She is fiercely intelligent, genuine, and beautiful on the inside and out. She is the CEO and Founder of the Dallas-based beauty empire, BeautyBio. She is loved and admired by millions of women around the world for her honesty in skincare topicals and tools. And now we are sitting down with this inspiring woman to take a peak into her busy life in this industry. Yes, Storied Beauty has this exclusive beauty chat with Dallas beauty boss babe, Jamie O’Banion.
Exclusive Interview with Jamie
Jamie, thank you in advance for doing this interview and for giving everyone a glimpse into your background in the industry and passion behind Beauty Bio. I believe it is fair to say you have been a role model to so many young women, pursuing their dreams and really making it happen. Your tenacity to bring truth to beauty is your company’s mission, and so many of your consumers are drawn to that transparency. In addition to running your beauty empire, you are a busy mother of three. Even though there is not often an even balance for women, I would love to hear how you create time for everyone while running a thriving and always expanding business. So, let’s begin!
LF: What does the first hour of your day look like?
JO: I started a new habit this year trying to spend my first waking minutes meditating to help clear my head, focus on the day and start off with a prayer. I try to work out 3 days a week in the morning and usually get the kids up before I start my workout at home and will often make breakfast for the fam in between sets. I get the kids out the door, get ready for the day and jump on my first meeting via Zoom or at the office.
LF: Can you tell us about the early days with Beauty Bio, especially launching a patented tool that would become a huge self-care phenomenon?
JO: I grew up learning to speak beauty as a second language by watching my father (and eventually working alongside him) in our family owned cosmetic lab. And I witnessed prestige brands using minimal concentrations of active ingredients to save on costs but still make clinical claims. This fairy dusting of actives didn’t make sense to me, it felt like smoke and mirrors. I wanted to launch a line that was not only efficacious, but formula-honest and results driven, while also empowering the consumer with enough education to make the decisions right for her or him.
GloPRO grew out of our research in the lab seeing ingredients have incredible results in a petri dish (in vitro) but not the same results in real life (in vivo). Just like a seed can’t bloom sitting on the surface of the soil, we developed and patented microneedling over a decade ago to help create invisible conduits to the deeper layers of the skin where our ingredients can actually work. More protoypes and testing than I can recount, we finally came up with the perfect model that was incredibly efficacious, easy to use and painless. The combination of tools and topicals together is the ultimate secret to incredible skin. We launched GloPRO®, the first ever at-home patented microneedling tool in 2016, which was designed to replicate the results of in-office microneedling treatments in consumer’s hands without the per treatment price tag. And our mission to this day, as is inscribed on our conference room wall, is #TruthinBeauty. We’re committed to total transparency in our process and products and educating the consumer. As long as they know what’s in their skincare, we’re happy.
LF: What tips do you have for young entrepreneurial women looking to begin or expand their business?
JO: You will always make the right decision if you put your consumer hat on. Learn every single piece of your business – from supply chain to creative to finance – become a sponge, let go of any ego and don’t be afraid to ask if you don’t know. Fail quickly and learn from your mistakes. Above all – only start for the right reasons. Building a business is not for the faint of heart and only authentic passion will give you the fuel to power through the late nights, sacrifices and schedule.
LF: How do you manage it all: being a mother of three and running an empire? Do you have a secret weapon that could potentially help other mothers experiencing the same juggle?
JO: A team! I rely heavily on my team and my amazing – we call her the mayor of BeautyBio – assistant who keeps us all on schedule. Anytime a brand has high velocity growth, the greatest challenge is always prioritization. If everything is important, nothing is important, so it’s crucial to have those people who can help keep everyone on track.
LF: Any hidden talents?
JO: I think in another life I was a florist; flowers are my love language so it’s a natural gravitation for me to enjoy arranging them. I speak French, love spending time in Europe and am a pianist – in fact at one point I thought about majoring in music.
LF: Can you share your top three ride or die Beauty Bio products at the moment?
JO: I’m obsessed with Glass & Gloss, our new 2-step pro-grade facial system. We just launched it at the end of May after years of working on this new nanoderma exfoliation technology that’s better for our skin and the environment than the traditional exfoliants we’re all used to. These new crystals are spherical (instead of jagged) and biodegradable, so not only are they more gentle on skin but they don’t create waste in the usage process – non-biodegradable exfoliants often get swallowed by marine life. And the Gloss has this incredible bounce-back tech formulated with mineral-rich seawater that restores elasticity and hydration to skin, so you can get that “just had a facial glow” from home.
My other two top faves are GloPRO® (my #1 love always and forever) that I use 3x/week to help my skin naturally rebuild collagen, keeping it firm and wrinkle-free, and I’m majorly crushing on ZenBubble. Summer has officially hit Texas and our Cryo Roller with ZenBubble is like one big ice water for skin, it feels ahhhh-mazing. Use it on the face to de-puff and sculpt and on the body to soothe muscles, tension and joint pain. ZenBubble is also an amazing primer as people are choosing to wear makeup again as we are out and about.
LF: How do you get “unready” with Beauty Bio at night?
JO:
- Cleanse with The Balance pH Balancing Gel Cleanser
- Prep skin for a GloPRO® treatment with a GloPRO® Prep Pad
- Use GloPRO® for 60 seconds total on my face (including cheeks, forehead, nose-to-mouth lines, between the brows and chin)
- Treat with The Nightly Retinol Repair Serum (1-2 drops)
- Hydrate with The Quench Rapid Recovery Cream
And then I’ll do Glass & Gloss 1-2x/week to reset skin on nights I’m not using GloPRO®, leaves my skin dewy and velvety soft for days, love.
LF: To conclude: A storied beauty is an unforgettable icon whom you admire in the beauty and fashion arena. When you look back, who are some of the storied beauties who inspired you in your career, and who is someone you consider a modern storied beauty today?
JO: That’s easy, my parents. My dad because of his achievements in cosmetics and pioneering the at-home microneedling phenomena. And my mom, she’s raised 6 kids and I’ve never heard her complain a day in her life or speak ill of another. And in terms of scaling a beauty or fashion business in today’s market, I look to my strong female friendships, many of whom are entrepreneurs and mothers like Amber Venz-Box, Caitlin Wilson, Rachel Parcell, Nancy Twine, Gable Shaikh and many others. I see how they manage their growth, their teams, their travel schedules and their family life and draw inspiration from them. It truly takes a village!
