Face Forward: Haleys Beauty Brings Its Complexion Collection To Ipsy

Haleys Beauty is shooting face first for Ipsy’s audience.

Not yet a year old, the digitally-driven complexion brand is expanding beyond its website this month by entering the subscription service’s Glam Bags and shopping platform. Haleys’ bestselling Re:Fine Prime will hit the bags while its complete collection of 22 stockkeeping units priced from $12 to $25 spanning foundation, pressed powder and primer will be available at the Shopper e-commerce arm of Ipsy.

“I’ve subscribed to Ipsy, and I love it because it allows subscribers to try tried-and-true brands that are really well-known, but also lesser-known indie brands,” says Haleys Beauty founder Ashley Ocampo. “I’ve been able to try products that I might normally have thought I wasn’t interested in, but I ended up discovering I really loved them. It’s great for beauty junkies open to trying not just new products, but new brands. That’s why it’s really beneficial for a brand like mine.”

Ocampo is squarely in the beauty junkie camp. Introduced to the inner workings of the beauty industry during a college internship at Avon, she went on enmesh herself in research and development at a skincare lab and dabble in technical ingredient sales before taking a stab at an entrepreneurial venture. Haleys, which is an anagram of Ocampo’s given name, specializes in color cosmetics infused with skincare goodies such as goji fruit and licorice root extracts, camelia tea, hyaluronic acid and vitamin E.

“Growing up, I had problematic, acne-prone skin, so I wanted to create a line focused on treating the complexion with non-irritating, skin-friendly ingredients. I like to describe it as hybrid makeup or makeup with skincare benefits,” says Ocampo. “Throughout our collection, there are ingredients that improve the skin as you wear the products.”

Haleys foundation formulas are designed to be buildable to suit customers seeking sheer, medium and full coverage. The brand is adding nine complexion products this year to its range, and the upcoming releases include shade extensions of existing offerings. There are currently six shades of the pressed powder Re:Cover and nine shades of the liquid matte foundation Re:Set.

Haleys has primarily concentrated on lifting brand recognition since its launch in April. It came out of the gate with around 25,000 followers on Instagram. Haleys’ fan base has been fueled by a strategic social media program seeding influencers of various sizes bonded by radiant skin that’s an ideal canvas for the brand’s products. Ocampo believes its emphasis on complexion has aided Haleys in breaking through the clutter of direct-to-consumer beauty brands. The sleek, simple packaging doesn’t hurt either.

“Consumer behavior is definitely changing and turning more toward online shopping. Especially in beauty, online brands have just exploded,” she says. “I saw an opportunity in the face category because there’s a ton of online-only brands that do lip and eye, and I felt the face category was still searching for big players. I thought there was a real opportunity to jump in.”

Ocampo, who’s 31-years-old, figures Haleys’ core demographic is women aged 18 to 35. They’re not the types to shy away from checking out beauty business neophytes. She speculates their bathrooms and makeup bags are filled with brands like BH Cosmetics and Colourpop that cultivated customers digitally prior to embarking into retail.

Of course, Ocampo is curious how Haleys participation in Ipsy’s programs will impact sales, but she’s eager to see the brand reach customers it’s not tapping now and enlarge its social media presence, too. The Ipsy partnership precedes Haleys’ anticipated debut at brick-and-mortar retail later this year, another significant distribution gain for the brand.

“Retail will be a huge game-changer for us,” says Ocampo. “The major feedback we’re getting is that people are challenged to find their foundation shade online. Being in-store will bridge that gap to help them find their shade, and it will continue to help with better brand awareness.”