05.22.2024
Episode 258: Sean Garrette, Esthetician and Dior Skincare Expert
Summary
From sleeping on his friend’s couch in LA to becoming one of the first brand ambassadors for Fenty Beauty by Rihanna, Sean Garrette’s story is anything but linear. Discover the power of perseverance in chasing your dreams on this week’s WBMB episode with Esthetician and Dior Skincare Expert, Sean Garrette.
Sean’s entry into the beauty industry started amidst the aisles of his first job at Ulta, which ignited his fascination with makeup and skincare—his time there sparked a passion to pursue his dreams of becoming an esthetician and managing his very own spa. But Sean’s journey wasn’t without its challenges. Like any pursuit of passion, there were moments of doubt and setbacks along the way.
As we sit down with Sean and dive deeper into his journey, we uncover the warmth of his positive spirit and the authenticity that defines his success. Whether helping a client find the perfect product or sharing skincare tips with his nearly 130K followers across Instagram and TikTok Sean’s genuine passion for what he does shines through.
Being a young, black man wanting to be in a creative industry, you have to take risks because nothing is ever gonna be given to you.
Sean Garrette
Transcript
| Speaker | Transcript |
| Announcer | Welcome to Where Brains Meet Beauty hosted by Jodi Katz, founder and creative director of Base Beauty Creative Agency. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | Hi, Jodi. It's great to see you. How are you? |
| Jodi Katz | Good morning. Aleni. Great to see you too. I am well. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | We have another friend joining us today on the podcast who we met just last year, Sean Garrett at the Melanoma Research Foundation Gala. He joined our table and we had so much fun chatting with him and learning more about him. |
| Jodi Katz | Yes, Alejandra on our team has a long relationship with Sean. So it's so great to celebrate the MRF work with him. And he's a really fascinating guy. I'm so glad he shared his story on the show. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | I'm interested to hear more and that night reminds me Melanoma Research Foundation. It's such a great cause. And it really relates perfectly to Sean who is also a licensed esthetician along with being an influencer. So he's, he's a busy guy. |
| Jodi Katz | Yes. This conversation with Sean really highlights how like all of our career journeys are zigzags twist upside down loops, there's no straight line and it's not like he you know, woke up at 18 years old and decided I want to be an esthetician. It took them a while to figure out what that special thing would be for him. But he's incredibly passionate about skincare. He's very passionate and effective at bringing diversity into clinical trials and testing for brands. He has really made his dreams come true. In his career as a skin expert and influencer. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | I know that Fenty and Dior saw his passion and enlisted him to share their vision as well, which is truly amazing. I feel like every time I'm talking to people about like, what brands they think are really doing big things in the industry. These two names always come up. So it's amazing that he's part of that story. |
| Jodi Katz | Yeah. And he told us like, you know, he kind of pulled the curtain back to tell us what it's really like being on the influencer side of this work, right? So, you know, he has his hands on people's faces. And esthetician was an influencer, the work is quite different. So he really didn't, you know, hide hide anything from us. You know, he talked about the hard staff and the fun staff. And I think it's a really valuable episode for anybody looking to understand more about the world of influencer, whether they work for a brand, or they're stepping into content creation themselves. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | I love that I love when the show goes deep into kind of hearing about the person behind the content or the camera or whatever it might be. We've learned so much. |
| Jodi Katz | And we're going to have two more guests in our influencer theme. And then after that, drumroll we're going to be picking the recipients of our listener get awards, which will be the summer so it's exciting that we'll get to have a award recipient from our influencer theme. And also an award recipient from our CEO was in theme which was the first quarter so exciting. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | And that's a reminder for our listeners to let us know in the comments on Instagram, or LinkedIn what episodes you learned the most from this season? |
| Jodi Katz | Yes, we have a lot of big things coming up this summer. So please, please please follow along on your favorite podcasting platform and also LinkedIn where all the news will happen. |
| ALENI MACKAREY | Let's get to it. This is episode 258 with Sean Garrette. |
