Conscious Beauty And Beautiful Minds: Interview w/ Ashley Piszek of MISS SWISS
Ashley’s inspiration for the MISS SWISS Glamour on the Go makeup case formed after her own “purse catastrophe.” Her makeup was damaged and her purse destroyed while attending a concert, she quickly realized she was not alone. Other makeup cases were too bulky and heavy to carry in a purse or did not allow for proper spacing to prevent spillage, they only contained the spills. After she conducted focus groups on issues makeup wearers have, two additional issues surfaced. Makeup gets lost easily and makeup wearers also struggle with applying their makeup on the go. After a year of prototyping, the MISS SWISS Glamour on the Go makeup case was created.
Ashley’s purse catastrophe and love of makeup inspired her makeup case and she decided the next step should be her own beauty line that fits inside of the Glamour on the Go makeup case. After months of research, testing formulas and designing packaging, the MISS SWISS makeup line launched May 1st. The line includes makeup products perfect for on the go use. The line currently includes liquid eyeliner, 3D mascara, lip gloss, matte lipstick, and metallic liquid eyeshadow.
What was the first beauty routine you adopted as a child or teenager? Which emotions do you connect with this memory?
When I was 13 years old I started wearing makeup. My go to look was very simple, a thick line of Urban Decay black crayon eyeliner and mascara. This memory evokes feelings of joy and the excitement of learning makeup techniques and being able to express myself through my makeup looks.
CONSCIOUS BEAUTY — What meaning do you give this term?
To me, conscious beauty is being selective in choosing ingredients and products. Offering transparency and striving to positively impact our planet and our bodies is imperative.
At MISS SWISS we believe that consumers have a right to know what is in the products they are using and by what means it has been created. Our makeup line is consciously cruelty free, paraben free, sulfate free, talc free, formaldehyde free and phthalate free. We are currently researching ways to improve upon our formulas and make sure we are advocating for both our customers as well as the environment.
Which aspects of sustainability in beauty are especially important to you?
The environment has always been especially important to me. I am fortunate to have experienced the power of recycling and repurposing firsthand when I traveled to Guatemala and worked with an organization that built schools out of recycled materials. This experience has impacted the decisions I have made on many aspects of MISS SWISS. We created our makeup cases to prevent makeup wearers from having to throw away their cases and purchase new ones every time their makeup ruins it. Our cases are injection molded out of ABS plastic, which is thermoplastic, which can be recycled by melting down the plastic and molded into other products. Our makeup line is consciously cruelty free, paraben free, sulfate free, talc free, formaldehyde free and phthalate free. My goal for each MISS SWISS launch is to make our products even more sustainable. For instance, we have a new product launching this summer and, in our efforts, to continually improve, we have made sure that the product is also vegan.
When do you consciously feel beautiful?
I consciously feel beautiful when I am doing what I love. I have two passions; MISS SWISS and working with amazing charitable organizations. Being able to marry the two makes me feel extremely beautiful. Anyone can put on a full face of makeup and look beautiful on the surface. When I am able to wear the makeup, I have worked hard to create and collaborate with amazing organizations while helping others in the process I have never felt more beautiful.
Did your approach to beauty change within the last 1–2 years?
The pandemic really shifted my approach to beauty. I have been very lucky to have had pretty good skin but wearing the COVID masks for long periods of time made me break out. This pandemic gave me the time to focus on skincare enabling me to identify the products that work best for the new needs of my skin. Another way the pandemic has shifted my approach to beauty is because of our lips now being covered by masks. Lipstick and foundation were especially hard to successfully wear while wearing a mask so it has shifted my focus to my eye makeup. My high coverage foundation has been swapped out for tinted moisturizer and my normal red lipstick has been replaced with a metallic eyeshadow.
How would you like to see the image of beauty change within the next 5 years?
I would love for the image of beauty to continue to shift and become even more inclusive. I wish everyone would see themselves as beautiful, especially when they look at advertisements or go shopping. The images they see reflecting who they are, featuring models with whom they can identify. When I look at many different beauty advertisements on social media, I see comments saying consumers wish they saw more models with whom they can relate. A few years ago, there were not many models that I could say look like me. The fact that this is changing is amazing and I am hopeful that brands will continue to embrace our differences.
Personally, I am striving to make sure I select models that makeup wearers can relate to. MISS SWISS has had two photoshoots. The first shoot we had 2 models and our second shoot we more than quadrupled the number of models to include different genders, ethnicities, and sizes. To further my inclusivity, I am planning on hiring models of all ages while continuing to select models of varying size, race, and gender for future shoots.
What or who inspires your beauty routine?
My mother is the one who has been the biggest inspiration for my beauty routine. I remember when I was younger I always came along when she would go to the Estee Lauder beauty counter and try all of the new makeup and skincare products. My mother was always one for a statement lip, and that is my go-to beauty look. She always recommends using a quality moisturizer too.
What is your best beauty advice to others?
Find beauty products that work well with your skin type and enhance your features; make sure your makeup allows your inner beauty to shine through.
Is there anything you would like to share that we have not asked you here?
MISS SWISS has exciting new products launching later in 2021 and in 2022. We will continue to offer products that are clean and provide transparency to our customers so they may make informed purchases. Our goal is to always keep improving. With each launch, we are striving to create more clean beauty products that are even more sustainable.
THANK YOU!
Follow MISS SWISS on Instagram.
Demee Koch about the MEDIUM interview series on CONSCIOUS BEAUTY:
Hello! I am a serial entrepreneur with more than 2 decades of experience in the health & beauty industry. This interview series is intended to create awareness about the movement of Conscious Beauty.
We are in a beautiful time of Conscious Beauty — you may have heard of this term, but what does Conscious Beauty mean, and why does it matter?
For us, beauty is a way to love — it is about self-care, art, nutrition, exercise, life, self-love. I invite you to become part of a movement that re-defines beauty. Let’s empower beautiful minds.
Thank you for being the change. I’m looking forward to learn from you. Reach out to me via LinkedIn.
Demee ❤︎
