BOBBY pins, credit cards and various forms of tape are just some of the ways make-up wearers have been attempting to perfect the infamous winged eyeliner look sported by the likes of Ariana Grande, Amy Winehouse and Tyrone’s own Janet Devlin.
Co Down entrepreneur and founder of Sprint Beauty, Katie Love (30), admits that she’s tried “all of the hacks” in an effort to get that sleek, sharp, flick that accentuates the eye.
“I’ve always loved beauty and I’ve been obsessed with trying to beauty hack my way to semi-professional level make-up,” she laughs.
“I tried the eyeliner tape hack, which is really common on TikTok, and it worked quite well for me but I noticed that it was really irritating round my eyes,” she says.
“And I just thought there had to be another solution.
“So many people find eyeliner difficult and there are hardly any products out there to help make it an easier process.”
@katieannlove the first step is the biggest #startingabusiness #entrepreneur
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This inspired Katie to take matters into her own hands and create the Eyeliner Aligner – a reusable beauty ruler which guides eyeliner application, making it quicker and easier to achieve.
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“I direct commercials for a living so whilst working with professional make-up artists on-set I started asking them how they apply eyeliner.
“I found out that some makeup artists use tape on talent too,” explains Katie, who’s role has allowed her to work with the likes of British band Rudimental and former England footballer David Beckham.
“So, I realised it was a big problem not just for beginners but also for professionals and that’s why I started working on the Eyeliner Aligner.”
In May 2023 Katie got to work designing and building prototypes of her product from household items and applying for grants to help get her business off the ground.
“I didn’t have any savings to invest in it,” she confesses.
“So, I literally ordered a bunch on materials from Amazon to try and make my own version, which was working to an extent, but I knew I needed a professional.
“I started approaching product designers based in Northern Ireland and getting quotes, but I didn’t realise just how expensive it is to work with someone with that skill set.”
It wasn’t until Katie met CEO of Belfast Product Design, Ryan Fenton, that her venture “started to feel real”.
“I basically offered Ryan my skills in creating promotional videos to advertise his company in return for him working on my prototype and that’s how we got started.”
@katieannlove it was harder than i thought 😅 #smallbusiness #productdevelopment
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However, this was just the first in a series of challenges Katie would face whilst setting up her small business.
“At the start, when I was applying for grants, I got four rejections and there was four or five months where I wasn’t getting accepted for anything,” she recalls.
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“So there was a lot of doubt about whether this was actually a good idea, whether it was worth my time and if I could do it.
“But it was around that time that the first grant came through and it was a such a boost that someone else actually believed in me and my idea.
@katieannlove wish i knew the options earlier! #smallbusinessowner #howtostartabusiness
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“I think that’s when I kind of learned the art of applying for grants and thankfully a few more came through which helped me get the product to the next stage.”
Having no previous experience in business Katie decided to document her experience on TikTok racking up hundreds of followers and thousands of likes.
“I think I was inspired by other entrepreneurs on TikTok,” she explains.
“I always connected with the posts that showed the reality of the journey and it made me feel like if they could do it I could do it.
“And that’s what I want to achieve with my TikTok particularly coming from Northern Ireland which has the lowest rate of female entrepreneurs in the UK.
“Only 26% of NI entrepreneurs are females and something I’m really passionate about is encouraging other women to go for it, so that was a big driver in sharing my experience and all the bits behind the scenes.”
From offering cheat sheets to help viewers understand e-commerce acronyms to stories about getting her product into the hands of Glamour magazine editor Samantha Barry, Katie’s TikTok is an extensive guide to “the ups and downs of starting a small business”.
“I felt like I was in movie that day running round New York trying to get the products sorted for Samantha Barry,” she laughs.
@katieannlove is this real life #smallbusiness #newyork
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“It was so mad, and I realised that this might be the only opportunity I’d get to gift the product to her, so I wanted to make the most of it, document it and try and make it work - which thankfully, I think I did.”
Although the prospect of her product appearing in Glamour is “very exciting” for now, Katie has turned her attention to growing and expanding Sprint.
“Going forward our main goal is to create time saving products that help people access professional level glam even if they don’t have much experience.
“I have multiple product ideas that are inspired by hacks which will hopefully make make-up easier and we’re already working on our second product which is coming out next year.
“So hopefully people love the product and want to see more from us,” she laughs.
The Eyeliner Aligner will launch on November 3 retailing at £15 it is available to buy from sprintbeauty.com and follow @sprintbeautyofficial on TikTok and Instagram to learn more and Katie’s journey