| Jodi Katz | Welcome to where brains meet beauty. We are a career journey podcast talking about what it's like to define success and reach for it in the beauty and wellness industries. Today we are continuing our influencer quarter with Sean Garrett licensed New York City esthetician and beauty tastemaker from get ready with me. He's two reviews and hauls his content has it all. A skincare specialist turned influencer. He was crowned the first ambassador for Fenty skin last summer. He now works with Dior blending his love for luxury skincare science and education into one to amplify diversity and skincare. I'm excited to dive into this conversation about his career journey from SD to your new bestie on episode 258. Hi, Sean, welcome to where brains meet beauty. |
| Sean Garrette | Hello, I'm gonna get the episode. |
| Jodi Katz | You know, I mean, this is probably the same in your work. You just have to put your head down and keep going. |
| Sean Garrette | Absolutely. Absolutely. |
| Jodi Katz | I remember when it was not even 50 episodes, right? It was 20 episodes, it was begging people to like play in this weird podcasting world. And now it's you know, totally normal. But I love announcing that episode number because I'm so into focusing on progress. You know, so like, reminds me of all that progress. Yeah. So, you know, this is a career journey show for anybody listening in that's not familiar with the podcast, we just totally focused on career journey. So we're actually not going to hear tips and tricks for glowy skin. We're not going to learn about the next new ingredient. We're really just going to focus on Shawn and his journey because there's so many rich lessons and wisdom to be shared. We're going to go back in time. And Shawn or maybe mom wants to contribute to this to think about your like 1011 year old self. What do you want to be when you grew up? |
| Sean Garrette | When I was young? I had like so many random careers that I wanted to do. I think I'm gonna be like a plastic surgeon because I used to have back to like the swan and Dr. 90210 and all those like really cool shows. And I've always been obsessed with like the audit transformation. So I've always loved beauty always loved fashion. As I got older, I really developed like my love for fashion. And so that was my immediate goal. I have like a fashion blog I used to study fashion. I was obsessed with John Galliano at your I was obsessed with Christian ACWA. I loved French couturiers, and I always thought I would be like a stylist or work in fashion in some kind of way. And I did work in fashion for quite a while I went to school for fashion, but it just didn't pan out the way that I wanted to. And as you work in the industry, you realize some things are better as a hobby or passion or, like admiring it from afar and not something you want to do every day for a job. And so I kind of reignited my love for beauty and started to slowly work my way into the industry. |
| Jodi Katz | How old were you when you started the blog? |
| Sean Garrette | Oh, my God. I had a blog at like 15 years old. Yeah, I think it was called Little Andre. And it was called Little Andre because of Andre Leon Talley. And I was like, I wouldn't be doing I'll tell you when I grow up. So I named it little Andre. Yeah, it was amazing. I think I interviewed like June Ambrose and I was like, 17 years old. From my blog. It was so cool. |
| Jodi Katz | I love the ambition. And that's what's so exciting about digital marketing is when it doesn't really matter what age you are, you can just do it. |
| Sean Garrette | Yeah, right. Yeah, for sure. |
| Jodi Katz | So let's talk about the sort of your career or you said, you thought you'd make a career out of fashion, it turned into something that you'd rather just be a fan of, then, you know, participate in behind the scenes. Tell us about some of these roles and jobs that you had. |
| Sean Garrette | So, after school, I had moved to New York, I literally had, I think maybe less than $100. And I think the first week I had less than 100. |
| Jodi Katz | That's when he does see you the minute you leave. Your money is falling out of your pocket was insane. |
| Sean Garrette | But soon as I got to the city, I was just hustling immediately. So I started going to high end fashion stores and trying to ask if I could you know, work in the store or do visual merchandising and actually end up working at a boutique as an assistant visual merchandiser. And then I had an internship at a fashion showroom. And they did huge celebrity productions and for fashion shows, red carpets, movies, music videos, so many things. As our intern there were I met like my best friends still to this day. And I literally made up like a whole resume. I lied. I said, I said I worked for like Oscar de la Renta, like I did all this stuff. And who's like my best friend now. He was like, I know you were lying. But I loved you so much that I just ended up hiring you. And it was a great experience. I met so many amazing people. And then one of the stylist who I met the showroom, I ended up assisting him for a little bit. And then I kind of just started to kind of find my own way after I left New York, New York was a tough place for me to move. Like back in 2013. I just turned 22 years old. And I just didn't know what I really, truly wanted to do. And it took me leaving New York, kind of figuring myself out who I was as a person to be able to find like the right career path for me. |
