Beauty Boss: Nikki Huebner, Founder & CEO of Endure™ Beauty & EndureLash®
Nikki Huebner.
Our latest Beauty Boss is Nikki Huebner, Founder & CEO of Endure™ Beauty & EndureLash®—an innovative line of organic lash and skincare products. She created the first-of-their-kind makeup removal cloth and lash drying cloth that won't snag or destroy lash strips and lash extensions, allowing you to truly cleanse and maintain lashes for much longer. The brand has since expanded into several other organic beauty and skincare products, including lash wash, under eye therapy gel pads, and more.
In addition to offering unique products, the heart and soul of Endure Beauty's mission is its charitable component. Through Huebner''s efforts, approximately $325,000 has been donated thus far to Chyler's Family Room Project in memory of her late daughter. With these funds, family rooms that offer rest and solace to grieving families have been added to a number of local hospitals, keeping Chyler's legacy alive.
We spoke with Huebner, who shared beauty and wellness tips, her favorite ways to relax, and more.
When was Endure Beauty founded? What’s the meaning behind the name?
Endure™ Beauty initially launched on May 10, 2017. That date is my late daughter Chyler’s birthday and in her memory, several facets of the Endure™ Beauty brand tie back to her. The name “Endure” came from my own personal story of endurance, sustaining a life after the sudden new normal I was faced with when losing a child. It also represents my journey of enduring through tragedy and manifesting something positive that transcends beyond myself. A huge part of Endure™ Beauty’s mission is to help others and give back to charity, keeping my late daughter’s legacy alive.
What inspired the creation of the brand?
When I created the company, I had two goals in mind: to fill a void in the lash industry and to also create a platform to do good and give back.
Before launching the brand, I started to wear lash extensions and I couldn’t find anything to wash or maintain them. Since I had been working in the medical device industry, I knew that I had to clean them and keep them sanitary. So I created my own cloths for cleansing and drying. My lash technician asked me what I was doing to keep my lashes so clean and in shape, and I showed her my cloths. She urged me to get them on the market and that’s when EndureLash® was born. Since then, we’ve launched other products within the EndureLash® family, and I have launched an organic skincare under the Endure™ Beauty umbrella.
During the time I started selling my EndureLash cloths, my family and I became heavily involved in a new project that the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) launched back in 2010 in North Carolina called the Ronald McDonald Family Room Projects. The family rooms are spaces within hospitals and are equipped with bedrooms, laundry facilities, full kitchens, and more.
Additionally, the RMHC volunteers monitor and comfort the families who have been enduring next to a sick or dying child. Often times, this can go on for days, weeks, and even months. Since these families are terrified to leave the hospital or even their child’s bedside, the family rooms offer them a place to pray, shower, wash clothes, eat, sleep, or simply breathe while only being steps away from their beloved child.
I’m proud to share that Endure Beauty donates a portion of our year-end profits to Chyler’s Family Room Project an extension of the Ronald McDonald House Charities, which keeps five family rooms across North Carolina running. Last year alone, our combined efforts helped to comfort over 50,000 families across North Carolina.
Does Endure Beauty have a hero product?
In my mind they are all hero products. If I had to choose one product, it’s the organic bamboo cloth and the skin care...that’s more than one. I can’t decide! How about we are simply a hero brand?
What are your favorite products from your brand?
Every day I use the full facial skin care line, including the Under Eye Therapy Gel Pads. I have eyelash extensions and regularly use the EndureLash Organic Eye Make-Up Removal Cloth and the EndureLash Organic Drying Cloth.
Where are your products sold?
We are sold mainly in spas, medi-spas, lash boutiques, high-end women’s retail boutiques, gift shops, on our website, and at The Market at Macy’s in Atlanta.
Endure Beauty Under Eye Therapy Gel Pads protect skin, relieve puffiness and reduce swelling.
Who inspires you?
My late Granny Thurman inspires me. She is my little “Korean Granny.” She had a tragic childhood. She lost her entire family from either illness or the Korean War, ended up orphaned and eventually homeless at one point. She had very little in terms ofmaterial objects and finances. But her fight, her spunk, her joy, her compassion, her kindness, her ambition, her endurance—I want to grow up to be just like her one day.
Secret to success?
Keep going and don’t be afraid of change. Once you realize that you are most likely going to fail repeatedly before you succeed, you will experience success. But also, what defines success? For some, success is being incredibly healthy, having a ton of money, fame, having kids, or a family. For others, success can be simply waking up and facing the day. After losing a child in a tragic way, still being the best mom to my oldest son, Lauchlin, and the best spouse to my also-grieving husband, John, felt like true success to me.
Beauty secrets?
Lots of water, lots of sleep, exercise, and sunscreen! Less is more when it comes to skin care. Concentrated organic, raw, and simple formulations like you get with Endure™ Beauty skin care in addition to regular facials and exfoliation. I exfoliate weeklywith our newest Endure™ Beauty Pineapple Clay Mask and Papaya Clay Mask. I also spray the Endure™ Beauty Facial Toner over my makeup a few times a day for balanced PH. It’s also a refreshing protection from the oils and environmental stressors throughout the day!
Wellness tips?
Pray.
Say “thanks.” Always be thankful, even if something turned out to be less than favorable.
Breathe. I’m still working on this one.
Feel your emotions. Sadness, joy, compassion, love, confusion...all of it. We learn life lessons both good and bad from facing and experiencing what our mind is trying to tell us. Too often, we try and control our life by blocking out our emotions because they can make us feel uncomfortable. Open your mind and be well.
Best advice?
As a little girl, I was bullied quite a bit. I’m half-Korean, athletic, ambitious, and academics came quite easy. Many girls would say and do very mean things to me in hopes of crushing my spirit. Kids can be cruel and they don’t really think about consequences because they haven’t fully grasped what their actions can lead to. I looked and acted “different” to many of my peers, I guess. My mom would always say, “Nikki, you keep being you. If people are talking about you, then you must be doing something right.” That’s the best advice I have ever been given and I pass it to my boys today. Just be you!
Favorite way to relax?
Relaxing to me is hanging with my sons. We love to paint together, watch movies, and we live for outdoor activities such as riding the four-wheelers at the lake by our home. We also like being silly and dancing to music in our den together. After the boys go to bed each night, I usually pour a glass of red wine and soak in a nice salt-drenched hot bath. I then practice a short calming yoga session off of YouTube, catch a TV episode with my husband, and finally sleep!
For more information and to purchase Endure products, visit endurebeauty.com and follow the brand on Instagram: @endurebeauty
[Images courtesy of Endure Beauty]
Kamala Kirk is a University of Southern California graduate and has been an editor/writer for more than a decade. She has written for E! Online, Total Beauty, TravelAge West, Malibu Times Magazine, and many more. She resides in Los Angeles and is a proud pug mom. Follow her on Instagram: @kamalakirk