You Can’t Have It All at the Same: Interview with Ron Robinson, Founder and CEO of BeautyStat

I recently went one-on-one with Ron Robinson, founder and CEO of BeautyStat

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks, or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth? 

Ron: I started as a cosmetic chemist for the Clinique division of the Estee Lauder Companies back in the early 90s. There, I formulated some of the biggest-selling skincare products for Clinique at that time. After a few years at Clinique, I worked for other divisions of the Estee Lauder Companies including Aramis and La Mer.

After leaving the Estee Lauder Companies, I then held senior product development roles at Revlon, Avon, and Lancome before launching my own company, BeautyStat.

One of my biggest challenges was at the very start of launching BeautyStat.  After pitching the brand to numerous investors, we could not raise money.  I tapped into my 401K to get the initial capital to start the business.  This turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made and most instrumental to my growth as an entrepreneur. 

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas? 

Ron: BeautyStat originally was a popular beauty blog and social media agency that I started back in 2009. During that time I became the go-to cosmetic chemist for beauty editors that were looking for my expertise on ingredients and beauty trends for the stories they were working on. One frequently asked question was, “Why is vitamin C unstable?” 

Most beauty enthusiasts know vitamin C is a great ingredient for skin, but it’s notoriously unstable. That means that it oxidizes, turns brown or orange, and is rendered inactive. This got me thinking, what if we could stabilize pure vitamin C? That would be the holy grail of beauty. After 5 years and 3 patents, we found a way to stabilize pure vitamin C in a formula with a great texture. The last step was to put our formula in an independent clinical to test and confirm that our product did indeed deliver results. When the results came back, I was floored. Testing confirmed that our formula delivered significant improvement in lines, wrinkles, firming and tightening the skin, evening out skin tone and hyper-pigmentation as well as diminishing the look of pores. Given these stellar results, I had no choice (I was compelled) but to launch the beauty brand, BeautyStat and bring our BeautyStat Universal C Skin Refiner to consumers.

Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?

Ron: I see too many entrepreneurs who think they have a great idea but don’t get enough objective feedback to confirm it’s a unique, viable, and scalable idea. My advice is to do surveys with targeted consumers to gain feedback on whether the business idea is relevant and answers a consumer need.

When we started, we had a lot more going for us compared to other startups. I had decades of beauty industry experience as a cosmetic chemist and product developer along with a seasoned founding team. Multiple patents on a breakthrough technology that stabilizes pure vitamin C giving it a three-year shelf-life. Independent clinical results on a formula that provided significant improvement in skin texture and tone.  And market research showing that our brand and product concept was both unique with strong purchase interest among a large population of consumers. 

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level? 

Ron: Level up your marketing. Marketing is a critical function for any growing business as this serves to tell a story to customers to both acquire them and retain them which is key to growing any business. 

We brought on a new CMO, Yaso Murray, a seasoned marketing executive who has spearheaded improving the look and feel of our brand and products as well as honed our messaging to be clear and compelling for both new and existing customers. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips? 

Ron: It starts with a great product that is innovative and relevant.  Even with a great product, there is still a lot of competition out there and you don’t have a lot of time to grab a customer’s attention.  In order to break through, you need a clear, concise, compelling message that really hooks the customer.  This does not often happen out of the gate, so you need to continually test and iterate and show up on all the places consumers are spending time ie online, social media, retail, and OOH.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level? 

Ron: Effective leadership is a multifaceted blend of qualities and skills that contribute to both personal and team success. Visionary leaders define a clear path for the future and communicate this vision in a way that inspires and motivates their teams. 

Communication skills are paramount, involving the ability to articulate ideas clearly and foster open and honest dialogue within the team. Adaptability is crucial in navigating the ever-changing landscape, embracing innovation, and remaining flexible in the face of challenges.

Leaders looking to take their leadership skills to the next level should seek mentorship from experienced leaders, actively solicit feedback for continuous improvement, and never stop learning.  Networking, self-reflection, and goal-setting contribute to personal and professional development.  Leading by example and modeling desired behavior fosters a culture of growth and excellence within the team. Through these approaches, individuals can enhance their leadership capabilities. 

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams? 

Ron: There’s no silver bullet for building, leading, and managing teams. Successful leaders need to find a balance between leading by example, being motivational, coaching and teaching, empowering, encouraging, delegating, organizing, team building, and communicating effectively.

What has made me successful as a leader is trying to be good at some of the above and always striving to get better and better. 

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives, and civic leaders? 

Ron: My three best tips are: 1) Be flexible and adapt to change. One thing you can guarantee is that change will always be a constant. 2) Build strong collaborative teams. 3) Build a culture of trust and transparency 

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received? 

Ron: The single best advice I’ve ever received is that you can have it all, but you can’t have it all at the same time. Right now, my focus is building my brand, BeautyStat, into one of the top skincare brands in the US.  After I achieve that, I can then turn my focus to other personal goals.


Adam Mendler is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and nationally recognized authority on leadership. Adam is the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one-on-one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal-winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations. Adam has written extensively on leadership and related topics, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders. A Los Angeles native, Adam is a lifelong Angels fan and an avid backgammon player.

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