Today we’d like to introduce you to Marvin & Kristen Speller.
Hi Marvin & Kristen, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
We are unique as a husband and wife founder team. Our 11 years together have led our deep love for one another into a deeper love for our community. I (Kristen) am a 14 years survivor of Domestic Violence as I escaped my ex-husband and lived in hiding four years.
While I was in hiding, I became very ill, with multiple hospitalizations from dealing with neurological trauma. My physician sent me for a paraben study and although it came back inconclusive, it was enough to get my wheels turning. So much so that when we started our Domestic Violence Glam UP Program in 2012, we reached out to several organic & sustainable beauty brands who donated to us for our survivors.
Our Glam UP program provides free makeovers to all survivors, survivor assistance and court advocacy. In 2017, we founded and created Doubledown Cosmetics. We started with a makeup bag made of leftover and recycled materials, that said “Starts With Foundation” on it. The makeup swatch on that bag was the foundation that I used to cover up my wounds to keep my job in Corporate America while I was being abused. It was an “ah ha” moment for the both of us to release our first product because we believe that everything starts with foundation and how we should use these pillars to lead with love.
Since the beginning of my husband and I meeting, we have served our Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking Communities of Los Angeles, CA.
In 2021 thru 2022, here at Doubledown Cosmetics in conjunction with our Non-Profit, From Here to There LA, we served the communities in several capacities. We partnered on the Street Team, significantly impacting the Domestic Violence and Unhoused Communities here in Los Angeles, CA.
Our hydration and sanitation drive reached over 500 of the Unhoused Veterans and provided our soldiers with sanitation supplies. We hydrated over 1000 men & women in both the Domestic Violence and Unhoused sector.
In 2021, over 75 Glam UP Makeovers for Doubledown Cosmetics were performed in Los Angeles County and The San Fernando Valley.
This year in 2022, we have assisted survivors of Domestic Violence & Human Trafficking in 5 court cases & legal proceedings this year, writing victim impact statements, working with Co-counsel attorneys, assisting with filing restraining orders and helping survivors find shelter.
We are an organic, cruelty-free, dye-free, gluten-free, and sustainable brand.
We are currently in Walmart on Walmart.com, Yuty (Internationally), Hellblack.com, Herbally Grounded in both locations physically, in Henderson and Las Vegas, NV. We will be expanding our retail partnerships in early 2023.
We are Doubledown Cosmetics, where we double down and we get it done.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This journey has been a long one for sure. It has not been a smooth road as I’m sure many entrepreneurs can relate to this. One of the things early on that my husband and I discussed is expanding our DTC and to go into retail. It’s something that we always wanted to do. In 2020, before the pandemic, we received our first retail partnership with Herbally Grounded in Las Vegas, NV, in their physical location and we expanded to the Henderson, NV location when that location opened. It has been a phenomenal partnership. Our family lives in Nevada in both Las Vegas and Henderson, so we are immensely grateful for this partnership. I have been shopping at Herbally Grounded for 11 years and they are the ultimate source of health, a wellness cove for Nevada and their community. We are in store often and we appreciate what they do for us and their community.
Being a small black and indie-owned brand, we were thrusted into the spotlight in 2020 after the tragic death of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, with the social unrest in our country. We were part of two accelerator programs Tower 28 and Credo for Change. We were able to meet with the “industry insiders” have access to mentors from Sephora, Ulta, Target and Credo. We were also faced with equity disparities in the beauty industry with the lack of diverse efforts and lack of shelf space for black-owned beauty brands. We saw a change in the industry hunting for black-owned brands, which was a trying time for many of us. It also was a time where we developed relationships with beauty editors as we received so much coverage that helped our consumer base and our DTC online sales.
In October of 2020, we pitched to Walmart remotely during the pandemic and we got into Walmart.com at our pitch. It was one of the highlights during this time, which was separate from our accelerator programs.
It was a learning process and we had to make a decision whether to raise money and attract VC’s to our brand or stay self-funded. Those decisions are very hard to make when you want to grow. We spent some time honing in on our brand and what makes us unique. We decided to stay self-funded as of now. We haven’t taken out any loans and we’ve done it on our own terms. We own our brand, we have no parent company and we are very proud of this. We also weren’t sure if were going to stay open, especially with celebrity brands entering our space of “clean beauty.” We had to regroup a bit and figure our if “our why” is bigger than closing. It was.
The pandemic also brought a lot of challenges for us, being a small brand with ingredients and suppliers not being able to get ingredients. Our labs were taxed, the beauty industry had to pivot and we were right in the middle of that. All of our products are made in the USA, which now at the end of 2022, is becoming a bit harder to do with many beauty brands sourcing from other countries. We are staying the course as we proud to be made in the USA.
We also weren’t sure if we wanted to attach ourselves to another mentorship or accelerator so we took a year off from applying. We had so many offers, generous offers to apply to different programs, but ultimately we took time off & this was a great thing.
In February 2022 during Black History Month, Celebrity esthetician and skincare guru, Shani Darden, decided to impact this beauty space and offer herself for her own mentorship program for people of color. I was ecstatic because I have been part of Shani’s skincare community, bought her products at Sephora and we use her products with our Domestic Violence survivors…
I knew from the beginning if we could apply and get into this program, that Shani would understand our voice. We applied on the last day, at the last 2 hours. I was so confident and my husband and I manifested us getting in, and we did. Shani and her husband, Tony, have changed our lives. Not just as brand owners but as people.
We are proud to say that they have not only helped us rebrand our entire brand, but they understand Marvin and I as people, as humans first. They understand our community commitment and what we do and how we do it. Her program is like no other mentorship program because of how she runs her own business. Her team is exceptional. Shani and Tony are the nicest people and we are so thankful that they are not only guiding us for future success but that they are our friends. Our weekly calls are something that we look forward too. We have a big year coming in 2023, so get ready for Doubledown to double down and get it done. We are excited for what the future holds.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Doubledown Cosmetics?
We are a unique brand as we specialize in Organic cosmetics and skincare. We are known for our mission-led and giveback component of brand, our unique formulations, how well our color cosmetics perform and our plant-based ingredients that are incredible effective on the skin. We are also known for being hands-on with our customers, influencers, editors and industry professionals as well. We are a front-facing brand.
We are set apart because of our Los Angeles Glam UP Program for our Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking survivors. We are hands-on in the community. We provide free makeovers to survivors who have wounds so that they may keep their jobs in Corporate America, go to their job interviews and court hearings with dignity. We also provide survivor assistance and court advocacy. To be able to use our cosmetics on our survivors is a privilege, formulated with the best ingredients that we can source and find.
When you shop with us, you shop with intention. You shop knowing who we are and what we are about.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
If you or someone you know is going through Domestic Violence, please call 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE). Human Trafficking hotline is 1-888-373-7888.
Pricing:
- $16 Mini Skincare Kit
- 5.99 The Present Vegan Lip Balm
- $25.oo Organic Rosewater Face Mask
- $68.00 The Mix Cleanser
- $25.00 Rose, Wild Cherry Bark and Cucumber Hydrosol
- $12.00 The BabsGlo Eyeshadow
Contact Info:
- Website: www.doubledowncosmetics.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/doubledowncosmetics
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/DoubledownCosmetics
- Youtube: Youtube.com/Doubledowncosmetics
Image Credits
Photos provided by: Doubledown Cosmetics & Rose Quartz Media
