Cook Islands: Mint Beauty: What a (mint) beauty business!

Mint Beauty was unashamedly born of an obsession – an expensive obsession. Owner Jasmin Beer took her obsession in hand and turned into a business. She still gets to shop but no longer keeps all the things she buys – her lucky customers do!

Jasmin’s dream was to have an online shop selling clothing, jewellery and beauty products. All things she loves. Following years of research and a beautiful new website, https://www.mintbeauty.co.ck boasts an amazing array of high quality beauty products unavailable elsewhere in the Cook Islands, women’s clothing and a selection of jewellery.

“I wanted others to enjoy the things that I do – lashes, makeup, clothing – so I started to buy small amounts of inventory, and just see if the girls like it. It’s been a big undertaking, a lot of trial and error to get the right products, manufacturers and suppliers. My biggest seller at the moment is lashes – girls here love their lashes!”

A smart business owner, Jasmin started off very small and reinvested all the money she made back into the business so she could access bigger manufacturers and suppliers. “You can’t grow without reinvestment.” Being savvy with outgoings has also been a factor. “By keeping the store online and at home I have avoided the costs of a physical store, other than the small showroom in my garage just in case customers want to try before they buy.”

It was always Jasmin’s goal to have an online store, but there were two significant hurdles to jump. The first, securing a pay portal for online purchases. The local branch of ANZ Bank offers this service, unique in the Cook Islands, and a service not many are aware of. The second was to make our online web presence known to both our local customers and potential international customers.

To grow her business further, however, Jasmin needed a cash injection. The original business plan had always been to design and manufacture clothing, and when she saw the local Chamber of Commerce advertising financial support from BLP on Facebook, she knew she must apply. A BLP representative helped Jasmine to develop her business plan and assemble the requisite documentation, and worked with her to submit her application.

“I really needed help with the business plan. It was hard to put on paper what has been in my head for years, but the plan has really refined what I want out of this venture, like a detailed vision board.”  Since receiving the Business Support Grant, Jasmine has developed two clothing collections – Humaria, a ‘flowy off the shoulder top, paired with an immaculate maxi mermaid skirt’; and Manuia, a stylish asymmetrical dress.

These have been expertly manufactured and are now available on her website (https://www.mintbeauty.co.ck/shop/category/clothing-12) and Jasmin will send anywhere in the world! The next phase for Jasmin is to reach the larger market of Australia and New Zealand, and being an adept researcher, she is delving into the marketing tools available on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. There’s no doubt this woman in business is on the move.

Business Link Pacific supports all SME business owners. Alongside subsidised business advice and Business Support Grants, BLP’s free online tools help to identify areas of a business which need work, and will work with business owners to grow and thrive (https://businesslinkpacific.com/).