Meet Alexandra Xuan of AHYUN

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandra Xuan

Hi Alexandra, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I have always loved beauty and have been surrounded by it all my life. I loved watching my mother apply makeup and skincare when I was younger. When traveling to Asia for family gatherings, my aunts would exchange beauty products from where they live and it has been an ongoing unspoken tradition. The first beauty product I owned was a lip balm and I remember feeling so pretty and cool having it. I think I felt the way I did with it not only because of the way I looked with a glossy finish on my lips; rather, it was more the fun process of applying it. The fun of the scent, the texture, the look of the packaging –– this all brings a lot of nostalgia.

The fun of beauty has stuck with me as an adult, so I accepted a role at an influencer marketing platform where I have been working with startup beauty brands and global brands alike. I have loved every day of this job helping brands to share their products with the world. But I have also always had an appetite to create something of my own –– something meaningful to me personally beyond a product.

So, I created AHYUN (pronounced ae-hee-un), which is a name that has two parts: “A” and “HYUN”. “A” stands for Alexandra and “HYUN” is my Korean last name. I am ethnically Korean and Chinese –– I wanted to share my Asian heritage through my brand. Just as importantly, I wanted the products that we produce to be some of the best in their category.

AHYUN is currently in the lip care category with one product, which is our Matcha Vanilla Glossy Lip Syrup, a non-sticky lip treatment that was formulated with fungal acne prone skin and sensitive skin in mind.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The process of building a brand in the beauty industry has been fun, and I fully intend to keep it that way! To me, beauty will always be fun.

However, one challenge that I have encountered is that the beauty industry is incredibly saturated –– probably because of how drawn people are to the fun –– especially in the lip care category. We see brands come out with lip products on what seems like every day.

While consumers seem to love trying new beauty products, especially new lip products, they may start feeling decision fatigue from how many products are out there. Additionally, many brands are already established as trusted and well-known legacy brands that customers repeatedly buy from.

I have personally tried many lip products as they are my favorite to try. I am still optimistic, though, that if and when a consumer is able to be interested in and discover AHYUN, they will enjoy how comfortable our Matcha Vanilla Glossy Lip Syrup feels while also learning more about my Asian heritage. Especially for me, I have had instances where I wanted a lip product that is fungal-acne safe and I am glad to have created one that excludes known fungal acne triggering ingredients.

As you know, we’re big fans of AHYUN. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
AHYUN is a clean lip balm brand based in LA that strives to elevate every lip care routine with thoughtfully created and high-quality formulas suitable for all skin types, even sensitive and fungal-acne prone skin. We also incorporate skin-loving ingredients rooted in Asian heritage.

We launched with our Matcha Vanilla Glossy Lip Syrup, a clean lip treatment that combines the nourishing power of matcha with the comforting sweetness of vanilla. It feels so cushiony without the stickiness. I personally like to describe it as a pillow for your lips because of how comfortable it feels. We want to develop in the lip care category and intend to grow carefully with high quality products.

Some key ingredients in our Matcha Vanilla Glossy Lip Syrup include:

Matcha Extract
Squalane
Goji Berry Extract
Red Date Extract
Rosemary Extract

What matters most to you? Why?
Happiness matters the most to me. Happiness to me means living a life without any regrets and being authentic to who I am. This drives every decision I have made for myself so far and translates to every aspect of my life –– my relationships, wellness, and career.

Building AHYUN has contributed a lot to my happiness. It is such a joy to be creative and build a community around the brand. I have also been able to meet brilliant female founders in LA and I am learning so much every day!

Pricing:

• $21 – AHYUN Matcha Vanilla Glossy Lip Syrup

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ahyunskin.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ahyunskin