| Jodi Katz | And where did you go when you left New York. |
| Sean Garrette | So I went back to Baltimore, Maryland, where I'm from originally, and I kind of like licked my wounds a bit with my family. And then my whole family one day just said to move to Atlanta, they all want to go to Georgia. And I was like no, like, I want to stay here because I'm you know, three hours from New York on you know, like the bus or the train. I don't want to go to Atlanta, you know, like my closeness to, like the city I've always wanted to live in is now being taken from me. But Atlanta actually was it was good for me because it honestly I felt like it helped build my tenacity, because a lot of like my resources and things that I was used to having and be able to rely on was taking from me and I was able to learn how to rely on myself and make things happen for myself. But yeah, so I was in Atlanta, and that's where my stock of beauty started to come from. Because I started working at Ulta when I was in Maryland, I was working at Ulta I fell in love with it fell in love with it. Like I just I just fell in love with the product and I think that's where my first love truly come came from just playing with different textures of creams, exfoliant cleansers mask also makeup like lipsticks, eyeshadow shimmers like things that people use to transform themselves and become their who they see as their true selves. It was really inspiring and it kind of stuff third, my love for beauty more and more and more. |
| Jodi Katz | Oh, by the time you apply for the road, I'll tell you didn't have to lie on your resume anymore because you had that great showroom. Right? You were saying boutique so that's exciting. You know, what's interesting about what you're saying, even with your time in New York is it sounds like you weren't afraid to just go for it, right part of the, you know, building up your resume more than it actually weighed. Yeah, was you saying I really do belong here, let me in. |
| Sean Garrette | Yeah. And I think that's what especially like being a young like black man wanting to be in a creative industry, you really just kind of have to take those risks, because nothing is ever going to be given to you. And so you always have to just step out of your comfort zone, put yourself out there, your best foot forward. And the thing about me is, I always knew I could dress really well. So I always looked apart. And it always made sure I showed up, I was knowledgeable about what I was talking about. And that's what I didn't lie about. Like if I was talking about something like a subject or designer or something. I studied that I'm a Virgo. So like, I want to the facts of every single thing. And I think that's what really led me through one just like my personality, me being a hard worker, and my willingness to always learn more and more, |
| Jodi Katz | You have the role at Ulta in Baltimore, but then you moved, were you able to move into an UltA in Atlanta? |
| Sean Garrette | Yeah, I went to another altar, which, honestly, that was horrible. That was horrible. It was just not, it was not the same, but I still got to be around beauty. And honestly, in Georgia at the time, that's all I also was all I had, like being in that store was like the most fantasy that I could get. Because, you know, there's It wasn't much glamour, and Lawrenceville, Georgia. So it kind of just helped me kind of escape a little bit. And that's when I started really getting to like beauty YouTube and influencers. You know, 26 I was like 2015 2014. That's when like, the beauty influencer really was like coming up. And I still watched people like Patrick Starr and Mandy in the way. And I was like these, like, cool boys are like making beauty content and becoming successful. And it really inspired me. |
| Jodi Katz | You know, it's interesting, you're saying that you didn't like the job when you moved to the Atlanta area. And you didn't have anything else going on? Right? The relationships you left behind in New York or Maryland, the upheaval, maybe, as you said, still licking your wounds. And sometimes when we have a job, it's sometimes it's not even just the job. It's like everything else. That's just not working. Right. So then, I mean, the job gets mixed up in it, right? Maybe it was harder to connect with people, right? Because you've either maybe felt alone or lost or frustrated. And I've had, I've had a lot of jobs in my career, jumped and hopped around. And if I wasn't feeling like, if I didn't have like some self esteem, sometimes it went pretty low. Yeah, then I couldn't, I couldn't like the job. It was impossible. |
