Community Highlights: Meet Sayo Martin of Matte & Dewey Inc

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sayo Martin.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
The idea for Matte & Dewey actually started years ago with my sister. We’re those types of people that go into a makeup store and freeze like a deer in headlights. We kept asking each other the same thing — why is this so hard? Why does something we do every single day still feel like a skill we never quite got? So we started sketching out an express mobile makeup concept on wheels. Bring the pros to the people. We were really onto something… and then COVID hit and the whole dream got shelved.

Fast forward a few years. I had a speaking engagement where a wonderful artist (shout out to Candee Caldwell) did my makeup. And I looked like me — the sharpest, most camera-ready version of me. It was quick, it was natural, it was easy. And I walked out thinking this is what everyone deserves on the daily. Not just when there’s a microphone or big event involved. The old question came right back, but louder this time. Why isn’t there a place where you can just sit down and get your makeup done — fast, beautifully, without it being a whole thing? A Drybar for makeup.

And here we are.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Smooth-ish. My background is in marketing and business strategy, which is the advantage — I know what it takes to build something from idea to scale. The challenge is that I’m not coming from inside the beauty industry, so I’m learning the nuances of building a beauty services brand in real time. And not just any services brand — one that’s asking people to change their routine. The whole pitch is don’t do your makeup yourself; we’ll do it for you. That’s behavior change, and behavior change is the hardest thing to sell.

So these first few months have been about two things at once: building the brand and the demand on one side, and refining the service, experience, and pricing on the other. Trying to learn fast while moving even faster. I’m constantly trading off time and money, and using the long-term vision as the guiding light when the day-to-day gets noisy.

No major speed bumps yet — but ask me again in six months!

As you know, we’re big fans of Matte & Dewey Inc. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Matte & Dewey is an express face bar in Hermosa Beach. The simplest way to describe what we do: we’re building Drybar for makeup.

Professional makeup has always existed for weddings, photo shoots, and big events — the moments where you’re willing to spend two hours and a few hundred dollars to look incredible. What’s never existed is a place to get your makeup done on a regular Tuesday. Quickly. Affordably. Without it being a whole production. That’s the gap we’re filling, and that’s the category we’re building.

Our flagship service is The Edit — skin prep and makeup in about an hour, walk in, walk out camera-ready. One service, one price, no upsell theater. It’s designed for the everyday: a presentation, a date, a school pickup where you actually want to feel like yourself. We also offer Hits — quick add-ons like brows, lashes, face gem details or event-ready contouring — for when you want a fast lift as a standalone or with your Edit.

What sets us apart isn’t a single technique or product. It’s the format. Most beauty businesses are built around the special occasion. We’re built around the routine. That changes everything — the pace of the appointment, the price point, how the menu is structured, how the space feels when you walk in. No pep, no pressure, no performance. Just sit down, get it done, get on with your day.

What I’m most proud of, brand-wise, is that we’ve held the line on simplicity. In beauty, the temptation is always to add more — more services, more upgrades, more steps. We’ve built something that respects your time as much as your face. That’s rare, and it’s intentional.

What’s next?
There’s also something new coming to The Edit in May — a skin-focused experience we’re calling The Workout. I’ll save the details for the launch, but it’s the next layer of what Matte & Dewey is becoming: the routine, professional version of taking care of how you show up.

And Hermosa is just the first chair.

If you’re in the South Bay, come try The Edit. If you’re not, hang tight — we’re just getting started.

Pricing:

• The Edit: $65
• Hits: $35 with Edit; $45 standalone
• The Workout: $55

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mattedewey.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattedewey.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mattedewey
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mattedewey/
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mattedewey
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/matte-and-dewey-hermosa-beach
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@mattedewey

Image Credits
Credit: Matte & Dewey Inc