POPSUGAR UK

Huda Kattan, Beauty's Wealthiest Influencer, Spends 4 Hours a Day on Instagram

25/05/2018 - 05:15 PM

A post shared by Huda Kattan (@hudabeauty) [1] on

Fishtail brows [2]. Metallic lip strobes [3]. The rose gold eye shadow palette [4] that started 'em all (RIP, friend). It's tough to name a beauty trend that's come up in the past few years that hasn't been shaped by Huda Kattan. Along with being the wealthiest influencer [5] working the beauty game right now, Huda consistently drops both iridescent [6] and utilitarian [7] products that fly off shelves almost as quickly as she shot to the top of the industry.

Perhaps one of Huda's most enduring qualities is that she totally smashes the "b*tchy businesswoman" stereotype. She's a verified mogul, but she takes the time to support other women trying to do the same thing, whether they are superstars like Kim Kardashian and Jen Atkin [8] or the undiscovered makeup she promotes on her own feed.

"I always try to be as real as possible on social media and pride myself on only supporting people and brands I love and truly believe in," Huda tells POPSUGAR. "It is super important to me that the videos we share are useful and offer something beneficial. I want people to learn something new," she says.

But finding those pre-viral trends before anyone else does takes a lot of tenacity. Huda cops to spending about four hours a day scrolling through Instagram's Explore page. She admits that process can be a bit "overwhelming," but on the plus side, "It gives me the opportunity to connect with people from all over the globe. There's never a time when we have nothing to share."

"Whenever you are pushing boundaries, there will be push-back from people"

And while Huda's drawn attention to some wild makeup hacks in the past (hello, Vagisil primer [9]), her buck stops with reposting sheer clickbait. "We are very selective of what we share, especially when it comes to videos that have the potential to be harmful," she says. Noting that many of her followers are on the young side, Huda feels she has a responsibility to be selective with her content.

For instance, when knife contouring [10] (yup, that's exactly what it sounds like) emerged a few years ago, Huda's team made the decision not to call attention to such a dangerous trend. In Huda's words, "We filter content and share only the beauty hacks and tutorials that will elevate a beauty routine."

Routines aren't the only thing Huda wants to elevate; she has also started the Huda Beauty Angels fund [11] to assist budding female entrepreneurs. "We champion female empowerment and uniqueness, which doesn't come without its challenges," she admits. Her advice to anyone who wants to follow suit? "Whenever you are pushing boundaries, there will be push-back from people. Embrace what you stand for, and accept that there will be criticism."

Oh, and one more thing: "The best advice came from my mom; she has always told me to be patient. It was really helpful to have her say that to me, because I am a really passionate person and can sometimes be very impulsive." We guess the advice paid off — spending four hours a day digging through Instagram sounds like it requires quite a bit of persistence, indeed.

A post shared by Huda Kattan (@hudabeauty) [12] on


Source URL
https://www.popsugar.co.uk/beauty/Huda-Kattan-Beauty-Influencer-Interview-44630996