'Lipstickk' - leaving a lasting impression

Sheena Gayle, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

Twenty-one-year-old Tashae Ford has embraced the concept of entrepreneurship with her innovative company, Lipstickk, which is dedicated to promoting events and products through beautiful ladies.

Although the company is only a year old, Lipstickk managed to secure contracts with local party promoters of Uberblue, Peaches and Cream, Black Out and Intrigue.

Ford revealed that, with their drive to position the company as a marketplace leader in promotions, they have negotiated the biggest bookings for two of the premier summer events in Jamaica.

"This summer has afforded us bigger opportunities, as we are booked for Reggae Sumfest and Dream Weekend. These are two of the biggest bookings we have ever had since the company began," the ambitious young woman told Western Focus.

Going in the right direction

"So this is an indication of the direction [in which] we are going as a small enterprise. We want to be the first company that Red Stripe thinks about before any other company."

Ford and her business partner, Tasha Marie Gardener, are second-year students at the University of Technology, but Ford plans on majoring in marketing and management.

"Entrepreneurship, to me, is finding something that you truly enjoy doing and making money from it. I think our drive comes from getting the next big, exciting job. We make a target as to what jobs we want to land, then we work very hard to secure those bookings."

She also painted a picture of where Lipstickk will be in the next five years.

"I firmly believe that Lipstickk can become a well-known brand in Jamaica, and more so in corporate Jamaica. Since inception, I have never limited my company to just small events by local promoters," Ford stated.

"It's a great start, yes, but it's not the end-all, be-all. At present, we are planning to have a larger base in Kingston by the end of this year. We always want to be growing."