High school friends now business partners ; F.R.U.AT.T Slays My Lips

By Naomi Marshall

Starting a business is always a risky endeavor, especially when there is more than one owner, however, this thought definitely did not stop six friends from starting their lip gloss business, ‘F.R.U.A.T.T Slays My Lips.’

In 2017, the six friends – Faith Benn, Risa Retemyer, Urica Daymond, Andrea Hunter, Tamar Wilson and Tekesha Daly – were all in Sixth Form at the Mackenzie High School when they realised that they had one goal in common, to become entrepreneurs.

This motivated the young ladies to brand their group F.R.U.A.T.T – a team of black ‘She-E-Os,’ commonly called CEOs, seeking to empower other women through their products and services. The young women prefer to be addressed as She-E-Os since it portrays femininity and empowerment.

On August 13, 2020, the young entrepreneurs launched their first business venture, ‘F.R.U.A.T.T Slays My Lips’ – a lip care business. The first line of lip gloss was called ‘Liptastix,’ which included super shiny and sophisticated lip glosses in the flavours ‘Coconut rhythm,’ ‘Roshe ripple,’ ‘Blossom,’ ‘Lakers,’ ‘Candy Fusion,’ and ‘Honey lips.’

All products were handmade by the six young women who wanted to personalise their products and have it reflect them as young, talented, intelligent and ambitious individuals.

According to Tamar Wilson, one of the six She-E-Os of F.R.U.A.T.T, preparing for the new venture was very exciting and in some cases, nerve-racking since it was a huge step to take. 

Wilson noted that preparing for the venture consisted of watching tons of YOUTUBE videos and doing a lot of research since they were making the products on their own. It also included testing the density, shelf life and effects of the products, and seeking advice from other individuals who have made lip glosses before. These steps were definitely important to having the perfect product.

Co-She-E-O of F.R.U.A.T.T, Urica Daymon told INFO 10 that the biggest challenge faced by the company is acquiring raw materials locally, as such, purchasing raw materials from overseas is the alternative measure taken, which at times can be a lengthy process.

Additionally, the young women, four of whom are fulltime students at the University of Guyana, find juggling everyday life and business tedious.

Nevertheless, the major benefit of having six business partners is that the work gets to be split.

“We would try to stick to a schedule, it calls for commitment and understanding too. We work cooperatively and we value each other’s time and effort. We also try to maintain a positive attitude,” Daymon explained.

 In February, ‘F.R.U.A.T.T Slays My Lips’ will be launching another lip gloss line called, ‘Melanin’ in honour of Black History Month. The collection will consist of lip glosses in all shades of “black skin” and is intended to show appreciation and to empower persons with melanin rich skin.

Additionally, Daymon disclosed that the company is currently working to produce other lip care items such as lip balms, lip scrubs and oils.

Meanwhile, Wilson noted that persons should definitely utilise the internet to reach their goals.

“We really had to utilise the internet to pull this off. Persons should utilise social media and the internet in general as much as possible because there is information for every venture you want to begin. You just need to be focused and willing to go out and get that information because it is already out there for your use,” Wilson stated.

She added: “The only person stopping you from doing what you have to do is you. If you have a calling just put yourself out there and do not hide behind the shadows. If you want to enter the business arena you need to network with individuals that you can trust and rely on because at the end of the day, team work is needed.”

Persons interested in contacting this business can do so on Instagram and Facebook at ‘FRUATT Slays My Lips.’

Photos saved as: LIP1

Caption: She-E-Os of ‘F.R.U.A.T.T Slays My Lips,’ Faith Benn, Tamar Wilson, Urica Daymond, Risa Retemyer, Andrea Hunter, and Tekesha Daly (from left to right)

Photos saved as: LIP2

Photos saved as: LIP3

Caption: F.R.U.A.T.T Slays My Lips’ first line of lip gloss was called ‘Liptastix’