by Megan Moyer, corporate marketing manager, as appeared in Inside Beauty for Drug Store News
Leila Kashani, CEO and co-founder of Alleyoop, started her journey into creating a cosmetics line in high school where she first wished there were more efficient options available. “I remember I would go from practice to having to speak in front of the school for
something and I would want to touch up my makeup, but wished I could do it faster and more efficiently.”
Likewise, Kashani didn’t like that shaving had to always be tied to the bathroom. She participated on cheer, dance, and the flag teams and never had time between all of her activities to get to a bathroom to shave. “I would always find myself dry shaving and cutting 
myself.”
As her career took her to Nike and an experiential marketing company, her active lifestyle continued. “I’d have three days between a snowboarding competition and a surf competition and didn’t want to go home in between to switch my suitcase out. I wanted to see family or explore the cities where the competitions were instead. I figured out a way to pack a carry-on that could get me from the snow to a surf competition.” Part of that was packing a smaller makeup bag and making her toiletries bag more efficient.
The pivotal moment that led to creating the products of her dreams came as a result of a meeting with a retailer buyer. “The buyer was totally distracted by my one unshaved armpit. I looked over and told her it was a really busy morning. She said, ‘don’t worry, don’t worry,’ and lifted her skirt to reveal an unshaved knee. She said ‘this is not a you problem.’ That’s when I decided I needed to make a brand all about efficiency. We had to stop tying ourselves to the bathroom counter. We had to be able to still look our best without taking up so much time.”
Related: Kiss takes a consumer-centric approach to product development
The first product created was the portable razor that contains a water moisturizer and shave bar all in one. “I told that buyer about my razor idea that day and she said if you make it, I need that product. Hearing that from a buyer inspired me to make the All-in-One Razor happen.”
Kashani spent countless hours working on prototypes and molds, giving them out to friends for feedback. She kept in touch with the buyer who questioned what else Kashani would offer. “That was a really interesting moment for me because it’s when I realized that hair removal was just one of the areas of beauty that needed to be disrupted. It was our eyeliners, our lipsticks, our skin care. It was all these things being separate pieces when they could have been one. Or they could be applied more
efficiently or packaged more efficiently. Then I just leaned hard into beauty because I realized it’s beauty as a whole that’s been robbing us of our time.“
The four-in-one pen, Pen Pal, came next. Back in high school, Kashani had a BIC 4-Color Retractable pen that she used while studying. Back then, she thought one day she would turn it into a makeup tool. Development started by asking the Alleyoop community the question – “if you had four products that had to come in pen form and that’s all you could take with you to get ready, what would those four products be?” The answers were eyeliner, lip liner, a highlighter, and brow pencil.
From there Kashani looked at rethinking eyeshadow palettes. She asked her community to share pictures of their palettes. She saw a common theme – out of these large sets of color options, there were consistently only one to two used. From those pictures shared with her, she did an analysis to determine the most commonly used colors across the board. “I decided to make eye shadow sticks that you can apply without needing a brush and that you can convert into an eyeliner by sharpening it for more precision.”
Alleyoop offers 4-in-1 makeup brushes — the Multi-Tasker and Overachiever — and a blush, bronzer, and highlight stack, Stack the Odds, all of which are designed to save time. The two brushes on the outside are the ones that the brands’ loyalty members said were most used. The stack has what was identified as most used in the top spot. The bronzer, blush, and highlight are formulated as creams so no brushes are needed, and the stack includes a mirror so one doesn’t need to be carried separately.
Related: Beauty brands take steps for success
When it comes to quality, Kashani provided an example of a serum they asked their most loyal fans to test. Eighty-seven percent said they would buy it, but the company’s threshold is 90% so they took the feedback to improve on the product before making it available for sale. She also cited the additional year of development needed for their lip oil with SPF because of the level of integrity they expect for their products. “It’s not about speed to market, it’s really about innovation.”
The company is committed to reducing their global environmental footprint while maximizing their positive impact on the planet. Their multitasking products, reduced raw materials, planet-friendly packaging, net-zero plastic footprint, and Leaping Bunny certification point to their strategy of using positive change to fight climate change.
Alleyoop uses clean ingredients with a priority on their efficacy, safety, and impact on the environment. Their products exceed both the U.S. and EU’s banned ingredient list — totaling over 130 — including no GMOs, phthalates, parabens, sulfates, and more.
Alleyoop has a TikTok Shop, their own e-commerce site, are in over 1,400 boutique stores across most of the U.S. and are on Amazon. They recently were also added to 50 Follett Higher Education college bookstores.