Aaliyah Arnold, founder and CEO of BossUp Cosmetics, hopes she will see her brand of lipsticks and eyeshadows on the shelves of Sephora and Ulta Beauty. BossUp is the 20 year-old’s second company, and right now it is riding high thanks to its color-changing lip oil—which claims to look different on every person depending on their pH—that has gone viral on TikTok, helping it sell over 500,000 units.
BossUp, an indie brand especially popular with women of color, currently offers over 100 products including blushes, body lotions, and masks. The Houston startup employs about 10 people; all are Arnold’s family members, including her mom, who handles the company’s finances. BossUp makes many of its products, including the body scrubs, lip masks, and body lotions, as well as all the lip oils and lip glosses. For eye shadows and blushes, it relies on an overseas lab. Arnold used to make the lip oil herself but delegated this duty so she could focus on running BossUp. “A lot of people think I have a manager to handle this, to do that. I don't. I do everything—the email marketing, the product photography, the packaging. Everything I do myself,” she said.
