You could say one of the first big life lessons for Shaira Frias ’13 came when she was a toddler helping out in her grandmother’s healing store in St. Croix. “What stuck with me since I was young was that my grandmother was a hustler,” says the former journalism major who now lives in Los Angeles. “She taught me you could make something out of nothing.” After completing her degree—the campus was a serene reprieve from hectic city life where she “nestled in the melting pot of students”—and practicing journalism for several years with media outlets such as NY1, Fox News Latino, and Mundo Hispánico, Frias had another revelation: Journalism wasn’t for her. She ended up at beauty school. “I’ve always been an ‘I like to get pretty’ kinda girl,” she says. The move led to a next big takeaway moment when Frias honed in on something one of her teachers pointed out: Most makeup companies sourced materials from the same five factories. The major difference between the brands is marketing. Selling your story. She tucked that in her back pocket. Frias, a Dominican-American woman, says she never really pictured herself behind a makeup counter per se. “I left that school with the intention of opening up a type of Sephora, but with Latin vibes, in Washington Heights,” she says. But before she could make that happen, love pulled her to Colorado, “where no one wears makeup,” she laughs. Still, her big sister Mabel was nearby in California and also at a pivotal point in her career as a digital strategist for global fashion, beauty, and lifestyle brands like Macy’s and Nordstrom. “We realized there was such a wide space left open because the major brands were not targeting our community,” says Frias. “But we’re the ones who are buying all these products.” The idea for a makeup and lifestyle brand representing their Afro-Latina heritage, Luna Magic, was born. The sisters spent more than a year and a half sourcing products and developing a line that included eyelashes, eyeshadow, and lipstick in vibrant hues, lush textures, and products that represent their heritage with names like Salud, Dinero, and Amor. After launching Luna Magic on Instagram in 2018, “We heard crickets for six months,” says Frias. “We had no marketing plan. We thought, OK, we take pretty photos, we have a great product, it will sell.” They changed course when a friend with a Walmart connection helped facilitate a serendipitous meeting they thought was a casual meet and greet. The timing was right, says Frias. The multinational retailer was looking for authentic ethnic brands that would help refresh its business. “At the end of the call, the retailer asked us to be in their stores and we said, ‘Sure, why not,’” says Frias. “We closed the laptop and screamed.” Around the same time, they connected with the monthly makeup subscription retailer BoxyCharm and other retailers. “Every time we sat down to try to sell, we’d get: ‘What about you guys? Where are you from?’ It was this constant curiosity about us. We leaned into it and sold our story. And we understand now that not only do we have to create beautiful makeup, but it’s our story that connects us with our customers.” The new marketing strategy grew the business exponentially but left the pair suddenly scrambling to fill orders. Which is how they ended up on Season 12 of ABC’s Shark Tank, the reality show competition, where the Frias sisters entered the tank holding hands, explained that “being a Latina is not a seasonal thing,” and asked business titans Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Lori Greiner, Kevin O’Leary, and guest shark Alex Rodriguez for $200,000. While they ultimately did not go with the deal they were offered, the episode aired so many times that it became “the commercial that keeps on giving for Luna Magic,” says Frias. “It’s been a real conversation starter and solidified our business with other retailers.” Today, Luna Magic is sold at Target, CVS, and Walmart, and the sisters have been featured in business and beauty magazines from Forbes to Allure, CNN Business, and Cosmopolitan. “Business is great,” says Frias, who credits Brooklyn College with giving her a taste of the real world. “And I’m grateful for the journey because it’s all a part of my story.”
