Rising Stars: Meet Megs Cahill of Indio, CA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Megs Cahill.

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?
Hey I’m Megs I founded GetStonned meaning “get rhinestonned” weeks before the pandemic in 2020. As a professional makeup artist working with top talent and touring the globe with a pop star, I would watch my clients on stage and think back to my childhood of competitive dancing with my rhinestoned out costumes and thought .. I wonder if my clients would be up to letting me put rhinestones on them? I grew up competitive dancing wanting to rhinestone everything- yet my family couldn’t afford the expensive rhinestones that sparkled the most on stage. When I was 22 I found a rhinestone vendor that was offering the top tier quality at a price I could afford and bring into my makeup kit. I guess you could say this brand is an ode to my younger self who wished she had the fully rhinestoned costume on stage. I brought the stage to my clients.. then to daily life. Jan of 2020 came and season 1 of EUPHORIA was trending- everyone wanted rhinestones but all that was available were plastic “gems” nothing like the quality of rhinestones I knew were out there. I started my business with the goal to fill the gap in the market, mesh my worlds, and bring high quality rhinestones to the cosmetic space. I am proud to be one of the first brands to niche rhinestones of my quality to the beauty world. It took off immediately and got the attention of the EUPHORIA makeup team- they mentioned they havent been able to find such quality stones and asked me to sponsor season 2 (Yes, Cassie’s iconic rhinestone winged liner is my holo-ghost rhinestones). Then the pandemic hit- I almost shut down but as a true entrepreneur pivoted to rhinestone masks. One day my phone blew up and Ariana Grande had posted on her instagram in my mask and truly broke the internet. I took this as a sign to keep going and I am so glad I did. in 2024 I launched my very own cosmetic product- the “STONNED” palette a high quality high impact palette that reflected my best selling rhinestones and it took off. Little did I know I was pregnant at the time and found out the day after I launched. Once again I questioned everything yet pulled through and developed another viral tiktok hit- my glitter lipbalms or “GlitBalms”. I now am proud to have evolved my company into a cosmetic and rhinestone brand and hope to only expand further as a newly postpartum mom running this brand on my own. Which some days are harder than others being a new mom who is navigating my late ADHD diagnosis wearing all hats of this business. I truly want GetStonned to encourage individuals to stand out in their daily lives and express their individuality through rhinestones and cosmetics. I am warning you my products will turn heads.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There has been many struggles, hurdles you could say and bootstrapping a business alone is very uncertain. Starting a non essential product based company weeks before the pandemic was a very scary feeling when the news broke. Why would anyone want rhinestones that you’d wear out when we are all stuck inside? Like the born entrepreneur I am, I pivoted. Masks- who wouldn’t want a rhinestone mask? I mean, Ariana grande wore our rhinestone mask for her VMA rehearsals and it broke the internet. So much press and so many sales flooded in.. I took it as a sign to keep going. Jumping to developing cosmetics with no prior knowledge other than color theory and years of working with makeup was another uphill battle. I wanted any and all products launched to be the highest quality with every detail reflecting my artistry and creative brain. The palette took over a year to develop and so many times I was inches from giving up but I pushed through and it is one of my most proud moments to date. When I launched the palette I found out the next day I was pregnant and questioned everything.. how do I navigate being a solo-preneur and a mom? work form home stay at home mom? Will I be able to financially weather this? Here I am 7 months postpartum with my beautiful son and successfully launched a tiktok viral lip balm with my baby in my arms. To “mompreneurs” out there- not every day will we feel like the best business woman and not every day will we feel like the best mom- I am not too sure if there is true work life balance out there. This CEO mom life is navigation, surrender, and being ok with the push and pull between scaling a business and raising a connected family.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have had a love for makeup since I could hold an eyeliner, truthfully I have a photo of my cousin and I where I completely covered her in eyeliner at 4 years old. When I was allowed to wear makeup it came second hand to me. I ran out the gates at 18 working with top talent in the social space and even worked internationally at age 20. I navigated the beauty influencer world while being a pro working artist living on tour busses or working on your favorite social media influencer- Tana Mongeau for example. Many people doubted me, I had to prove to my own family that I could sustain this career and am proud to say I successfully did so. While juggling my clients I was building my social presense which led me to working with huge brands like Estee Lauder, Too Faced, Bobbi Brown, and Urban Decay to name a few. Unfortunately the beauty space is a dog eat dog world and very catty. At times it felt like I would never make it, I was so exhausted from being on call and living my life at the hands of someone else that I said goodbye and built my business. I have always loved makeup and questioned why I let the industry strip my love for it away? I didn’t know then but I was meant to be on the other side. To be the innovator that develops unique high impact cosmetics to disrupt the industry for my fellow artists and beauty influencers.

What does success mean to you?
If you asked me last year I would have said Money. Now 7 months postpartum my brain chemistry has shifted as a mother and I would truly say success is enjoying your line of work and being able to freely plan your days. I get to contribute financially to my family while creating from my heart, disrupting the beauty industry, and raising my little boy myself. Being looked at as an example for young girls, mothers, and eager entrepreneurs that we can do it despite the hurdles and doubts is another measure of success to me. I can not wait to share my knowledge and passion for business to mentees in the future.. to give them what I wish I had. I am present for my family and able to fulfill my creative brain.. I would say that’s success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.getstonned.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoouIBQ9SUK-TBBj-n37QI8RCuCkDfb0_t0nwZt1_TYsgPxUFGlO
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getstonned/?hl=en
• Facebook: adding tiktok URL https://www.tiktok.com/@getstonned

Image Credits
different photogs please clarify which photos will be used

Devon Trunk
Christiano Hermoso
Jason Kent