Campaign season has proven to be a golden opportunity for brand visibility, and Detroit-based cosmetics company The Lip Bar is experiencing this firsthand. The brand’s vibrant fuchsia lipstick, rebranded as “Big Gretch” in honor of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, has become a viral hit following her wearing the color at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
On August 23, Whitmer delivered a compelling speech with a striking bright pink lipstick from The Lip Bar. Originally named “Playmate,” the shade was renamed in 2023 to reflect Whitmer’s signature bold style. The incident led to a major online buzz.
The Vision
Melissa Butler, the founder and CEO of The Lip Bar, launched the company after a two-year stint on Wall Street, driven by a desire to challenge conventional beauty standards. Butler, who felt marginalized by the lack of diversity in finance, shifted her focus to beauty, creating a brand that champions inclusivity with bold, unconventional lip colors.
“I started the Lip Bar to change the way people thought about beauty, so that they can get up and look in the mirror every single day and be like, ‘I look good,'” Butler told Inc.
Butler’s entrepreneurial journey has been anything but conventional. The Lip Bar’s appearance on “Shark Tank” in 2015 was met with harsh criticism from the investors, including Kevin O’Leary, who infamously dismissed the brand’s potential. “They would crush you like the colorful cockroaches you are,” O’Leary told her, adding to the challenges Butler faced. Despite the public rejection, Butler embraced the experience as a valuable lesson in resilience. “You have to be OK with failing,” she told Inc. “Even in the face of national humiliation, I don’t know how I would’ve stopped.”
The Lip Bar persevered through those early setbacks, eventually raising $2 million in 2018. Today, the brand boasts sales of over two million units and is available in more than 2,000 stores nationwide, including major retailers like Target, Walmart, and CVS, Inc. reports. The brand has also garnered attention from notable figures such as former first lady Michelle Obama and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who have worn The Lip Bar’s products.
The Lip Bar could be credited to Butler’s strategic vision and innovative marketing approach. The company celebrated its tenth anniversary with a party at its Parker’s Alley location in Detroit and a behind-the-scenes documentary series on YouTube.
Throughout her entrepreneurial journey, Butler told BET in 2023 she has been driven by her mission.
“I’m living out the story that was already written for me. I am showing up for myself and my community of Black women,” she said. “I had a responsibility to myself and my dream. For me, it was never an option to stop or to give up because I am on the shoulders of many people who came before me, but also I can provide shoulders for the people behind me. The most flattering part of my journey is that all these people have started businesses because of me.”
