The Magic of Lipstick: Insights from Legendary Beauty Entrepreneur Poppy King

In a recent episode of the Smart Beauty podcast, host Viola Levy sat down with Poppy King, a true pioneer in the beauty industry and the ultimate lipstick aficionado. From launching her first brand at just 18 years old to revolutionising how we think about lip colour, Poppy shared her unique perspective on beauty, creativity, and authenticity in an industry often dominated by sameness.

The Beginning of a Lipstick Revolution

Poppy's fascination with lipstick began at age seven when she first discovered its transformative power while playing dress-up. Unlike many children who might have been drawn to princess fantasies, Poppy was immediately attracted to the femme fatale aesthetic.

"When I put on lipstick for the first time, I realized that the change in me was so much deeper," Poppy explained. "It wasn't like I looked on the outside and was like, 'Oh my god, now I look so beautiful.' It was just more kind of like, 'Okay, I put my lipstick on, I'm ready'—like a superhero cape."

This early revelation that lipstick was more than just a cosmetic product but rather a confidence-boosting tool would become the foundation of Poppy's entire career.

Finding Inspiration in Unexpected Places

While many beauty entrepreneurs cite fashion icons or celebrities as their inspiration, Poppy's muse came from a rather unexpected source: Willy Wonka from Roald Dahl's classic children's book.

"The person that most inspired me when I was growing up was the character of Willy Wonka in The Chocolate Factory," Poppy revealed. "The idea that a product can be magic and you can make magic product for people in a way that is just so delightful—so I think for me, the most defining person of my entire beauty career is Willy Wonka."

This whimsical inspiration perfectly explains Poppy's approach to product development throughout her career—creating lipsticks that aren't just functional but truly magical experiences that help people discover new aspects of themselves.

Lipstick as More Than Makeup

One of the most fascinating insights Poppy shared was her understanding of lipstick as something fundamentally different from other cosmetics.

"Lipstick is not really cosmetic," she explained. "It's closer to fragrance in its relationship with your sense of self. Mascara, makeup, all that kind of stuff—they're cosmetic, they enhance or correct or conceal. But lipstick is something completely different, as is fragrance. It's just much more about what suits you on the inside as well."

This philosophy explains why Poppy has always focused exclusively on lip products throughout her career, despite the commercial challenges that come with such specialization.

Challenging Beauty Standards

Throughout the interview, Poppy emphasized her commitment to subverting traditional beauty standards rather than reinforcing them. Unlike many beauty brands that use models and celebrities to showcase their products, Poppy has exclusively used graphic art and illustrations in her marketing for the past 30 years.

"I've never, ever shown at point of sale models or celebrities," she noted. "I've only ever shown graphic art, illustration, different artists. It's not something I'm going to put on my website or anything like that because I feel like once you say 'I've just done it,' it becomes marketing. I've just quietly done it for 30 years."

This approach reflects Poppy's belief that beauty should embrace diversity in all its forms, not just as a marketing tactic but as a genuine philosophy.

The Future of Beauty

Looking ahead, Poppy expressed concern about the environmental impact of the beauty industry, particularly single-use plastic. She revealed that she's working on innovative solutions for delivering lip colour in a more sustainable way.

"I'd like to leave the industry with ways and delivery systems to bring colour to the face that are much, much more sustainable," she shared. "It's not about refills necessarily because refills create a whole lot of other issues... it's something different."

Beyond sustainability, Poppy envisions a beauty industry that moves beyond aspirational standards to embrace imagination.

"What I really want to do is develop a community of like-minded people who are interested in reaching their potential through imagination, not through aspiration," she explained. "No more aspiring to be this person or that person. It's like, what can you imagine for yourself?"

Advice for Creative Entrepreneurs

Perhaps the most powerful moment of the interview came when Poppy shared what she wishes she had known when starting out: "You do not need anyone's permission to be creative."

She elaborated on this powerful statement: "You might need someone's permission to practice dentistry or be a surgeon... but when it comes to being creative, you don't ever have to ask somebody permission to acknowledge you as a creative person. That's something that you have innately."

This philosophy extends to how she views success in the creative field: "Creativity has got nothing to do with success or failure. It's an ongoing exploration inside yourself that is legitimate, no matter what the results are—it's in the trying."

Looking Forward

Poppy revealed several exciting projects on the horizon, including a memoir titled "Gobsmacked" that promises to take readers behind the scenes of her unlikely 30-year career. She's also working to bring back her "greatest hits" lipsticks from both Lipstick Queen and her 90s brand Poppy, while developing new innovations and "transformers" for lip colour.

Throughout the interview, Poppy demonstrated why she remains such an influential figure in the beauty industry—her unwavering commitment to authenticity, creativity, and challenging the status quo continues to inspire beauty entrepreneurs and enthusiasts alike.

As she so eloquently put it, "Beauty is not a vanity issue, it's a human rights one." This perspective reminds us all that beauty, when approached thoughtfully, can be a powerful tool for self-expression and personal empowerment.