Radiant Beauty Redefined: The Jade Applicator Journey with Jen Sugermeyer

Welcome entrepreneurs and startups to Art of the Kickstart, the show that every entrepreneur needs to listen to before you launch. I’m your host, Roy Morejon, president and founder of Inventus Partners, the world’s only turnkey product launch company. From product development and engineering to omnichannel marketing, we’ve helped our clients launch thousands of inventions and earn more than $1 billion in sales over the past 20 years. Each week, I interview a startup success story, an inspirational entrepreneur, or a business expert in order to help you take your launch to the next level. This show would not be possible without our main sponsor, ProductHype, the weekly newsletter that goes out and shows you the best inventions that just launched. Make sure to check out producthype.co and join the Hype Squad. Now, let’s get on with the show. Welcome to another edition of Art of the Kickstart. Today we have a really exciting show because the launch button is about to get hit today, and we are speaking with Jen Sugermeyer, founder of ATA Cosmetics, and the inventor of the jade applicator that’s going live today, folks.

If you don’t know Jen, let me give you a little bit of background. She’s a 6’1 powerhouse out of Dallas, Texas. Go Dallas. There’s nothing she can do, her daddy taught her that. And from working in Afghanistan to writing books and speaking on stages to build ATA Cosmetics, Jen’s diverse background has not only given her a colorful perspective on life, but has helped equip her for juggling the many facets it takes to build a business. Hopefully we will talk about all of that today on the show. Jen, thank you so much for joining me this morning on Art of the Kickstart.

I’m so excited and we are about to hit that launch button, so today is a big day. So happy to be here.

Yeah, this is a huge day. You may be the first guest ever that’s recording live with me and about to hit a launch button, but really excited to have you join the show today. Before we get into anything else, give our audience the elevator pitch for your amazing product.

All right. The jade applicator is coming out today. This is for skincare and makeup. No more brushes, no more sponges, no more fingers. We’re going to help you save product. No more bacteria on your face, and we’re going to give you a spa-like experience. And really you get the benefits of jade with your daily routine. It solves problems, it adds to your daily routine. It’s the most incredible product, I believe, and I believe that it’ll be an industry disruptor. You’ve heard it first here.

Amazing. Jen, and again, I’m a novice. I’m not a cream cosmetics kind of guy. I mean, I can’t even shave right. What are the benefits of jade and then this unique innovation that you’ve created in terms of the jade applicator itself?

Yeah. I started with jade because we’ve started to see it come up more within the last 10 years. Maybe you’ve heard of a jade roller or a [foreign language 00:03:02]. And so we’ve become here, especially in the States, it’s very common in China, but we know that it drains the lymphatic system and it’s very cooling to the touch. It will help de-puff those eyes, which we all deal with. And there’s a lot of anti-aging components that are believed to go with jade as well. And so it’s not only a nice, cooling spa-like experience, but it’s also benefiting your skin as well. And so that’s why we started with jade.

How did you end up identifying this opportunity? I am familiar with the jade rollers or have seen them on the TikTok and all that kind of stuff, and you see them there, but this is really innovative. How did you end up combining the product that was kind of already out there and make it better?

It really just kind of happened. It was during COVID, I think we all had a lot of time. A lot of us were pivoting, a lot of us were thinking about how we do things differently. And I happened to click on Instagram and someone was doing a live, and this woman was doing her makeup. She was talking about something else, but she was doing her makeup with a spoon. And I thought, well, that’s weird, but I was intrigued and I wanted to try it. And so for about a week, I did my makeup with a spoon and it was okay, but I really liked the feeling of it. And I thought, it’s just weird. It’s weird going into my soup spoon and putting it on my face. And I thought, why wouldn’t you do this out of jade? Because we know, and I had just bought my sister a jade roller, and the truth is so many of us buy jade products, but we don’t have the time to use them because we’ve got busy lives and it takes extra time to roll and do all the things.

I thought, why wouldn’t I just couple the benefits of jade with the daily routine? I actually use it twice a day for my morning and my evening routine. It just sort of happened is really the answer to your question.

Amazing. Well, I know your mission in life has been to help elevate people’s minds so they can elevate their lives. And through your strategic vision at ATA Cosmetics and speaking and books, publishing, all of that kind of stuff, what are some of those pieces of advice that you’ve received along the way or that you would love to give other entrepreneurs that are on their journey about to maybe hit their launch button?

