Meet Josie Huesca | Director of Product Development

We had the good fortune of connecting with Josie Huesca and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Josie, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
One thing about the beauty industry that outsiders are unaware of is the dedication that goes into making one product from an R&D and Product Development end, the process often starts with extensive research into consumer trends, market demands, ingredient innovation and product differentiation studies. As a beauty product developers, we ensure that products comply with various safety standards, labeling requirements and rigorous testing for safety, efficacy, and stability all the way to the packaging designs and functionality. I think from an outside perspective many times outsiders can only see the end results once its available in beautiful content created for social media platforms but may be unaware of the steps before posted on social media platforms. Overall, it is really a team effort to bring a product to life, that usually starts with our customers!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started my career within a beauty brand at an entry level position and really worked my way up. Product development has never been easy, you learn something new each time you make a new product, and I can confidently speak for every product developer out there. A project may look easy and somewhere in the middle, there will be a change of plans or a new priority. My superpower or better yet, my secret product ingredient is my flexible personality. I am always open to trying new things, I enjoy solutions vs listening to why it can’t be done. I started in the beauty industry when “silicone-free” in haircare was a challenge in the lab, now many beauty brands have become silicone-free and has become normalized, therefore, I don’t take no’s right away and I take my optimistic perspective with me everywhere I go. I am always excited to start a new project and to really craft a beautiful intentional product brief and work on product pipelines that help support brand identity. In the past few years, I have learned that I am not always going to be the customer profile for the product I am making and that’s what allows me to expand my knowledge and continue to create. I am most excited to continue to see our beauty industry welcome diversity and the growth within certain category’s expand and a reminder to all my new brand owners that if someone says “no” there is someone out there that will say “yes”.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my best friend was visiting, I would probably want us to book a trip, somewhere in Mexico like Puerto Vallarta. You cant really go wrong, we can relax by booking a spa, we can go to local bars and Mexican food is never a bad idea. I also really enjoy Puerto Vallarta because they have great restaurants and there is so much entertainment. I love trying new things and we can do a boat ride, ride bikes or just go to the next local city and explore. Its also not too far, so a 3 hour flight isn’t so bad!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to thank my dad for the sacrifices he made by coming to the United States from Mexico. Leaving his homeland was undoubtedly a courageous journey that has never gone unnoticed. The results of this decision created career opportunities for me in my adult life that I am forever thankful for his sacrifices. I also want to thank everyone who I have directly reported into, colleagues and my team members who have helped me along the way. A special thank you to Nikki, Geo, Miguel, Cecilia, Chelsea & Todd who really impacted my career in the best way possible.

Instagram: josiehuesca

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/josiehuesca