We're still celebrating International Women’s Day and we couldn’t be more excited to highlight the amazing women of Higher Education Skincare! Today were highlighting Inna Tumarin, Higher Education Skincare’s Senior Vice President –Global Sales & Brand Marketing. Check out her interview!
What is your role at HES?
I do everything from A-Z, I lead sales, obtain key strategic distribution for the brand in order to reach the customer where they shop by positioning our brand marketing in an authentic and strategic way. I want to ensure that we resonate with our target Gen Z consumer.
What is the impact you hope to make in the skincare industry?
I hope that customers walk away from the brand feeling even better about themselves and their skin versus being stripped away of their authenticity. I want our customers to truly love the way that they feel in their skin.
What is something that inspires you? (Or who is someone that inspires you?)
I find inspiration everyday, especially within my team. The tenacity and genuine grits of my team - overall the huge effort that everyone makes within the company. That inspires me to do better and push harder on my projects.
What impact would you like to make aside from the skincare industry?
My job and my daily life is so intertwined with my personal goals which is why I strive so much within Higher Education Skincare. Bringing the joy of products that are efficacy and fun to use for our consumers on a global level.
I want to make sure that my team thrives in their positions and gets to the next level of their own personal growth. Really building people within the company and supporting their goals and building the company is one in the same to me.
How would you like to pave the way for women?
I’d like to elevate the people that start off with the company and really teach them and guide them on how to navigate the business ethically and effectively while owning their femininity and achieving the same as anybody else in the industry.
What is your favorite HES product?
GREEK WEEK! Hands down. It’s one of the most innovative products and formulations that we worked on for a 1-2 years. It supports the microbiome which is an innovation in the industry, a beautiful texture, scent, delivery and of course the results on the skin. You can use it in so many ways whether its a 20 minute mask, a sleeping mask or one of our pro tips is use it as a hand mask and put gloves, it’s just such a versatile product and is hard not to love.
Second favorite HES product: OVERNIGHTER! The delivery of the product is amazing and it belongs in every beauty cabinet. Everybody has skin emergencies - whether it’s hormonal, skin changes or eating sweets.
What is your biggest learning experience as a woman in your career?
My biggest lesson - and one of my biggest pet peeves is people taking credit for my work. I had this happen several times in my career early on. It was really hard for me to take it as a “team effort” approach when in hindsight they were bluntly taking my ideas and my work and clearly not giving me the credit for it.
What did you take away from that experience?
Always have a voice, and if you really feel like something is not correct speak up and make yourself be heard. The situation itself will work itself out, don’t fear the repercussions because the truth always prevails.
How I carried it throughout my career is by making sure that I elevate people’s ideas and if I’m ever speaking to a project that somebody else had a hand in or had thoughts on I always give them credit. I want to make sure that the rest of the team feels like they had a hand in a project because it builds team equity and when people feel involved and appreciated they’ll try harder in the next project. I’m always making sure that people get the credit that they deserve within projects.
What would you suggest for somebody that is starting out within their career?
If you’re starting out in your field and you’re brand new, find a circle and network with people that are striving for the same goals and find somebody within your industry to be your mentor. That is the biggest compliment you can give somebody when you approach them to be a mentor. The thing I wish I would have done during school is find an internship at a place where I’d love to work and eventually end up in. Having an internship creates work ethic so if you can afford it - time wise - go for it!