| Sean Garrette | I think that was what I was going through too. Because I was alone, I was away from all of my friends. And honestly, most of my extended family, I have a huge family. And so I'm always used to been around all my cousins, my aunts. And now it's like, my immediate family is all together. But I couldn't really like talk to because they just didn't understand young Sean, they didn't know what I really wanted to do. And I think that can be a hard thing. Also, when you're trying to figure out what you want your career path to be in having meaning the support of your family, and they not really understanding that it can be like very frustrating. But for me, it just kind of drove me to be more successful. And so once I decided beauty was the industry I wanted to be in, I started doing makeup during freelancing, I started researching ingredients about skin prep, because I will always get so many compliments about my skin even back then. And so I was like, How can I better this, like what am I using that is good. So it just really inspired me to keep going on that path and led me to where I'm at now. |
| Jodi Katz | It's so I'll call it vulnerable to be wanting to create success and be super ambitious in these very image driven industries, right? Fashions so image driven, it drives pop culture, right. So I would imagine that overcoming the angst of not finding your way the way you wanted to. And that was sort of heightened, like if I guess if you want to be like a lawyer or banker, you know, I don't know insurance person. It's not pop culture, you know, it's not high profile, and maybe not finding your way wouldn't kind of take such an emotional toll. But when we're in these, we want to create success in these worlds that are really high profile. It we make it feel like it's reflective of who we are even though you know, it's just the circumstances. So it's amazing that you're able to climb out of that feeling and find this magical place and beauty. |
| Sean Garrette | You know, I'm also I've been thinking about that a lot lately in my career. Like I've gotten to a place where like, I'm very happy and I've been able to create the success that I've always wanted in my career. But you know, I'm only 32. And so I have so many more goals I want to accomplish. And I find myself going back to like that younger self like 10 years ago, where I would just dream and fantasize and be like a little delusional about my life. And I feel like I need that again, because it helped me manifest all of the things in my life. When I had started really thinking about what I wanted to in my career, I knew I wanted to be a brand ambassador and lead at a company. And the two brands I put downward, thin T and Dior. And there were the two jobs that I got. And I'm like, I need to start manifesting that again. That's why those are the two things I wrote in like a manifestation notebook |
| Jodi Katz | when you were 22 years old. |
| Sean Garrette | So this was I'm jumping ahead a little bit. This was like in 2016, I had moved to LA at the time, and I was fully into beauty. I was working as a freelance makeup artist in LA, and which was a really, really hard experience. And I used to like do these, you know, like, anybody who's been to LA or LA, you know how like, crazy it is. It's a lot of like sidekicks and spiritual people. It's I had that like a spiritual healer, reader, and she was like, you really need to manifest the things that you want, because I was really feeling stuck in a place. And I got a notebook, a fresh notebook, and I've just write everything that I wanted to do everything. And I checked off a lot. I really want it to work. fnt at the time, shouldn't have been to scan it was just Fenty beauty. And I was like, I'm gonna be like a makeup artist, or I was like she launched his skin like I have to be a part of it. And little do you know, I launched the brand. Like, that's nothing but like divine intervention, like, you can't make that. It's not a coincidence that it happened. |
| Jodi Katz | You're literally making your dreams come true. Yeah. Honestly. There's a beauty in how simple You're making it sound. Right? Obviously, it was very hard. And there was a lot of uncertainty. Yeah. But I also I'm also hearing an incredible amount of joy and gratitude. |
| Sean Garrette | Yeah, I'm grateful for like, everything that I really went through in my younger years. I mean, I can't express how hard it really was. I mean, I was dirt poor. Like I was so poor. When I lived in LA, like I slept on like a beanbag for like three months, because I had like no furniture. When I decided to move to LA, it was a very like knee jerk movement. And my grandmother was really the person who pushed me because she saw how ambitious I was and how, how being in Baltimore was really kind of holding me back from my dreams. And I literally, I was working at a spa. And I thought about being an Aesthetician at the time, because I was doing really well at the spa. I was starting to consult with clients help the other esthetician sell product, and that became my thing. So everybody knew if you had a skincare question, go to Shawn. And at the time, I didn't have the money and like really the luxury to go to esthetician school. And so I was like I'm just gonna try doing this on my own. And I knew I was still wanting to do makeup and I just decided to move to LA my friend her roommate moved out, which I have an extra room if you want to come like, you know, come just have your rent. I think I saved like a month's worth of rent. That's all I had two suitcases and I went to LA and I hit the ground running like I worked my ass off. I really did. I really really did. |
