If you’re actively online looking for a body cream that doesn’t have a greasy texture but more of a shiny glow, then you’ve probably seen the viral Body Glaze Moisturizer from Canvas Beauty. The moisturizer is an anti-aging formula with palm fruit oil as the key ingredient, leaving the skin smooth and glossy.
Through components of beeswax, sunflower Seed Oil, Vitamin E Oil, and more, the Body Glaze brand has grown into a hot commodity on the TikTok shop and garnered 79.9 million views under #bodyglaze. The Glaze’s virality grew as everyday consumers tested out the bestseller, Donut Shimmer Body Glaze, leaving buyers with a sparkle on the skin.
“I made it with the manifestation energy to go viral,” she says. “I want people to see it and realize that it’s something so amazing and beneficial that they need it in their day-to-day routine,” says CEO Stormi Steele.
Before the continuous videos and reviews about the Body Glaze, there was a point in time when Steele did not know her next steps regarding her career and impact in beauty. During her tenure in college, Steele started to question her purpose throughout her years in school after realizing she wasn’t sure what to do with her life. Like many of us who enter college, there can be times when we discover that we have no idea what’s next for us. “College was thrust upon me,” Steele tells GU. “The closer I got to graduating, the more depressed I became because I was like, ‘What am I going to do? I just wasted four years of my life.”
At that moment, she decided to make a pivot that would change her entire perspective on life. Steele soon dropped out of school to turn her next step into a reality with her beauty brand. “I had this vision of having a brand and calling it Canvas,” she says.
Starting as a hair care label through her time as a hairstylist, she created a community of customers who trusted her touch and what ingredients benefited Black hair. Steele then saw that moment as a way of taking her business to the next level outside the standard hair route. Canvas Beauty soon became a lifestyle haven regarding skincare.
Through the decision to take her brand to the next step, she saw a need for a consistent skincare product that would help her customers and take her business by storm. With the organic formula, Steele cracked the code and began to see her audience stock up on the product thanks to the reception it received online.
As she continued to push her product as the next viral sensation, the Body Glaze moisturizer grew in the beauty community. Steele saw her hard work continue to pay off in customer support. She now found her space to help other young entrepreneurs find their pockets toward success. “It boils down to messaging, marketing and aesthetics,” she says. “You have to think with a new and fresh perspective, and with the Body Glaze, I lived with that product for a year before I ever put it out.”
Steele’s year of testing the product helped her find the key ingredients to giving herself and her army of customers a standout glow resembling a donut glaze, drawing in the eyes of aesthetics-based consumers. In the age of social media, entrepreneurs have to think at lightning speed to catch the attention of potential buyers. “You have three seconds to reel somebody in, and once you capture their attention, they are open to wanting to know the information behind the product and even buy it,” she says.
With ambition and drive, Steele already envisioned her product being a staple for the next generation, like Vaseline was for her during her years of classic skincare. “I want [customers] to have something different that’s not a traditional lotion,” she says.
Now, she’s seen customers rally behind her brand of Canvas beauty and become dedicated to using her products and even stocking up on the scents that the Body Glaze offers. She’s been grateful for pivoting from the traditional collegiate route through her entrepreneurial journey.
“My only option was to drop out because if I didn’t choose to do something that felt good, I wouldn’t be here today,” Steele tells GU. “The goal from the very beginning was always to be a lifestyle company,”
As we persist in becoming disruptors in the new year, Steele continues to market her product as a disruptive addition to the beauty space. Social media continues to blossom and be an essential marketing tool for entrepreneurs, so she found the importance of having a unique angle in every move she made for her business, from the ingredients to the packaging.
Now, with the success of Canvas Beauty in full effect, the CEO has major products coming to the market, from more skincare products to a possible candle line with the Body Glaze scents. “We’re going to test that out, enter the home space, and continue to turn this into a lifestyle brand,” she says.
About the Author: Kenyatta Victoria is the lead writer for Essence GU, working on all things pop culture, politics, entertainment and business. Throughout her time at GU, she’s garnered devoted readers and specializes in the Zillennial point of view.