You were given a vision, and that vision was only given to you. And there are going to be people that have opinions. And I always say, and I don’t know if I should say it here, but opinions are like assholes, we all have one, right? Everybody’s going to have their thing to say, but you have a vision that was given to you, and if you truly believe in it, just keep going. And it takes a lot of grit and truly, it’s all mindset. And I’ll give one piece of advice that I would give if I was standing on a stage, and that’s this fear of failure. And I actually eliminated that word from my vernacular many years ago because I don’t subscribe to it. I believe every failure is either a lesson learned or a course correction. And so when you look at the things, because I look at the culmination of my life and it’s just been very, very interesting from very, very diverse, but a lot of them arguably would be “failures,” right?

But I have learned through those and I look at where I am today and I go, oh yeah, actually that’s coming into play now. I’m glad that happened. That would be my one piece of advice to anybody listening today, is that you have the vision. Don’t worry about those other opinions. And really failure doesn’t exist. It only exists if you allow it to exist.

Well said, Jen. No, I think every opportunity, a lot of the startup founders and entrepreneurs that are listening to this show are always afraid of it. But I think to your point, it’s all about embracing it, right? That’s what makes life interesting is the ability to truly challenge yourself. And if you’re not failing, you’re not challenging yourself enough.

Mm-hmm. I agree with that wholeheartedly. Yep.

Let’s talk about when you first started ATA Cosmetics. What was the vision that you had in terms of bringing that to life and the vision of the brand and maybe what the ATA stands for?

Yeah. I’m very passionate, as you said, about elevating your mind so you can elevate your life. And it was actually two years ago today I was reminded on Facebook, so I reposted it today with a little thing, but I was speaking at a convention and it was a women’s convention, and I had my books that I was selling and I had my speaker slot and my books I was selling and some merchandise, but I was really selling services there. I was selling my coaching and speaking and things like that. And so as people were walking around buying candles, women were like, you want a bra? You want a candle? And I was like, you want peace and happiness? And I said this to humans, because I was just kind of messing around, what do you do, right? I’m like, peace and happiness. People looked at me like I had two heads.

And the thing is, and I really realized an important thing two years ago, and this is a lot of where it started, so very fortuitous that it was two years ago today and we’re launching today, but is that people can put a dollar amount on the tangible, but they don’t put a dollar amount on the intangible, which is happiness and peace. And they don’t. I wanted to make a bridge between the tangible and the intangible. How do you reach people more? And it’s through things that they can hold. And so ATA stands for attitude, thoughts and actions. And those are the only three things that you control. When you learn that that truly is all that you control, your attitude, your thoughts and your actions, then you get in the driver’s seat of your life. You are now in control. And so we often are trying to focus on so many other things, and when you focus on those things and you don’t control them, it really puts you in a state of anxiety or fear or whatever that may be.

The whole point of ATA Cosmetics, and some people may not understand it at all, but it was very important to me to have this underpinning of mindset. My YouTube channels will be talking about mindset and will be talking about all these little things because I want to just throw some of those in there for people to connect so that as they’re elevating their experience and their makeup routine, that they’re also learning about habits and how habits will impact your life. And just all these other little nuggets that in small little doses people can make over time big changes.

I love it. Well, talking about a big change, you’re launching a product on Kickstarter.

Yes.

Would love to know some of the genesis there in terms of when you first were exposed to crowdfunding or Kickstarter, Indiegogo, what have you, and what led you down this path to choose crowdfunding to launch this innovative product?

I’m a researcher. I love learning all the things about the things as much as I can. And it was probably something I ran across on YouTube, this idea of crowdfunding. I actually don’t know anyone that’s done it actually, but I was very intrigued. I don’t know what the outcome is going to be. I believe it’s going to look in a certain way, but regardless of how it goes, it has been an incredible experience. I worked with a team doing this, but it has helped in terms of preparation for what needs to happen to go into a business regardless of how this works out. I believe it’s going to be very successful, and I believe I have an incredible product. But I think also for me as the business owner getting ready, I saw the benefit of the preparation of all the things that need to go into that and how that’s going to help launch me into the business. It was kind of a dual benefit, getting the product out there, but then also being forced to get ready.

When you’re doing things on your own, you do the best that you can, but working with the team really helped me get things tight and copy and media and all that. Yeah.

Yeah. What were some of those things, Jen, just for our audience’s sake, in terms of the preparation leading up to the moment today when the launch button gets hit?

