Before turning 20, the precocious Poppy King had already developed her very own lipstick brand. Today, she has a new makeup line called Lipstick Queen, and recently published Lessons of a Lipstick Queen; a book filled with her entrepreneurial secrets. We caught up with Miss Poppy on her cell in London to snag her savvy tips direct from those sassy red lips...
What inspired you to write your book?
Whenever I tell my story, so many women ask how I started my own lipstick brand. So I wrote a book that really sets out how I did it. But not just in a memoir form, in a sort of guide form. So the reader hopefully gets to take away some elements into their own lives
How do you know when you have a great idea?
When you can’t suppress it. It’s really only something you can know over time. You keep thinking, “I wish I could do this” or “If only there was something like this.” It’s when your idea keeps on coming back.
What if you want to do something, you’re looking for an idea, and then you get stuck?
That’s when you set your mind into research mode where everything you do is fertile ground; the way you interact with products, people and services is research. And in that is a wellspring of ideas. Have a journal for a couple of months and look at everything you do, even stuff that you do in a routine way. Be very conscious about your reactions to things. Think about how you felt doing it, if you could have done it better, etc.
Once you have a great idea, what's next?
The next thing to do is called a SWOT analysis. Basically you write down everything you can in these four categories: strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat. What are the strengths of your idea? The weaknesses? What are the opportunities that you see there? And what are the threats? It’s the best way to think of your idea as an entity.
What is your best advice for a first time businesswoman?
No sudden movements. I think especially as women we are used to doing things very quickly. People say you only get an opportunity once, but I don’t agree with that at all. If you’ve got something that you’re really committed to, just take your time. Do it with passion, but do it methodically.
You can find Poppy King’s book Lessons of a Lipstick Queen at all major bookstores. Her new Lipstick Queen line can be found at specialty retailers like Holt Renfrew. For more info go to www.lipstickqueen.com.