Grace Fodor is the founder of STUDIO | 10 Beauty, which recently had its official US launch. STUDIO | 10 offers age- and skin-perfecting ‘quick fix’ beauty solutions for women.  The Style Page interviewed Grace about Studio | 10 on the occasion of its official US launch.

1. According to your Linkedin profile, you served as Director, Jemma Kidd Make Up, where you “Developed [the] brand, proposition and IP as well as setting up company, funding, teams, infrastructure and operations.” Why and how did you strike out on your own?

Studio | 10 is my passion I’d reached a point in my life where I was looking for a makeup range designed for women as they age – to tackle the issues that older women face. I needed more than products with just added anti-ageing ingredients, but that specifically disguise, cover and correct the signs of ageing. I wanted to explore the ‘aesthetics’ of professional artistry, and develop a range that would give women the ability ‘to look younger’ as part of their daily routine. I wanted a range that did a ‘job of work’ for me!

I felt that there was a clear opportunity to launch Studio | 10 and even though the cosmetics market is crowded, the lack of ‘dedicated’ attention given to the needs of older women means that we can operate in a relatively ‘fresh’ space. We are a very small, dedicated team that has worked hard to make sure that formulations are 100% right; we’ve worked hard to source formulas, textures, pigments and colours that specifically suit more mature skintones.

What we’ve tried to develop is an innovative range of age correcting and skin perfecting makeup essentials. Problem solvers and professional fixes for 10 years younger results in an instant.

2. I’m always interested in the challenges that beauty entrepreneurs face. When I’ve asked other movers and shakers in the beauty industry about challenges they faced when starting out, I’ve received different answers: financing, finding suppliers, production schedules, and just simply eagerness and impatience to get the products to market. Your experience at Jemma Kidd Make Up must have given you a leg up when you started Studio | 10. What challenges did you face in starting Studio | 10?

Being such a unique brand did create some issues and challenges as everyone from investors through to retail had to be encouraged to see a new light. My other key challenge was ensuring the formulations were 100% right, the textures were suited for ageing-skin and had the finished result I was looking for. At the same time, we had tight timelines and needed to make sure that we launched on time.

3. What gap did you see in the beauty market and how does Studio | 10 fill that gap?

Beauty is my passion and I felt that something was missing in the market. Personally I was looking for a makeup range designed for women as they age! There are a lot of products with added anti-ageing ingredients, but I felt there wasn’t a brand specifically tailored to my needs that could do some hard work!

4. Studio  | 10 is sold in the UK by Marks & Spencer department store and Cult Beauty. How did you enter into partnership with M&S and Cult Beauty?

We wanted to work with retailers that have a good ‘brand’ and customer fit, in terms of demographics, age and interests. But almost more importantly to us, we are looking to build ‘close and personal’ relationships with our customers with real building relationships, understanding, trust and loyalty. Choosing retailers that do that really well is key for us.

cultbeauty.co.uk is a perfect fit for us in this sense. They house so many fantastic cult, niche brands with a loyal and trusted following, it seemed the ideal place for us to begin building a close relationship with our customers.

Marks & Spencer is also a great retailer for us as their customers are our customers. We’ve built a really good relationship with them and constantly do in-store events to entice new customers and get our brand out there! Their beauty department is expanding and we wanted to be a part of it!

5. What are your future plans for Studio | 10?

Studio | 10 have exciting and ambitious plans for the year ahead! We’re expanding our range and distribution over the coming months, which we’re really looking forward to. Creating innovative new products that really make a difference to women is at the very heart of what we do and nothing makes us more motivated.

We’re still young but we’ve been humbled by the amazing interest in the brand. We launched with Sephora Australia a couple of months ago and we’re in talks with a number of other international retailers…I couldn’t be more thrilled!

6. Studio | 10 is targeted for women in their mid-30s and older, although your website says “a number of the perfecting fixes have become ‘must have’ problem solvers for younger women.” What are the biggest makeup blunders that older women make and how do you correct them?

Prepping the skin is vital for applying makeup effectively. Always start with a moisturiser and it’s good to use a primer – it gives the perfect base for concealer and foundation to blend seamlessly. Use colour correctors to even the skin tone and correct dark circles, blemishes and discolouration. Always make sure that you blend or buff! It’s the way to make sure your makeup looks ultra-natural and it’s worked well into your skin. You want to avoid any visible or harsh lines.

As you age stay away from powder – it sits on the skin. I strongly suggest that you use creme or liquid makeup – they tend to be much more flattering and youthful, giving the skin a dewy ‘lit from within’ appearance. They also help to avoid the heavy and ‘cakey’ effect which is so ageing.

In terms of contouring my biggest tip is not to use a bronzer – so many women try contouring with a bronzer and it doesn’t look natural. Bronzing powders add warmth to the face whereas natural shadows are dull and ashy toned in comparison. Be careful with colour also – it’s about wearable colour; choosing the right colour and formula is important!

7. Would you like to share some beauty tips with our readers?

Makeup should never be about masking and covering but correcting and enhancing. Focus on priming the face and use colour correctors, rather than heavy concealers and foundations, to counteract any discolouration and even the skin tone. You’ll then find you only need a minimal amount of coverage to create a flawless finish. And make sure you always have the perfectly shaped brows, you look ‘put together’ even without any make makeup. Groomed brows shape the face, create balance and add definition to the eyes. They’re also a quick-fix eyelift – without any surgery!

8. When you’re not working on Studio | 10, what you enjoy doing?

Running your own company there is always something else to do, which means it is hard to totally switch off, but I take time to run regularly as well as doing yoga and meditation classes. I also love taking long walks with our dog and every weekend I arrange flowers for the house – I find it really therapeutic!

9. Are there any parting remarks you would like to make about beauty?

Never allow yourself to be defined by someone else’s definition or stereotype of beauty. It’s all about accepting and making the best of what you have and ‘looking like the best version of yourself’.