VIOLET GREY profiles female beauty entrepreneurs who are considered industry game changers for their individual approach to business. Each one entered the conversation in her own manner and maintained a steady, if not unparalleled, trajectory with her indomitable spirit.

“I grew up in one of the most rural parts of England and no one I knew had any contacts in the fashion world,” says businesswoman, model, and actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. “I wrote letters to a few magazines, retail shops, and fashion companies asking for an internship opportunity, and the only place that replied and accepted was a modeling agency in London’s West End. I arrived at the office hoping to attend fashion shows and photo shoots, visit design houses, and garner real insight into the creative side of the industry. I don’t think I had a clue what a modeling agency actually did!”

“Instead, I spent the week in a tiny smoke-filled office with wine-drinking bookers hustling down the phone. My days were spent running errands, photocopying, picking up the phones, making endless cups of tea, emptying ashtrays, and faxing girls their schedules. I loved every second of the buzz and excitement, but I especially loved it when models would stride into the agency to pick up their portfolios or her lists of castings for the day. They were the epitome of glamour and sophistication.”

Little did Huntington-Whiteley know that this agency would open the door to her future. Eight months after her internship ended, while in London, she popped in to say hello to her former coworkers. A new booker asked to take a few Polaroids because she was starting a “New Faces” division. Later that day, the booker called and asked if Huntington-Whiteley would be open to going on a few castings and go-sees. That was fifteen years ago. Huntington-Whitely went on to grace the covers of British Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar UK. She became a Victoria’s Secret runway goddess, and landed plum roles in films such as Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Mad Max: Fury Road. She is the face of Paige Denim and the founder of Rosie for Autograph, a line ranging from intimates and sleepwear to makeup and fragrance.

“Throughout my career I worked with many different lingerie brands, and I was very drawn to beautiful underwear,” she says. “Marks and Spencer is known to be the UK’s biggest selling lingerie company, so I approached them in 2011 and asked if we could collaborate.” Her dream became a reality when the Rosie For Autograph brand launched in September 2012. “I wanted to create a world that was deeply feminine and graceful while being aspirational yet approachable,” she explains. “Underwear shouldn’t have to compromise comfort or style—or break the bank.”

Huntington-Whiteley’s collection has since expanded, and customers go mad for her pajamas and bathing suits and skin potions and cosmetics. Lingerie remains her best-selling asset, but it is her beauty hero product, the Lady Rose lipstick, that is most evocative of the brand’s ethos. The shade, which perfectly complements Huntington-Whiteley’s natural lip color, is similar to that of an English rose—which, she explains, “has always been the overarching theme: delicate, feminine, and beautiful in nature.”

ROSIE BEFORE 10AM