a network of independent boutiques and studios that Sara swears by, her brand is a global leader in lip care. In this episode, Sara Happ reflects on how identifying a niche in the market and leveraging organic buzz helped grow her company without outside capital for nearly two decades. Tune in as she talks about finding your niche, perseverance, and scaling smart.

This season of our podcast is brought to you by TD Canada Women in Enterprise. TD is proud to support women entrepreneurs and help them achieve success and growth through its program of educational workshops, financing and mentorship opportunities! Please find out how you can benefit from their support! Visit: TBIF: thebrandisfemale.com // TD Women in Enterprise: td.com/ca/en/business-banking/small-business/women-in-business // Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/thebrandisfemale