The Beauty Edit Honor Roll: F-Beauty Leaders Defining the Industry’s Future

These trailblazers have an unrivaled pulse on the new, the now, and what comes next.
Reading Time: 6 minutes

Welcome to The Beauty Edit Honor Roll™️, our tribute to the trailblazers redefining the beauty industry. This series celebrates the personalities, publications, brands, and leaders who have sparked inspiration, broken barriers, and left a lasting mark on the world of beauty. Curated through votes from The Beauty Edit team and a panel of industry experts, The Beauty Edit Honor Roll™️ 2024 is a proud testament to Filipino ingenuity, creativity, and exceptional talent.

It’s an exciting time for Filipino beauty. We’re in an unprecedented era of discovering our preferences and unlocking the possibilities of what Filipino beauty can truly stand for. For the first time, we’re spoiled with shades that complement our unique skin tones, formulations tailored to our climate, and ideas that resonate with the Filipino consumer. 

Beyond exciting products, the scene is buzzing with conversations surrounding inclusivity, diversity, and empowerment–breaking barriers for those who may have once hesitated to embrace their inner beauty enthusiast due to outdated notions of vanity.

As cliché as it sounds, F-beauty is learning to be more confident in its own skin. And behind this evolution are the brains behind local brands that are moving the needle. As part of its Honor Roll series for 2024, The Beauty Edit is thrilled to celebrate these inspiring leaders. They are innovators, game-changers, challengers, and thought leaders, but most importantly, they’re Filipinos with a genuine passion for serving the needs of our market. 

Mae Layug of GRWM Cosmetics


YouTuber Mae Layug had been a content creator for three years when she first toyed with the idea of creating her own beauty brand. The thought came to her during a trip to Korea where upon entering a makeup store, she felt compelled to contribute to the industry back home. “I saw this gap in the Philippine market for morenas,” she shares in a podcast. And so, GRWM Cosmetics was born. Created to support everybody’s “get ready with me” journey, the brand stands for self-expression and inclusivity, evident in its wide shade range and comprehensive product portfolio. 

The year 2024 was undoubtedly a landmark year for GRWM because it released its biggest collection yet with global fashion figure Heart Evangelista as its endorser. “Face Card” is a collection of fully customizable palettes that can be formed by mixing and matching over 238 pieces of colors for the eyes, brows, lips, and cheeks. To celebrate the launch, Layug hosted the first-ever GRWM Ball, where it also unveiled various initiatives aligned with its values of sustainability and animal welfare. 

Only three years old, GRWM Cosmetics’ rapid growth proves that it’s more than just a reflection of its founder’s fame. Layug has effectively channeled her love for accessible beauty into a distinctive brand that proudly stands on its own.

Nina Dizon of Colourette Cosmetics

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Nina Dizon has always been ahead of the pack. She established Colourette Cosmetics in 2015 long before local makeup brands became massively popular in the Philippines. From its initial set of five Colorsticks, Colourette now has a vast collection of lippies, brow products, and recently, base products through its First Base Skin Tint.

Dizon has her eyes set on greater heights. Colourette received an undisclosed amount of seed funding in 2022 from Foxmont Capital Partners, a local venture capital firm that focuses on supporting local startups. In July of this year, the brand underwent a second round of funding, receiving a combined total of $2 million again from Foxmont Capital Partners, but also from Singapore-based DSG Consumer Partners and notable angel investors. Colourette became the first Philippine makeup brand to receive funding from the prestigious DSG Consumer Partners. 

As a champion for confidence and empowerment, Dizon utilizes her social media channels to share heartfelt experiences and learnings. She has 2.1 million followers on TikTok to date. To extend her advocacy, she also released a book called Rooting For Me: Breaking Boundaries as a (Business)Woman.

Dizon demonstrates that success isn’t just about grit—it’s about staying deeply connected to your community and letting your brand’s core values guide the way.

Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez of Happy Skin

It’s safe to say that the renaissance of F-beauty began with Happy Skin and blk cosmetics. The common denominator of both? Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez. This Unilever-trained marketer founded Happy Skin in 2013 with the pioneering vision of “skincare makeup,” something totally unheard of in the Philippines. “I just wanted to create a makeup brand, a beauty brand, that Filipinos would be proud of,” she tells The Beauty Edit. On the other hand, blk cosmetics was created in 2017 to bring uncomplicated beauty to the mass market.

Fast forward to this year, both brands continue to produce countless product lines that excite consumers and bring something new to the table. Happy Skin released a ceramide skincare collection and a trio of bakuchiol-powered serums and creams. There’s also the Jelly Blush which became an instant cult-favorite for its appetizing texture and colors. Meanwhile, blk launched a super-cool Invisible Matte Gel Powder, a primer-powder hybrid that instantly mattifies the skin. And then there were the Color Adapting Face Balm and Lip & Cheek Oils!

If we had to choose one of Gutierrez’s defining traits as a beauty leader, it would be her eye for innovation. She has a knack for anticipating what consumers want and spelling out what they didn’t know they needed.

Joel Andrade of ISSY

Beauty campaigns often conjure close-up images of smiling models looking picture-perfect. Well, Joel Andrade is here to flip the switch through his work for F-beauty brand Issy. The co-founder and chief creative officer is behind Issy’s editorial-style campaigns and futuristic activations that create an immersive experience for consumers like never before.

Having worked for OXYGN and Folded and Hung, Andrade channels his storytelling expertise through cohesive concepts. And the campaigns aren’t just visually striking—they make sense. For example, one of Issy’s initiatives for this year was “Issymania,” a wrestling-inspired campaign for its high-performance eye collection called “Eyes of a Champion.” There was also the “Skin that Works” campaign where models were filmed nonchalantly working in a corporate office because their beauty looks “put in the overtime.”

What makes Andrade an impressive creative to watch is how he retains a strong level of marketability while staying true to his freakishly cool aesthetic. This is attributed to his clear attunement to current trends. Case in point: Issy’s Pinktopia combined the “coquette” and “anik-anik” trends through blown-up pink teddy bears and Tamagotchi-inspired keychain toys. 

Andrade’s fantastic stories bring the brand’s value for diversity to life, making sure they live in our heads rent-free and revolutionizing our beauty standards with it. 

Denice Sy of Ever Bilena

Ever Bilena is an institution that needs no introduction. The family-run business remains at the forefront of the industry through the marketing leadership of Denice Sy, scion to Dioceldo Sy, who founded the brand over 40 years ago.

As the chief sales and marketing officer, Sy navigates changing tides through fresh products and brands that keep the conglomerate relevant. For instance, when the pandemic hit, Sy deftly pivoted by releasing Ever Bilena’s first-ever skincare line. This initial experiment has given birth to three standalone brands: Hyaloo is dedicated to hyaluronic acid products, Ever Organics is inspired by K-beauty, and Hello Glow! is Sy’s answer to clean beauty. 

Sy’s marketing acumen is attributed to her keen eye for detail and decisive projects. This year, Careline unveiled its first bullet lipstick after two years of development. Meanwhile, Spotlight Cosmetics tapped Lorin Gutierrez as its Gen-Z endorser. In another impressive feat, Hello Glow! hosted its second runway show with Miss Universe Philippines.

But Sy is far from taking all the credit. “I owe it all to the super hardworking R&D, creatives, marketing, and sales teams, as well as EB fans for appreciating all our efforts!” she shares on Instagram. Clearly, this team player is a next-gen leader to watch.

Collage by Dannah Valdezco. Nina Dizon photo via Nina Dizon Instagram. Mae Layug photo via Mae Layug Instagram. Jacque Yuengtian-Gutierrez photo via Jacque Yuengtian-Gutierrez Instagram. Joel Andrade photo via Joel Andrade Instagram. Denice Sy photo via Denice Sy Instagram.

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