This blog post was written by Jen Cassamajor. 

If you’re a (clean) makeup and beauty enthusiast as much as we are, you’re probably already familiar with the name Kosas. The makeup brand whose catchword is Makeup for skincare freaks has become a must in the beauty market. But do you know the woman behind the successful company that has won the hearts of Hailey Bieber and Gwyneth Paltrow? Meet Kosas’s founder: Sheena Yaitanes.

Who’s Sheena Yaitanes?

@sheena

Growing up with a mom working as a representative for Clarins and Clinique, Sheena Yaitanes - now Zadeh-Daly - has always been interested in makeup and beauty as a child, playing with products but also actually studying brands and their strategies. After this early exposure and passion for the world of beauty, Sheena Yaitanes followed her obsession for innovation and studied biology at University of California Irvine - which turned out to be pretty useful to actually understand formulas. Creative at art, she then proceeded to study fine arts, a field that truly allowed her to delve into her love for beauty, another great asset when entering the makeup world. Knowing she wanted to found her company, she added on top of all that educational background a business degree that completed the perfect makeup brand founder starter pack.

Kosas, the clean makeup brand we needed

@kosas

Why create another brand and not simply work for a big name in this industry she felt so drawn to? Well, Sheena Yaitanes decided to create what she had desperately tried to find for a decade: the perfect lipstick, a foundation that still looks good at the end of the day… In contrast to all those brands with never ending ranges of products, Sheena’s goal was to create a simple brand with limited but effective products. That’s what led her to launch Kosas - named for the yoga philosophy of koshas - in 2015 with the Weightless Lipstick,  a nourishing and long-lasting lipstick for everyday wear available in 4 shades originally, to match different skin tones. Today, after 8 years, Kosas has everything you need to get you ready for the day. Our favorite products? The Wet Lip Oil Gloss, a best seller, the Revealer Concealer celebrities IT product and the Tinted Face Oil, our founder’s favorite foundation.  

What makes the LA based makeup brand so popular is probably how comfortable the formulas are with wearable shades meant to enhance our natural beauty. We obviously also love the fact that Sheena Yaitanes has a minimalistic approach when it comes to ingredients, with a strong base of natural elements such as rosemary extract and jojoba oil. It’s quite simple, Kosas is everything we love (and need) : a cool and clean makeup brand founded by an inspiring woman!

Next up to read : What Is Clean Beauty ?