Come Sept. 17, indie brand Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics will enter Sephora stores with its cult-favorite product, Lip Tar.
“This is huge for us,” said David Klasfeld, who worked as a makeup artist before founding the company. “It’s the perfect venue to showcase our product. Because it will be an open sell environment, customers will be free to discover how unique the product is.”
Industry sources expect the product to generate $1.75 million during its first year in Sephora doors.
Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, which was founded in 2004 in Klasfeld’s kitchen on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, made its debut with two shades of lip balm designed for hi-definition video.
According to Klasfeld, uniqueness is the main selling point behind his best-selling product, Lip Tar, which is available in colors that range “from the wearable to the experimental, from skin tone neutral to rainbow bright.”
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“Liquid lipstick is a phrase the consumer has heard before,” said Klasfeld. “This is truly a lipstick concentrate. It goes on like a gloss but dries to a juicy matte finish. It’s everything a modern makeup consumer has been looking for in a lip product.”
In what Klasfeld calls a “multitiered launch initiative,” Lip Tar’s full 42-shade range will first become available in 10 Sephora doors in major metropolitan cites in September. The five most popular shades (Hush, a pale antique bridal pink; Memento, a traditional plum pink; Strumpet, a deep burgundy; NSFW, a true red, and Anime, a “see it from space” neon pink) will enter all U.S. Sephora stores in October as part of its Hot Now promotion. Sephora-exclusive holiday and summer collections are also planned.
Lip Tars, which can also be used on cheeks and cost $16 each, are vegan and contain a blend of peppermint, hemp and castor oils, as well as organically derived vitamin E and mineral pigments.
“It’s as organic a product you can get in a cosmetic,” said Klasfeld. “It lasts longer because it’s well made.”