Meet Allison Moses of Confident Beatdown Cosmetics

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Allison Moses.

Hi Allison, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
In 1999, right out of high school, I was at Metcalf South Mall, walking through the Jones Store. When Leslie, the Clinique counter manager, asked me to sit down to show me something new.

We had so much fun, laughing and getting to test out new products and new colors; 4 hours later – I was offered a job wearing a White Coat and, within 1 year, became the number one seller in the cosmetics department. I loved the job and had a passion for learning and training within the industry, but I never thought it would become the foundation for my growth in my career 20 years later.

In 2003, I was offered to move to New York to get the training I needed to become a traveling celebrity makeup artist. Naive at age 23, I decided to go to school and stay local at Johnson County Community College for business management and accounting. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. No office job was screaming at me that this was my career – if anything – I felt allergic to work.

In 2008, I became a single mom to my daughter Reily Jade, who is now 15 and a freshman in high school. However, it has been my greatest accomplishment so far in life. I am so proud of my daughter and love watching her grow to become her own amazing, independent, and very strong personality. I would honestly be lost without her. She is my world and has been my biggest supporter through it all.

In 2017, when I enrolled in The School of Paul Mitchell of Overland Park, I knew that my dream of having my own cosmetic line was coming back to me. I was working part time at Ulta in the evenings to keep up with industry and saw this was time to do it, if any. Coming out of a 10-year relationship, the focus was finally on me and my daughter, and from there, I never looked back.

Life has it’s own day to day of obstacles, my personal health was declining with auto-immune disorder, trying to people please and live up to everyone’s rules and expectations. I ended up finding ways to “numb” myself. It was my escape from the world I was living. My life choices, the constant arguing, fighting, and competition, were not how I wanted to live my life anymore. I surrendered to life. I felt confidently beaten down. When all I wanted was to be confident and on point, no matter what life threw at me.

In 2019, it was time for change. I could no longer bleed onto those who did not hurt me. I could not get into another relationship till I healed from the one that hurt me and my family so badly. So I pushed away all the who’s, where’s, what’s, and why’s of my life that no longer served me. I dropped my fears and others’ judgment and expectations of me. Took accountability for my choices and actions. And it all came to an end for the beginning. I started to focus on what I could change and what I wanted out of life. Before you knew it, I had a better life right before me, one that I trusted.

It was right before Covid, curating my products, and I could no longer get my hands on faces to give free makeovers. So, I had to quickly change my focus on retail.

Once I had a product, I had many endless nights ahead of me. Tons of research and Excel spreadsheets led me to build a website for Confident Beatdown Cosmetics. I had tons of questions about starting a business, so I got in contact with the Women’s Business Center here in Kansas City. To assist me with business structures and confirm my numbers. Judith was impressed with what I had together so far and encouraged me to enroll in their six-week course to build my business plan.

Upon certification there, I leveled up to take another six-week course with the Elevation Lab at UMKC. There I worked with a business coach, Joel who was able to get me in contact with a local chemist, along with introducing my products to market and get feedback from others in the industry. Confident Beatdown Cosmetics was very welcomed into the industry with lots of good feedback, excitement and love.

I wanted to help other incoming brands while adding value, learning, and gaining the retail space. So, I worked part-time for Retail Merchandising Services as a Field Merchandising Representative and supported 23 local Target and Super Target headquarters stores. To fully understand what it takes to get a new product/brand into a retail space. From setting up store end caps to adding or removing items to make room. Tracking inventory and sending back damaged or discontinued items. Cleaning the shelves and sending feedback with supporting photos to make sure it is constant throughout all stores POGS.

From there, I felt confident enough to apply to New York Fashion Week for Indie Brands to get retail placement, I applied and got zoom interviews with owners of Flying Solo. My application was accepted, and Confident Beatdown Cosmetics was on the shelves at Flying Solo in Soho, New York, and quickly featured in Weekly Style Magazine, April Edition, under beauty finds for fashion-forward individuals everywhere.

I then signed up with Range Me to get attention from retail buyers. One benefit of attending Buyers Week – was getting a clearer understanding of what the market was demanding and what the retailer needed to meet the demands, how to stay up with current trends, and how to find new trendsetters.

I was advised I needed more involvement within my local community here in Kansas City. I found Kansas City Fashion Week in the Spring of 2021 and signed up to be a volunteer. I quickly fell in love with this community and am currently still an ambassador with endless opportunities to network, travel, and create with other brands, designers, photographers, and models in the industry. I have been very fortunate to build a relationship with a local Esthetics Academy in Shawnee, Kansas.

I am very excited to see where Confident Beatdown will all end up in the retail space! This has been the most life-changing experience, and I am so grateful for all the love and support along the way.

We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh, of course, there have been so many. I say take on new challenges, the wins teach you confidence and the losses teach you resilience. Embrace learning new things and be kind to yourself when things do not go as planned. Believe that you deserve to take up space.

Give less weight to others’ opinions than your own. But in the end, be willing to listen and apply what you learned. Know the challenges within your industry and set goals that are realistic.

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about Confident Beatdown Cosmetics, LLC?
My focus is on natural everyday makeup, showing new colors and new ways of applying our talc-free eye shadow and how to create seamless 3D effects from your colors. I love doing editorial photo shoots.

Confident Beatdown Cosmetics is a best seller of 3D high-definition foundations as they are creamy, flawless, and seamless with buildable coverage. Made from all-natural, organic, vegan ingredients, rich in antioxidants to ensure that each application is soothing and healing to your skin.

Our cream to powder formula is great for oilier skin as it absorbs throughout the day, wonderful for dry skin as it moisturizes your skin and lays on top of your skin and flows with movement and minimizes lines.

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Surround yourself with supportive and uplifting people, and believe in what you are doing. I suggest doing research and finding mentors in your industry who will teach you hands-on training with good expert knowledge to where you can get to the next level.

I joined Hello Alice, which is a free website for women-owned businesses to post and help others, which opened doors to KC Source Link, KC One for Women, and Women’s Employment Network, just to name a few. So many outlets out there, with others in the same situations that are willing to help you – you just have to ask. Then, find a community to volunteer, network, and grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.confidentbeatdown.com
• Instagram: @ConfidentBeatdown