Kim Kardashian is bringing back color cosmetics and introducing Skkn by Kim Makeup on January 26.
“This is my heart and soul, and this is where I started,” Kardashian, who oversees color cosmetics, said in an exclusive pre-launch interview with WWD, calling from home. He had just returned from a ski trip with his children. “It’s never cold with four kids,” she laughed of the holiday break. “No, it was amazing. We skied. I’m glad they took this time. But I’m so happy to go back to work.”
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In between filming “American Horror Story: Delicate,” her biggest acting role to date, Kardashian is expanding her beauty company by applying what she’s learned from her previous colorful work.
“Doing my makeup almost every day and making the most user-friendly products requires expertise I’ve learned over 20 years,” she continued. “And even having two makeup lines before.”
Kardashian broke into beauty in 2012, when she and her sisters Kourtney and Khloé launched Khroma Beauty, later renamed Kardashian Beauty, with makeup and hair products. It was short-lived, with Kardashian going it alone in 2017 to introduce KKW Beauty and KKW Fragrance, with Coty taking a 20 percent stake in the business in 2020.
Kardashian closed both brands in 2022 with a plan to return with “an entirely new brand with new formulas packaged in a new look that is more modern, innovative, and more elevated and sustainable,” Kardashian said in a statement at the time. It was reported last year that he was considering buying back a minority stake in his business from Coty.
The result was Skkn By Kim, a complete skincare line created with the help of esthetician Joanna Czech, launched in 2022.
Now comes the makeup collection, which consists of lip pencil ($22), lipstick ($32) and eyeshadow palette ($50), all in nude tones. It will be available for sale on skknbykim.com.
“I think you know how you want to make things better,” he said of the insights gained from the first expedition. “The lip pencil glides on a little better. It’s all in the little details. As a perfectionist and in the laboratory…[I’m] Trying sample after sample and making sure it was perfect. So those little details, I feel like the customer will feel the lift.”
He described the texture of the products as “velvety mattes.” Lip pencils promise long-lasting durability with a formula that blends and glides easily. Available in 15 color options, from Light Beige to Dark Chocolate. The lipsticks in 10 shades offer full coverage with a “smooth” and “blurred airbrushed finish.” Tones range from Light beige to Rich Mahogany. And the eyeshadow palette, which includes 12 nude shades from “matte creamy beige” to “matte black,” is “ultra-light,” made to blend, buildable, and crease-proof.
“The heart of who I am is classic neutrals,” Kardashian said. “I wanted Skkn to be everything that makes you look like your absolute best, and that starts with your skin. “So we’re not going to do bold colors or anything that I personally don’t wear,” she said. “The difference between this line and KKW Beauty is that it will be all more amazing, more advanced formulas than before, but there will be all our classic nuances and everything that will make your skin look its best. “It starts with skincare, then it turns into color cosmetics, and then it turns into fragrance and everything else you put on your skin.”
Fragrance, a category Kardashian is interested in with KKW Beauty, is also in the works, as is skin tone, including foundations, which is a new area.
“I’m really hoping that we can be super innovative and introduce something that I’ve never done before, which is the basics,” Kardashian continued. “And we’re bringing back our concealers, powders and contours. “I want to offer every product I use to the market.”
However, there will be some differences, including texture and finish. “The way I wear makeup – I don’t know if it’s time, I don’t know if it’s with age – it’s a different style than I used to do. [do]. I used to be extremely dull. “I like it a little more moist and lighter now,” he said. “That’s why I’m bringing my newer techniques that I use. “I’m excited for people to still see my beauty takeoff with all the classics, but I’m also excited to get more products out there.”
Kardashian said it was always the plan to bring all beauty categories together under one main brand. “If you think about it, I had KKW Beauty, I had KKW Fragrance, I would have KKW Skin,” she added. “I wanted everything to be on one website, one brand, and very cohesive.”
He said the current color packaging isn’t the final version of what he had in mind, but he’s willing to give it a go: “I, like you, are starting it and we’re going to keep perfecting it as we go.”
He said his colorful team was small. He has a close friend whose name he does not disclose.
“I have a wonderful Armenian friend who is very knowledgeable and has been in the beauty industry for over 20 years,” Kardashian said. “We test colors all day long. When I go to Milan and New York, he travels with me and we go and look at all the factories. “I like having a small team because it’s really important for people to know what you want and what you’re looking for.”
Kardashian said she’s trying to focus on staying true to herself as she grows the brand, and that’s reflected in this launch. She’s a big fan of lip liners these days: “This is like the only thing I’ll wear. If I can’t find anything, I’ll put on some lip liner and gloss, or even lip balm. If I had to take something with me it would be a lip liner.
Maybe with some concealer? “I’ve been turning red lately and let the dark circles disappear for a minute. Whatever.”
It follows consumers and their needs closely while working to exceed their expectations. “I’m thrilled that our Skkn customer is such a loyal, returning customer, and the data shows that the people who use it and use the entire system really understand how amazing and powerful the formulas are,” he said. nine-step routine. “So I’m really proud of that. My favorite thing ever, even with Skims [her shapewear and clothing company valued at $4 billion in 2023 and said to be interested in an initial public offering], means someone receives a product and it turns out to be 10 times better than they imagined. That’s always the dream. You want to overdeliver.
Looking ahead, it aims to expand beyond its direct-to-consumer channel when it comes to distribution: “Our goal, of course, is to be in retail and be everywhere so it’s as accessible as possible,” Kardashian said. “This is something we always talk about and work on. It’s a huge priority.”
In closing, he explained that this was his first interview of the year.
“My first job,” he said. “That felt good.”
Launch Gallery: Inside Kim Kardashian’s Skkn Launch by Kim Makeup
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