| Jodi Katz | So did you ever go to esthetician school and formalize your skincare education? |
| Sean Garrette | Yes. So LA, went really well. And then it went really, really? Well. I got scammed out of my apartment. That girl was like stealing money from me and my best friend. The job I had that was like helping me sustain my bills while I still still freelancing. They close, I lost my job lost my house. And I was like, I remember I caught my like mom just like crying. I was like, why is nothing working out? Like, I was like, I need this. And I just felt so frustrated. And I was just like, You know what, like, maybe I just need to rethink what I'm doing and where I'm coming from. So I ended up moving to Atlanta back to Atlanta with my mom. And she's kind of just gave me like the space to figure it out and live within a week. I was like esthetician school like this is the perfect time the perfect position for me to go to efficient school. I don't have to worry about like household bills and paying rent and with my family. I have the support. So this would be the time and I was 25 at the time. I didn't accelerate a program. So literally, I joined during the summer I think I started in like August and I went to esthetician school nine to five Monday through Friday on the weekends. I went back to OSA was working out on the weekends, and I really worked my ass off. I mean I was getting up every morning by day and taking two buses and a train then walking 15 minutes up a hill to get to school. I I was so determined, because I was like this is I felt like my last chance, honestly, it felt like this is your chance and your time to make something of yourself. And I gave my all. I was like valedictorian of esthetician school, I had a 4.0. Like, I worked my ass off, and we did like clinicals and had to see clients, I would have repeat clients coming back asking for me. And I'd be like, hold my facial techniques created my own signature techniques at that point. And that really kind of just led me on to the path and I started doing content creation. At that time, I would do like little product flatlays and do reviews on Instagram and my mom's backyard. And that's how I kind of started everything. So I Lance, everything's like the catalyst for where I'm at today. |
| Jodi Katz | What you're telling us is it's not a straight line. It's definitely a zigzaggy Road, some loops and upside down. Curves. |
| Sean Garrette | I said, Right. Zigzag is not even the word. Okay, like it was like loops. I mean, talk for loop after loop. I mean, I barely have any hair because life was just dragging me. It was going on, but I made it through and I'm proud of myself for that I could never have imagined what I would do today. You know, I've done, you know, NBC news segments. I've been had a two page spread in Dutch Vogue and in Rolling Stone, I've been in InStyle magazine. My picture next to Yara Shahidi. You know, my Dior sister. It was, it's been amazing. And I'm still creating new goals and, you know, new dreams for myself every day. |
| Jodi Katz | Thank you for sharing that vulnerable side of the story. Because I do think as an influencer, it's really easy for your fans to think, Oh, you just like you knew somebody, you had an easy, everything's incredible. And you have no problems, right? That's a side of that people could just make assumptions about you. But it's you have to work for it. |
| Sean Garrette | You really do. And I think also, and I'm always advocating for black esthetician, because it's so many of us, but we don't really get the opportunities like a lot of others. And so for me, when I got myself into a position of where I could command more things, I made sure that always represented us well and always advocated for black people and people of color. So I'm always advocating for more research, inclusion and dermatology studies, clinical studies and product development trials. And Dr. I'm doing that same work. And you know, I think we have one of the most expansive clinical studies on different skin tones, which we've been working on since I think 2020 2021. So I'm always putting a little bit of myself into any project at any brand that I'm in because I want to leave my legacy on my mark at whatever work I'm doing. |
