Statement

Below is the statement released by Lela Warren on the GlitterSniffer Facebook Fan Page. The statement was previously published and then subsequently removed from the Facebook page, so I am recopying it here in the event it is removed again.

Glittersniffer Cosmetics!

GS Customers Past and Present,
I am coming forth to you with a heavy heart and an explanation you have all been looking for. Let me start at the beginning. My career making pigments began as a hobby in 2006 when my makeup addiction began to affect my pocket book. I wanted more than anything to develop a product that was affordable and could be used interchangeably to form the various cosmetics I spent all of my money on. I was working at a hotel chain and every paycheck went toward my makeup addiction; this is when Glittersniffer Cosmetics was born.
I started a shop on Etsy to sell the pigments I mastered, and I did so strictly as a hobby. I had no business experience, and I was lacking in knowledge when it came to cosmetic guidelines. I did some research and learned that many pinks and bright colors were made with ingredients that were either not FDA approved, or that were cosmetically approved but not eye approved. I made many pink colors with the idea in mind that these pigments could be turned into other cosmetic items such as blush, lipstick, or nail polish. I researched other cosmetic companies and learned that they used neon colors even though they were not FDA approved for use around the eyes, and I took a chance and made some for myself. The neon colors contain soap dyes, which is why they are not eye approved. I began posting pictures of these neon looks and people were insisting that they be given the opportunity to try them. I in fact did warn my customers about the 80’s collection and why it was not eye approved, but every time I took it out of my stock I received multiple e-mails demanding its return. I then made a poor decision and made other colors out of soap dyes, and not all of these colors were advertised as they should have been.
I began to realize that Glittersniffer Cosmetics was too big for the site that we were selling off of, and the fee’s surrounding my sales were really hindering my profit, so I hired a Vice President, ditched my old sales route, and opened a big new website. I was not ready for any of that. I failed to realize during this expansion, that the standard my loyal customers had previously held me to was increasing, and that I needed to re-evaluate my business practices. I believed that I could continue treating a business that had over five thousand customers, as a hobby to make extra money. GS was growing, but I was not. My mind continued to stay focused on my personal issues, and I let my business fall behind. I put e-mails off, I allowed orders to pile up, and then I found myself in a situation I saw no way out of. Most small businesses start out with some sort of small business loan, grant, or other monetary infusion, but because I had never considered a need for such a thing for something I considered to be a hobby; I didn’t have the funds to pay a staff to assist me with the ordering, packaging, and shipping process. Here is where my down hill slide began.
I have long advertised my company as an all vegan company, and I became so caught up in offering every customer something that they would love for a fair price, that I began losing sight of why I implemented my company values in the first place. It started with making reds that included carmine. I tried to always include a note letting the buyer know that the pigment was non-vegan, but when a consumer is buying from an all vegan company, they shouldn’t have to look for notes indicating otherwise. I then noticed a fan commenting that they wanted really nice brushes for a relatively reasonable price, and I found some badger fur brushes and placed them for sale. Selling those brushes was one of the worst moves I could have made as a company, and I put the feelings of my loyal, vegan customers aside to make money. For that, I will forever be sorry.
I have heard the voices of my customers, past and present, and I would like to come to you and tell you what I am changing to bring this company back to what it was meant to be. From this point forward, we will only be selling merchandise through our official Glittersniffer Cosmetics website. Selling from multiple places became too confusing. GS Cosmetics will be pre-making a set number of collections and products, and we will only be selling until we run out of them. At the point in which the stock is depleted, we will not be offering it ever again. There will be no re-making of collections or trying to duplicate collection colors. We are discarding all of our old stock and re-doing each and every pigment to be 100% vegan, FDA, and eye approved with recipes for the colors that we will always keep in stock. Never again will we sell a pigment or a collection that does not fit the above categories. Any staff member of GS Cosmetics who will be touching any merchandise will wear gloves. All ingredients that could be found in any of our products will be listed on the GS website. We have hired a new, more efficient staff, including a new vice president who will assist in all business related decisions, an accountant, a bookkeeper, and we have applied for a business license in the state of Michigan.
I want to personally, and publically apologize to my customers both new and old for my actions over the last six months. I have spent many sleepless nights thinking about what has happened and realizing that there are some things I won’t be able to fix. I have not only lost customers and nearly lost my company, but I have lost friendships with the women who helped create my company, and that is what hurts the most. With every beat of my heart…I am so sorry I have let you down.

XOXO
Lela Warren
President of Glittersniffer Cosmetics
313 303 4780

on Thursday