Inspired by their friends and family members who have been affected by cancer, Commack students Julia and Alyssa Schiotis launched their makeup business, Belyssima, this summer as a partnership with Dancers Against Cancer (DAC).
Wanting to instate a positive change within the community and beyond, they first had an idea to appeal to other kids by doing something relating to cosmetics. Both sisters decided that a makeup business was something that represented them.
“We wanted to do something to help, and we were like, what can we do? What would relate to young girls and kids like us? And we came up with the idea to do lip gloss,” said senior Julia S.
They first heard of Dances Against Cancer (DAC) at a dance competition. DAC is an organization that raises money and awareness for dancers whose lives have been affected by cancer. This inspired them to start their business and partnership with DAC, with the goal of raising $5,000.
“We wanted to combine our passion for cosmetics and dance to help others by creating something to give back […] We were on stage at a KAR Dance competition and we heard the director speaking about the charity and how they help those with cancer. We really wanted to help our community more and felt this was a great way to do it,” said middle schooler Alyssa S., via text.
While this started off as just an idea, in order to make it happen, Julia and Alyssa had to work with manufacturers and people behind the scenes to make these products reality. All of their products are cruelty-free and have to meet FDA and PCPC Quality Assurance guidelines.
“We had to meet with three manufacturers to make the lip gloss, and then we basically just brand the lip gloss and then they would make it for us, and then we found […] the manufacturer, and then they produce it for us. [The lipgloss is] vegan, gluten-free, and paraben-free,” said senior Julia S.
Since launching their business, they have had many opportunities to meet people such as the director of DAC, Jocelyn Bashman, as well as the Queens Crew, the Official Dance Team of the NY Mets. Since then, they have collaborated with dance industry icons, models, NFL cheerleaders, NBA dancers, and the Radio City Rockettes. They have also been interviewed live on Fox News.
“We have more exciting things happening soon like a partnership with DanceBUG, the streaming app for Dance Competitions. A Division 1 college dance team collab is in the works to help spread awareness. We also can’t wait for our first podcast episode with DAC to go live and our new products should be available on our website in November,” said Alyssa S., via text.
The passion that these two students have displayed throughout the process of creating a business at a young age demonstrates the importance of following your dreams and never giving up. ◼️