| Jodi Katz | I love this, Sean, I want to switch gears a little bit to like life as an influencer. So the mundane I'll call it an influencer, like, do you feel pressure to post every day? |
| Sean Garrette | Yes. Like, I think, from 2020, actually from like, 2019 I really started to like, gain a lot of popularity on Instagram. And I wasn't really I was posting maybe like three times a month. And that was enough, you know, then it became like, oh, you need to post like two to three times a week. And I was like, oh my god, I can't do that. Like I run a whole spa like I have my own business like I can. But then the pandemic, that's when I was able to lean more into concentration because I had to close my spa. So that really kind of helped me also get the Fenty job because I was making more impactful videos, my better views. And I think just recently, I'm coming out of a burnout from 2021. |
| Jodi Katz | So you, I guess, do you feel like you your body overdid it you like overcommitted? |
| Sean Garrette | Yeah, I think I did. Because I was just like stressing myself out to like create content and constant cost and creating and it was like I wasn't even really loving all the things I was creating, because I was think about the next one. The next one, I think I'm back to a place where I'm creating intentionally, like even recently, like, I just took like a weaken like maybe two weeks off from posting them just like I don't, I don't really have to do that, which I'm grateful now I'm at a place where I don't really have to post every single day and I don't want to I want to come online and give impactful information, educate and not always be pushing the product and under this another that which I felt like I got into a cycle laws. So now I'm just being more mindful about the content I'm creating. And I love those videos. But now I think it's like a kind of quality over quantity kind of mindset for me, right? |
| Jodi Katz | So maybe you had to invest that way back then to build a foundation. Like right, it's the game right? It's a numbers game. In this sort of Roll where you're trying to get the algorithm to love you. So maybe that's the investment, you had to make them. But now you can, you know, reboot and re envision how you show up. And thanks to that foundation, it allows you to make these more conscientious decisions. |
| Sean Garrette | And I think the algorithm now is influencing me more than anything, because I'm like, It's so terrible. I'm not stressing myself out for posting when, you know, half of the content I'm making is like barely reaching my audience, I'm having to constantly promote the videos that I'm making, so people can see it. So now it's like, if the algorithm is going to be a mess, I'm just going to focus on creating the intentional things that I want to create instead of like, I have to flood my socials with new content all the time. And I think my audience just kind of appreciates it more too. Because, you know, they don't get tired of seeing like my big blonde head, you know, they get excited when I post down. |
| Jodi Katz | Let's talk about the comments section, I guess what level of loveliness and kindness or chaos lives in your comment section. And if it's chaotic, or ever mean spirited, does that impact your mental health and your energy? |
| Sean Garrette | I definitely used to, when I first became the 22nd Global Ambassador, obviously, I'm working for a huge company, but I'm also working for a huge pop star. And, you know, I'm a regatta Navy, and number one stand from, you know, the day one, and I think I grew. It's so funny, because I would get so many comments about like, my weight, or me being, you know, not pretty, or whatever, like, I get so many things, a lot of most of the comments were about, like my weight, which I was like, really kind of sensitive about at the time, whilst I'm like I was under 30. At the time, I was still in my 20s, I was very young. And I think now that's not it's just not bother me. And the amazing thing, that I think for me being so genuine and already having like a pretty well known presence online, was that I had my followers. And then also, like, Rihanna supporters always like flooding and supporting me, and, you know, defending me. And I'll say the community I don't online is like, the best thing that I've received from being in a more public forum. Because even just recently, like I had posted a photo of me from like, 2020, just like, thinking about how far I had come just from the pandemic to now. And I got so many messages of people telling me, I inspired them to become esthetician, then after they got a facial from me or console that inspires them to take better care of their skin or to move into the beauty industry, seeing me be successful has helped them feel like they can accomplish their goals. And that's really what is impactful to me. You know, having money and experiences, that's all great, but like having real impact on people is what I always wanted to be an esthetician for. I want to make people who felt like they weren't beautiful, or they weren't seen feel seen and beautiful and colorful in their skin. That's literally what I do. I say like, I'm a skin therapist, because any esthetician knows you have a client, they come in they, you know, trauma dump, and you know, they give all their emotions to you and your men, you have to take that and almost internalize it and give them good energy back. So as to esthetician you also have to be able to cleanse your energy and be able to shake things off. And that's what I had to learn on social media, you know, yes, these things affect me. But I can't let them dictate how I move in the world and how I'm moving life. So I take all that negative energy, I shake it off, and then I try to give better out output. |
