This is an episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast, which features candid conversations about how today’s trends are shaping the future of the beauty and wellness industries. More from the series →
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Sarah Potempa, celebrity hairstylist and co-founder of The Beachwaver, is a live-selling expert.
It all started in 2012 when she launched her first product, the original Beachwaver rotating curling iron, live on QVC. “It was wild because they said, ‘Don’t get too excited — you might get four or five shows in your first year.’ … And then I was on QVC over 50 times my first year,” she told Glossy.
She thrived in the medium and was able to reach a growing number of consumers looking for an easier way to create beachy waves at home. She sold out frequently, became a viewer favorite and was asked to return time after time.
Unlike traditional curling irons and waving wands, The Beachwaver allows the user to clamp the end of a section of hair in place before pressing a button to wrap the section of hair around the electric iron. This avoids an unintended arm workout and the likelihood of burnt fingers, both common with the then-popular waving wands. Although she was already a well-known celebrity hairstylist and a regular in beauty publications for her styling advice, Potempa’s ability to connect with viewers while live-selling forever shifted the trajectory of her career.
Potempa has since launched more than 100 SKUs — including a variety of hot tools, hair care and accessories — and has sold more than 2 million Beachwaver irons, which retail for $99 and up. Her line is available at Ulta Beauty, Walmart, Target, Anthropologie and Dillards, among other retailers.
Today, she uses the skills she learned on QVC to be a leader in social media-based live-selling, often going live for hours at a time on TikTok, Amazon, Beachwaver’s own DTC site and anywhere else experimenting with the medium. This has translated to massive success on TikTok: As of October of 2024, she’s sold more than 1.1 million units on TikTokShop, making her one of the most prolific sellers on the platform.
Beachwaver is an independently held family business co-founded with Potepa’s two sisters, Erin and Emily, and her extended family regularly appears in the company’s many TikTok content franchises, which she calls “shows”. Her team and family stream from Beachwaver’s Illinois warehouse and offices, and this month she opened a second office and content studio in New York City.
Potempa joins the Glossy Beauty Podcast to discuss the nuances of live-selling and the benefits of an in-house content studio.
Excerpts from the conversation, below, have been lightly edited for clarity.
On successfully navigating her first time live-selling on QVC
“People at home were like, ‘Oh yeah, I actually can’t curl my hair. I don’t know how to curl my hair!’ But the greatest thing about my first show was that I didn’t do the models’ hair. I refused. I told [QVC producers], ‘Listen, I am a celebrity hairdresser. Yes, I do these amazing musicians and artists for the red carpet every day, but I’m trying to sell a product to a woman at home in her bathroom trying to get ready for a date night or a wedding. They don’t have a hairdresser, so I don’t want to be the one doing their hair. So we actually taught real women. For my very first show, I had two beauty editors come and my college roommate, because I was like, ‘I made this product to teach you how to do your hair!’ So they came and did their own hair on camera. It was a big risk. It was more authentic … and it changed my life.”
On the benefits of live-selling
“Livestreaming is really important to connect with customers directly. You know, I think there’s this element of reality and just being there for them and building a community. Because I will say, probably a lot of people don’t know that we might be women-owned. They don’t know that my sisters left their careers to do this. They don’t know my brother-in-law runs the warehouse. My cousins pick up the recycling. Not everyone knows that about your brand, and livestreaming has given us this opportunity to truly tell our story. Especially if you have one viral product. [For example] we have this rotating curling around — it’s super viral, right? And people might not know who made it. I mean, I’ve literally had people say to me, ‘Oh, but who actually made it? Like, who actually runs your business?’ I’m like, ‘No, we do.’”
