Huda Kattan was working as a makeup artist in Dubai, doing freelance gigs for brides and fashion shows. In 2010, at her sister’s suggestion, she started a beauty blog called ‘Huda Beauty’ to share makeup tutorials. The beauty industry was already saturated with influencers and massive brands like MAC, Sephora, and L’Oréal. Huda was an unknown makeup artist with no business experience, no investors, and no distribution. She was competing against billion-dollar corporations with unlimited marketing budgets.
The Turning Point
Huda’s viral moment came in 2013 when she posted a tutorial on applying false lashes. The video exploded, racking up millions of views. She realized her audience craved authentic advice from someone who understood Middle Eastern beauty standards—fuller brows, dramatic lashes, bold looks. She used her life savings ($6,000) to create her first product: a line of false lashes. She convinced Sephora Middle East to stock them. They sold out instantly. Celebrities like Kim Kardashian posted selfies wearing Huda lashes, creating a frenzy. Demand skyrocketed.
The Strategy
Huda’s strategy combined influencer marketing with product excellence. She used her social media to tease launches, creating hype cycles. She listened obsessively to customer feedback, iterating products based on comments. She expanded from lashes to eyeshadow palettes, foundations, and lipsticks—each launch meticulously crafted and marketed through her channels. She also leveraged Instagram’s visual nature perfectly, posting high-quality content daily. She remained the face of the brand, building trust through personal connection. She bootstrapped initially, then took investment from TSG Consumer Partners to scale globally.
The Results
Huda Beauty is now valued at $1.2 billion, making Huda one of the world’s richest self-made women. The brand generates over $200 million in annual revenue and is sold in Sephora stores worldwide. Huda has 50+ million Instagram followers, making her one of the top beauty influencers globally. She built a beauty empire that competes directly with century-old corporations, proving that social media could launch consumer brands faster than traditional retail ever could.