| Jodi Katz | You walked right into my next question, which will be the final question this part of the show. It's about empathy. You know, I look at empathy is really crucial in my business and marketing. Not specifically, you know, being empathetic with my team, which I am but infusing empathy into the work, right? The decision making is influenced by Well, what is that customer feeling right now? What are the things that are on their mind? What are their worries or concerns their passions? So as a skin expert, who's actually literally touching people's skin, in that really intimate forum, and then of course, advising and educating on social? How much of how much do you think about empathy in your day to day work? |
| Sean Garrette | I mean, my work is fully empathetic. Because it's like I have to understand where the person is coming from. And it's such an emotional thing like your skin, especially your face. That's the first thing people see. That's what you lead with. That's how people dictate your emotion, your intention. So when someone comes into my office, and they're having, you know, cystic acne or they've cleared the acne without having all of this hyper limitation is making them feel less than and not worthy. And like they can show up as themselves. I can't feel anything but empathetic because I've been in that position before. When I was around like 21, I had crazy acne breakouts from just like hormones changing as an adult man. And I had like crazy breakouts all over my forehead. And that's what really led to me becoming like an ingredient wizard. Because I was researching everything I could clear my skin. And it's also why I'm such a champion for nourishing your skin barrier, like damaged and destroyed my skin back then trying to clear my acne. And then I learned the correct thing to do. And then I created my own way to do it for people, especially skin of color. And that's kind of become like my calling card. And so empathy comes from every part of me and in my business all the time. Like I get so many messages every day somebody messages, Shawn, this is amazing. |
| Jodi Katz | We could talk forever. So we will find each other New York and time in real life. Yes, but this is wrapping up our interview segment. Thank you for your honest answers and wisdom. Okay, so we're going to talk forever, but I do have to we do have to wrap this up. So we're gonna let me pick one or two of these great questions. Okay, let's get into product because I know people like basically every single question here is about product. So let's give the fans what they want. Tell us one favorite eye treatment product. |
| Sean Garrette | I love the Dior prestige under eye serum. It's really really good at hydrating depuffing helps with brightness. It also has like a like a pearl massage tool at the end of it. So it can really help Depop and getting those fine lines. |
| Jodi Katz | And one other question very specific here. Which topicals to use. Oh with if you're using retinol, can you also use a cheese or beta hydroxy acids? Can you combine those things together? |
| Sean Garrette | You can but you need to be very experienced with product and know you're just getting a little bit more resistant if you want to use them in the same routine. But I always recommend using them separate so if you use a retinol on a Monday wait to like a Wednesday they use like your chemical exfoliant, yes. |
| Jodi Katz | Because that was for I think, Sonia and yeah, be really careful there and tons of sunscreen because you're really making yourself very photosensitive. Yeah. Okay, that's all the time we have Shawn, this is our 258th episode. I'm so grateful for you for spending your time and sharing your wisdom with us. And for our fans listening in. Thank you for joining us. If you liked this episode, please rate and review and as always, make sure you are following us on your favorite podcast platform and Instagram to stay up to date on upcoming episodes. And Shawn, this has been so fun. Thank you so much. And thank you mom for joining us too. |
| Sean Garrette | Thank you for having me. I'm so nice talking to you. I'll see you soon. Bye. |
| Announcer | Thanks for listening to where brains meet beauty with Jodi Katz. Tune in again for more authentic conversations with beauty leaders. |
Want to sponsor the pod?
Available On:
