Hunter at Shark Tank casting call March 2018

The brands, compared

Seattle Businesswoman Shocked by Shark Tank Revelation

WOODINVILLE, WASHINGTON, USA, April 10, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- When Laura Hunter attended a California casting call for Shark Tank on March 9, 2018, and declined the opportunity to appear on the show, she would have never guessed that three years later the Sharks would invest in a company that copied her successful patent-pending product.

See Hunter’s 2018 round two Shark Tank application video here.

“I was just shocked to see the episode. When I applied for Shark Tank I believed that the products had to be innovative and new, not copies of an already successful and patent pending product. I was even more shocked considering my experience with the show and the fact that they had first-hand knowledge that this product was not original or new to the market,” Hunter said.

Dedicated to creating truly safe and ethically produced products, Hunter was further dismayed to learn that the Sharks invested in a company whose products include mink fur. Like Sephora and other leaders in the cosmetics industry, LashLiner and Tori Belle Cosmetics draw a hard line when it comes to banning the use of mink fur in their eyelashes. According to the animal rights group PETA, “Mink lashes are NEVER ethically sourced.” It is, in fact, impossible and the reality is horrific. See https://www.peta.org/features/mink-eyelashes/

In the Shark Tank episode that aired April 9, Shark Kendra Scott, of Kendra Scott, LLC, a jewelry company, invested $100,000 for a 20% stake in OpulenceMD Beauty, a North Carolina cosmetics brand. "I have created an eyelash extension that is noticeably lighter more comfortable and amazingly easy to apply," stated OpulenceMD's founder, Dr. Anika Goodwin, while showing a magnetic eyelash seemingly identical to LashLiner's Los Angeles style lash, first brought to market in LashLiner's 2018 KickStarter campaign and currently available on their website. Goodwin did admit that she did not invent the product but repeatedly stated that she created the product. However, no explanation was given as to how she had created the product and there was no discernible difference between the two brands. Both products are medically endorsed. Dr. Goodwin endorses her own product line while LashLiner has done extensive third party testing and has endorsements from independent physicians.

Hunter invented magnetic eyeliner in February 2018, and has numerous related patents pending in the US and internationally. She and her partner, Bob Kitzberger, launched LashLiner in 2018 to bring her invention to market. The couple then launched Tori Belle Cosmetics in 2019, and have continued to introduce innovative cosmetics products. They rebranded the LashLiner name to Magnetude™ Magnetic Eyeliner for Tori Belle Cosmetics, building on the success of their magnetic eyeliner, mascara and eyelashes. Privately held LashLiner and Tori Belle were both bootstrapped, went from nothing to over $70 million in product revenue since Lashliner’s launch in 2018.

Hunter and the rest of the product development team at Tori Belle are committed to formulating safe and cruelty-free products. "You'd be amazed how many cosmetic companies don't really create products - they just find something cheap on sites like Wish and put their logo on it. Oftentimes, they claim something is cruelty free when a little research will tell you it's not," said Hunter. Kitzberger adds, "It takes significant investment and commitment to deliver a continuous stream of high-quality products, but we believe it's worth it. Our customers can tell the huge difference between Tori Belle and the cheap knock-offs, by both large and small companies, that plague us and the cosmetics industry as a whole."

Beyond innovation and safety, Tori Belle Cosmetics was founded to bring opportunity to women and men worldwide and gives generously to charity. Today, tens of thousands of women and men are part of Tori Belle's inclusive community of affiliates and social media influencers. Since its launch in June 2019, Tori Belle has paid over $35M (US) in commissions to its affiliates. “This warms our heart more than anything else,” said Hunter.

About Tori Belle Cosmetics, LLC

Tori Belle Cosmetics, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiaries of magnetic eyeliner innovator LashLiner, Inc, and is named after Founder and CEO Laura Hunter’s two daughters, Victoria and Isabelle. The brand is sold exclusively through a worldwide network of tens of thousands of independent Tori Belle Affiliates. Tori Belle breaks down barriers to success for affiliates by providing invaluable training, eliminating exclusivity and product purchase requirements, and removing the need to carry stock by drop-shipping directly to end customers. Learn more about Tori Belle at www.toribellecosmetics.com.

About LashLiner, Inc

LashLiner, Inc, was founded in March 2018 by beauty industry veteran Laura Hunter and her partner Bob Kitzberger to launch Hunter’s flagship product invention. The patent-pending LashLiner System is the world's first magnetic eyeliner and false eyelash system, offering quick, easy and painless application of beautiful false eyelashes that simply click into place. The company’s wholly owned subsidiaries include Tori Belle Cosmetics LLC and Tori Belle Canada Inc. The LashLiner System is available at www.lashliner.com. Tori Belle Cosmetics’ product line is available via independent affiliates at www.toribellecosmetics.com.

Monique Gallery
Tori Belle Cosmetics
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