In 1998, three sisters and their childhood friend banded together to found Vasanti Cosmetics. The makeup brand aims to solve dark under eye circles in South Asian complexions. Pinki Gosal, Monal Patel, Gargi Patel, and Priti Patel used their own experiences struggling with finding beauty products catered to middle skin tones. Now, the company offers a wide range of makeup products, and is worth $25 million.
Beauty influencers like Love Zahra champion the Canada-based brand to their followers. The company features on popular lifestyle magazines including Women’s Health, InStyle, Glamour, and Elle.
“Our advantage is that we began focusing on inclusivity 20 years ago, and we formulated all of our products with skin tones in mind,” Gosal told Brown Girl Magazine.
Pinki Gosal crafts products for South Asian skin
At twenty-three years old and a fresh college graduate, Pinki Gosal landed a position at the Chicago luxury makeup studio Marilyn Miglin.
“One day the owner walked in, looked my way and demanded her staff get some concealer on me,” Gosal recalled. “It was like a scene from The Devil Wears Prada! All the products the staff tried looked too white or ashy, and I became obsessed with my dark shadows but couldn’t find a product that worked. This situation fuelled the development of our Undereye Colour Corrector and Concealer.”
“I called one of my childhood friends (and now business partner) and started brainstorming how to get the solution,” said Gosal. “Soon after I started working with a cosmetic lab in Toronto with a Ph.D. Chemist who basically showed me the ropes.”
Gosal founded Vasanti Cosmetics with her friends and business partners in 1998. In 1999 the company released its first three products including their signature pre-concealer color corrector Liquid V02.
Vasanti Cosmetics inspired by sisterhood and South Asian culture
The sisters all come from a family of entrepreneurs. Each contributes their own expertise to developing the brand.
Pinki Gosal spearheads product development, creating the makeup and skincare products. Monal Patel operates business and finance for the company while Priti Patel lends her creativity to marketing and graphic design. Finally, Gargi Patel manages sales and makeup application.
The name of the brand reflects the company’s vision. Vasanti in Sanskrit means “of spring.”
“It had both flair of sounding like an Italian word V-a-s-a-a-n-t-e-e, as well as connect to the South Asians. It also embodies our philosophy of fresh and natural products,” explained Gosal.
“When we think about our culture, we reminisce on clothes, music, food and family relations,” Gosal said. “All of these things are known to be joyful, colourful and energetic experiences. We are so proud to come from such a rich culture and it definitely comes through in our brand.”
Vasanti Cosmetics perfects color correcting for diverse skin shades
“Most [South Asian] women struggle with dark circles, they say it’s hereditary in their families and have a hard time matching shades to their skin tones,” Gosal said. “This is why finding beauty products is often tough for the middle skin tone range, because the most popular formulas in the market are dulling and ashy for the women with these skin concerns.”
“We have spent the last 18 years putting our hearts and souls into developing the most innovative formulations in makeup and skincare,” Monal Patel said.
“We never created shades simply to fit a larger skin tone range, we always put thought into how the shades perform for every skin tone. We also offer cosmetics that are super comfortable, light-weight and easy to use,” explained Gosal.
Vasanti Cosmetics is a cruelty-free and paraben-free brand. The company also offers vegan and gluten-free products.
Shop by searching specific product or skin needs on Vasanti’s website.
