Jacqe and Rissa’s pursuit of happiness

MANILA, Philippines - The most effective business models have these four pillars in common: passion for the product, a bond between partners that’s impermeable by stress, time and fame, and wealth of experience and a healthy desire to grow. Considering marketing veteran Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez and STAR columnist and model Rissa Mananquil-Trillo have each had their own share of experience in the makeup and personal care business, as well as  fulfilment in their individual careers, we can safely say that theirs is a business model that’s built to last. Their friendship is not of the tabloid kind — they’ve been good work and life friends for a long time and it’s only recently, after they’ve launched their makeup line, Happy Skin, that the public is knowing about it. They both possess an almost nerdy knowledge on makeup that reveals itself as soon as they speak — you can tell they love the stuff and they love what they’ve created so much that it’s difficult for anyone listening to them not to love it, too. Happy Skin products, however, speak for themselves. Shut Up & Kiss Me, Don’t Get Mad, Get Even, and Eye Need a Miracle are statements any girl can relate to, and they are also names of some of the duo’s best-selling products. It seems Rissa and Jacqe have found the answer to the mystery: What do women want? Here, the STAR chats with the Happy Skin founders on business, friendship, and the makeup line that’s making their gloss-stained pouts smile.

SUPREME: How did the idea for Happy Skin come about?

JACQE GUTIERREZ: Creating a brand to call my own has been a life-long dream for me as a marketeer. I’ve been in the business of personal care for the last decade and I take much pride in creating products that make women feel more beautiful and confident. Having talked to a lot of Filipinas, I knew that there is a need for a skin-caring makeup. A lot of women fear using makeup because they think it would do more harm than good.

RISSA TRILLO: It has always been my dream to have my own makeup line. Not the kind that merely attaches my name onto the packaging but the kind that allows me to be hands-on with creating, formulating, testing everything from the start. Partnering with Jacqe, a revered heavyweight in the skincare industry, allowed me to make this dream come true.

You being a model and mom, and Jacque having a corporate background with a lot of experience in personal care, what were your respective inputs in the makeup line?

JACQE: I think it was really a great collaboration between Rissa and I. Rissa is a respected beauty columnist and a model who has a lot of experience in trying different makeup brands. I’ve seen her at work and she will not stop until we get the perfect formulation before we release it on the market. She’s also very much involved in conceptualizing our PR and digital strategies as we bring Happy Skin to life. I oversee the entire strategy and operations of the brand.

RISSA: Jacqe possesses one of the most brilliant minds I know. She brings a global touch to the brand and likewise envisions an international path for the Happy Skin brand. I love it that she’s a perfectionist like me!

What was your mindset going into the business?

RISSA: I once asked a makeup artist what was the most difficult thing she had to deal with in her profession. Her answer? Bad skin. I’ve been modeling for more than a decade and I have had every imaginable makeup brand on my face. As a beauty columnist, I’ve road tested countless beauty products. My skin has been subjected to pimples, rashes, burns, and itching — all for the sake of beauty. But I have likewise made the most wonderful discoveries and realized which products are worth keeping. Truly good makeup should be your ally — not your enemy. With Happy Skin, I really wanted to be able to create products I can swear my life on.

What is the most unique thing about Happy Skin?

JACQE: Happy Skin is the first makeup line that offers an entire range of skin-caring makeup. Happy Skin was specially created for women who want to look naturally beautiful but want to make sure that their skin is also cared for — it’s for women who don’t want to compromise on beauty. All Happy Skin products are infused with special skincare ingredients such as Japanese tea leaf, cherry blossom, hyaluronic acid and Argan oil, to name a few. 

RISSA: We believe that healthy skin is happy skin. Other makeup products give you great-looking skin only as long as you have the product on. But with Happy Skin, you continue to enjoy and experience great-looking skin even after you wash it off.

The packaging is really cute and girly — why did you choose this particular look and image for the brand, as opposed to, say, the all-black packaging of many makeup brands these days?

JACQE: Our goal was to create makeup products that are simple, easy to use, fun and not intimidating. When I started using makeup, I was very intimidated with these all-black packaging with 20 shades for a single product. I always end up not getting anything coz I couldn’t decide what’s the best shade for me. So I know the frustration of a regular girl when faced with an intimidating makeup counter. Makeup should be fun and easy!

RISSA: Happy Skin is all about makeup for real women — not experts. We’re not telling women that you need three steps or four layers of products to achieve flawless skin or the perfect flush on the cheeks. We’re telling them you can achieve it with just one product — the right one. We also wanted to make sure that our packaging is a joy to whip out of your kikay kit.

What is your favorite makeup product and did you go all OC when creating it for Happy Skin?

JACQE: I’m always on the lookout for a light foundation that’s natural looking and wouldn’t clog my pores so I became obsessed with formulating and re-formulating our Second Skin Creme until we got it right. I truly believe that it is one of our most special products as it doesn’t contain silicone which may clog up the pores (silicone-free is now a big thing in Japan).

RISSA: My favorite product is the Don’t Get Mad, Get Even powder foundation. This is perfect for days you want to skip foundation but hide your blemishes. Even if you zoom in, it simply looks like real skin! When we were testing several Japanese samples for this, I was very picky with the coverage, feel and finish. When I made my choice among the different formulations, Jacqe laughed and said, “You really know your products. The one you chose is actually the most expensive.”

You’ve said that you are like sisters. How long have you known each other? What’s it like being business partners now?

JACQE: We’ve known each other for the past four years and we’ve gone on different trips all over the globe already. I know that she can eat whatever she wants and still maintain her model figure (seriously she eats like there’s no tomorrow so I love eating with her!). I also know Rissa is very responsible and a perfectionist at heart. Rissa is very smart, sharp, creative and also super OC. I’m able to sleep at night because I know that she will always have my back.

RISSA: We grew very close when I became brand ambassador for Pond’s. I’ve been with Ponds since 2007 up to the present and Jacqe devoted four years of her Unilever life to the brand. I’ve witnessed how hard she works, how efficient she is with time. She is also very passionate about the things she believes in. Above all, she knows how to lead her team and is very respected by her peers.

If you had to have one golden rule for makeup, what would it be?

JACQE: Makeup shouldn’t have to be a compromise to good skin. 

RISSA: Truly good makeup should be your ally — not your enemy — in making you look and feel more beautiful.

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Happy Skin products start at P499. For the holiday season, Happy Skin offers a free makeup purse in faux croc skin with a minimum purchase of P2,000. A pretty vanity kit also comes free with the purchase of P5,000 worth of products. The offer is good while supplies last.

Happy Skin is available at Rustan’s The Beauty Source in Makati and Edsa Shangri-La, Beauty Bar branches(Greenbelt 5, Rockwell Power Plant, Podium, Alabang Town Center, Mall of Asia, Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Eastwood Mall,TriNoma, Robinsons Magnolia, and Ayala Cebu, as well as selected Plains and Prints shops.

Online, you can buy Happy Skin at shop.beautybar.com.ph. They deliver nationwide. Visit www.happyskincosmetics.com and follow @happyskin_ph on Instagram  and Twitter. Also check out #happyskinbeauty on Instagram.