Well, I mean, what I appreciate is that the team is doing a lot of the things, but I have had to approve everything. And I’m very meticulous. I like wording in a certain way, but I also allow them, they’re the experts and I want them to continue to be the experts, but it’s making sure that I’m meeting all the deadlines of the things that they’re giving me. It’s making sure that I’m communicating what the vision is, what the product is, because it’s in my head, more than it’s in anybody else’s, and the better I can convey it to them. I tried to be as organized as I could with getting different copy to them and pictures and videos, because I was doing things on my own. I’ve been doing photo shoots and sponsoring events and all kinds of stuff. Just getting all that over to them so that they can understand. It was organizing things on my end to get to them, but then also making myself available to really read, digest, and approve, make comments, things like that. Not just say, yeah, yeah, sure, keep going, but be involved in the process.

Maybe I’m involved more than some, I’m not sure. I’d be curious to see what they talk about me at the water cooler. But to me, that was what my role was, was to be available to them and help equip them to be successful.

Well, when you mentioned the team here at Inventus Partners, we’ve loved working with you and the team has amazing things to say, but I would love to know maybe what were some of those considerations that you went through and looked through when choosing the right agency to partner with for this product?

I didn’t start with you guys. I actually listened to a book online, Audible. It was Audible. And so I listened to this whole book and they talked about Kickstarter versus Indiegogo, and it was by one of your competitors. And so I had reached out to them, I said, great book and all this. And I got on the phone with the sales girl and I got off and I said, well, I was so confused, I don’t even… You had every prime opportunity to land that plane, and she didn’t. And I walked out and I was like, what is this? And I actually contacted the CEO, because I got a, hey, how do you like my book? And I was like, great, but your sales team, I just didn’t get it. I said this. And so anyway, but I was very diligent on my research, reading books with companies and all that, but a sales team can make or break a company.

And I will say that you have a great sales team. And the gentleman that I worked with, he was really good. And I ask a lot of questions. I’m a tough customer, I know this about myself. And so I need to have a company that’s going to have the same energy and be able to run as fast and all the things. And if I don’t feel that, because I know how much energy I have and how passionate I am, and if I don’t feel that it’s comparable energy, then it’s probably not the right fit. Y’all ticked a lot of boxes. And yes, I was out there in the market researching people and listening to books and really what you guys brought, and I said, I even wanted to meet the team before I signed up because it’s one thing to talk to sales, but they go away. And I met with your team. I said, okay, all right. I feel this. I just went with gut, really.

Well, we’re glad that you did. We’re glad that you trusted us with your innovation. We’re super excited about this launch this morning. Last question before we get into the launch round, I’d love to know if there’s a piece of advice that you would give yourself at the beginning of this process, knowing what you know now.

Oh, a piece of advice that I would give myself. Just be willing to adapt when you hear things. And I think I’ve just learned this over time, you may think that something should go one way and it’s really up to, you have to take the feedback in from other people as well, because although you may have a vision of, for example, this product was going to be called Alta, A-L-T-A, Alta, it means I wanted to elevate and nobody got it. And everybody fought me on it and they were like, that already exists. I’m like, that’s Alta, the brand. This is Alta, the applicator. I fought it. And finally I just said, nope, I’m not going to fight this battle when it hasn’t even launched. It’s only going to get worse from here. I think you really have to listen to the feedbacks of others. And again, opinions are opinions, but if you hear things enough, maybe really take that into consideration.

Great advice, Jen. Well listen, like I said, this is going to get us into our launch round where I’m going to rapid fire a handful of questions at you. You good to go?

Yes. Good to go.

What inspired you to be an entrepreneur?

I knew there was a purpose that was much bigger than myself. I have always felt that, and I was in corporate for my entire career. And when I got sober back in 2018, I did a ton of personal development in order to get to that point. And yeah, when you find something, it’s like you just want to share it with other people. And I just knew that the vision for myself was much bigger than what corporate could ever give me. My sobriety helped with that.

Amazing. Well, if you could meet any entrepreneur throughout history, who would you want to have a coffee with?

Oh, I love Brene Brown. I’m just really inspired by her mind. She was the first one that comes to mind for sure.

I think she’s a tech person too, right?

No, she actually got her PhD in vulnerability, and I love her beautiful mind.

Yeah.

I probably would want to meet Thomas Edison actually if it was entrepreneur who created something because it took him 10,000 times to invent the light bulb. And I think he would be really cool to talk to.

Well, let’s say you get to meet Brene, she’s still with us. What would be your first question for her?

