Like the foundation of so many innovative and ingenious businesses, 23-year-old Iris Smit’s big idea came from a daily task that just was too complicated.
Surely there was an easier way?
“I’m hoping that my product will take the stress out of every woman’s morning routine and get them out the door three or four times quicker than they normally would,” the 23-year-old interior architecture graduate told Shark Tank on Tuesday night.
“Winged eyeliner is probably one of the hottest makeup trends of all time, but for many reasons it’s also one of the most hated for how difficult and time-consuming it can be to master,” Iris said.
She told the entrepreneurs she had worn winged eyeliner since about the age of 16.
“I was known for my winged eyeliner look — everyone knew me as the cat lady. Every single morning it was the same old story, battling it out in the bathroom trying to get my wings to at least look like sisters let alone twins.
“It got to the point where I thought, surely there’s an easier solution? At the time I was actually studying interior architecture. Having that design background, I thought, well how about I come up with my own design solution?”
Check out Iris’ pitch here. Post continues after audio.
So, Iris came up with the Quick Flick: a winged eyeliner stamp that comes in three different sizes. It’s also waterproof, vegan friendly and cruelty-free. She invested about $10,000 of her own money and, since launching in June 2017, says she made $310,000 in sales.
After pitching, Steve Baxter agreed to invest $300,000 in the business, impressed about her gross margins, after spending about $5 on the product and selling them for $34.99.
So, is the product any good?
Well, Mamamia lifestyle writer Amy Clark tested the product earlier this year. This is what she had to say:
The stamping bit was ridiculously easy. Yes, it might take a few tries to find your perfect wing spot, but once you’ve lined it up, all you have to do is press down and voila, YOU’VE GOT A WING. It’s great.
And it stays there. I rubbed the spot on my hand where I trialled it a few hours into the day, and it didn’t smudge at all. The product is also “long lasting and waterproof”, so you won’t have to worry about it disappearing on you.
This product is good. Really good. Easy-to-use, dependable and honest, The Quick Flick does indeed do what it says it does.
With a bit of practice on my part, I’ll be relying on this to create my cat eye eyeliner looks from now on, simply because it takes the stress out of creating the wing.
You can find Amy’s full review here.