Oh my gosh. We would dig into the mind, and I love her whole talks on vulnerability. And so we would have a talk around that. And I feel as though I’ve done a lot of personal development and have really strengthened myself in those areas. But just listening to people that have gone there, been there and done that, and just listening to their stories. I would just want to know more about her and what’s brought her to where she is today.

Well, for the folks that are listening to you, what’s one piece of advice that you would give a new inventor or entrepreneur that’s looking to launch their product?

Yeah. You can do it. You can do it. It is the most amazing thing. I actually have my product, I’m going to share this with you. I don’t know if I’m [inaudible 00:18:09]-

Yes, please.

Ahead of you. This is the jade applicator. I use this for all my creams and my serums and my lotions and everything that I do. And this started in my mind, and I look at this little thing, which might just look like a spoon, looks like a jade spoon, but this has actually taken so many iterations of 3D modeling and all of that. And you know what? It was a lot of fun. I’ll share some of my 3D models with you. They come in all these different colors and I would go to the library and that’s actually where they have a 3D model printer, which was crazy. They’ve come so far. But anyway, so it started with all of these and actually my first iterations were really long. And so I’ve watched this thing grow and evolve and so there’s something gratifying.

It is the craziest, wildest ride. And there are days you’re going to think, I am not qualified. What the heck am I doing? I am putting so much money into this, this is nuts. I can’t believe I’m doing this. And then you see it come to life. And so when the manufacturer sent me my actual product, I’m like, this is so amazing. And there’s a feeling that you just can’t really communicate at all. You have to feel it yourself. Anyone out there, I want you to feel it. That means you have to do it. And that’s the message I would communicate to you. Just do it. Be like Nike, just do it.

That’s right. All right. Last question, Jen, this has been amazing and I know your campaign’s about to launch, but would love to hear your take on what the future of crowdfunding looks like.

I have more products in mind, and so I intend to have lotions and creams and serums, but those exist. I really want to start in the space where things don’t exist and nothing like the jade applicator exists out there, and I have other ones that don’t as well. And so I’ve already started branding them and I’ve got a lawyer that’s teed up that’s ready to start working with me. Once I get all the bits and pieces together, there’s more to come. Yes, insert Kickstarter here.

Well, Jen, this has been amazing. This is now your opportunity to pitch our audience, tell them what you’re about, where they should go and why they should go with support the jade applicator on Kickstarter today.

Yeah, thank you. We are, we are launching. It launched one minute ago per this discussion now. Yes. That’s really exciting. And so ATA Cosmetics, it’s atacosmetics.com is where you’ll find me sell. All of the information will be out there, the products. And if you’re listening to this either live or if you’re listening to this before November 20th, you will find us on Kickstarter. My last name is Sugermeyer. That’s sugar with an E, and it’s the jade applicator. And so you can go out there and we’ve got some phenomenal deals. And I’ll tell you, if you are listening to this at any time and you want to go get 20% off after it’s on my website, which will be live, I will be able to sell this after the campaign ends. On November 21st, it will be live on my site, but if you put expectmore20, you’ll get 20% off. Go out to Kickstarter, there’s some phenomenal deals. Go out to ATA Cosmetics, make sure you save that so that you can go back to it. And yeah, a lot more to come.

You can find me on Instagram. I’m out there every day posting a lot of motivational stuff, more motivational quotes, and then also sprinkled in with some ATA cosmetics products. But there, Facebook, you can find me all the things. I am the one, the only Jen SugerMeyer. I’m out there. Would love to connect with you. There you have it.

Amazing. Well, audience, thank you so much for joining and tuning in. Make sure to visit artofthekickstart.com for the notes, transcript, links to the campaign that we talked about today. And of course, big shout out to our crowdfunding podcast sponsor over at ProductHype, the top newsletter for new products that just launched. Jen, thank you so much for joining me this morning on such a special day of you launching the jade applicator.

Yeah, thanks for having me. Appreciate it.

Thank you for tuning into another amazing episode of Art of the Kickstart, the show about building a better business, life and world with crowdfunding. If you’ve enjoyed today’s episode as much as I did, make sure to show us some love by rating us and reviewing us on your favorite listening station, whatever that may be. Your review really helps other founders and startups find us so they can improve their craft and achieve greater success like you. And of course, be sure to visit artofthekickstart.com for all the previous episodes. And if you need any help, make sure to send me an email at info@artofthekickstart.com. I’d be glad to help you out. Thanks again for tuning in. I’ll see you next week.