It’s been a busy few years for the fake tan brand Bellamianta’s founder, Linda Stinson. Instead of writing off her fake tan disaster as a bad experience to forget, the Tyrone woman had a ‘eureka’ moment — why not create a skincare-led fake tan that is kind to sensitive skin like hers?

Her unique formula soon became a firm favourite with influencers, celebrities and Irish women everywhere. Now, Bellamianta and its sister brand Iconic Bronze are market leaders, and Linda has since diversified into make-up.

Always a creative person, she embarked on a wide variety of careers before chasing her dream of entrepreneurship. Here, the 41-year-old chats about her family’s support, the lessons she’s learned along the way, and what’s next for her.

Growing up

Linda grew up in the village of Pomeroy, the second eldest of seven children. Her mother and father made sure she knew the value of hard work, with Linda explaining she got her first job around the age of 13. Growing up, she often performed on stage and she is a talented singer and dancer. After school, she wanted to go to the London College of Drama and Music, but this dream was not meant to be. While Linda did get a scholarship, it didn’t cover living expenses, travel or accommodation.

“As one of seven children, it just wasn’t feasible at the time,” she says. “I didn’t know what to do with myself. My mum worked in the civil service, so I followed suit.”

Linda worked in the Job Centre in Belfast, helping people write their CVs and apply for jobs. After a while, she was promoted and moved to the child support agency, which wasn’t for her.

In the evening, she worked for an insurance company to build up her savings. “I worked in finance there, so it did give me valuable skills.”

She decided to move back home and started working full-time for an insurance brokerage. “I think all those different jobs helped me to get where I am now. When you have your own business, it’s a good idea to have some understanding of finance, calculations and margins.”

Linda never lost touch with her creative side. She always enjoyed the behind-the-scenes preparations of staged performances, such as applying intricate make-up. “I remember I took part in productions of Cats and Joseph And The Amazing TechnicolorDreamcoat . The make-up for those was amazing.”

Move to make-up

Wanting to tap into this creativity, Linda decided to embark on a new journey. She trained as a beautician and landed a job as a manager in Urban Decay. “I learned a lot managing that store – the expectations within the beauty industry, how sales and target-driven it was,” she says.

She then worked as an area manager for Benefit Cosmetics. “I looked after all of their country stores, was involved in recruitment drives and staff training.”

Her next venture was joining Space NK, which Linda says was a turning point for her. The founder of Space NK, Nicky Kinnaird, was from Belfast, and Linda managed the Lisburn Road store. “Her parents used to come in and visit us. It was a lovely, homely feeling.”

Here, Linda received training from the founders of multiple beauty brands. She was inspired by their stories and realised she had the same dream that they did. “I knew I really wanted to own my own business and be my own boss. I had developed a reputation for going into places, excelling and turning them around with regards to achieving targets. I thought if I could do it for someone else, I could do it for me.”

She toyed with the idea of starting a service-based business, rather than creating a product, but she knew she was passionate about developing a high-quality product. “I was always very passionate about the ingredients, what made products different from others.”

The birth of Bellamianta

A spray tan disaster on the day of her wedding gave Linda the idea to develop her own fake tan. “I didn’t go for a trial, which was my first mistake. My friend actually did it, she applied the spray tan perfectly, it was down to the product.”

Linda, who has eczema, woke up on the morning of her wedding and realised the area under her arms had turned green. “Later, I looked at the various tanning products on the market and realised most of them contained alcohol. This was to draw the DHA under the skin for it to develop.

“If you think of how the alcohol in hand sanitiser dries your hands, you can see how that’s not going to be good for your skin, especially sensitive skin like mine. There weren’t many skin nourishing ingredients in them either.”

Linda says there were a few organic tanning brands out there, but they weren’t performance-driven. “They were kind to my skin and didn’t cause a rash, but they were pretty much washing down the drain as soon as I applied them. I knew there was a gap in the market for a skincare-led tanning product that genuinely worked.”

Linda was a little apprehensive about starting a tanning brand, as there were a lot of products out there already. Some people asked her if she was being wise as she was investing so much money and giving up a stable job.

However, she believed in her vision, and she set out to create a tan that was skincare-led. “I wanted to create something for myself, a legacy. Bellamianta will be my life-long project. I think there’s a bit of a thickness in me, I don’t want to be beaten.”

Bellamianta’s first product, launched in 2015, was a tanning lotion, which Linda reformulated 97 times before she was happy with it.

She also developed a tanning mitt with a thumb hole, which garnered a lot of attention and attracted customers. Linda started out packing boxes in her garage, and through some clever influencer and social media marketing, word began to spread, and now Bellamianta is a firm favourite with Irish tan lovers.

Growth

Sensing a need to appeal to a younger generation who are more cash-strapped than Bellamianta devotees, she launched Iconic Bronze in 2017, which Linda describes as the “younger sister” of Bellamianta.

Both brands have picked up stockists all across Ireland, including in retail giants like Boots, Dunnes and Penneys. “All of our tanning products are still manufactured in Ireland and that’s something I’m very proud of,” adds Linda. She now employs 44 people and has since expanded the warehouse and offices. “We’re creating employment in a type of business that would never have been found around Tyrone before. It’s important to me as being from a rural area, there weren’t always a lot of opportunities.”

Linda has since expanded the range to include tanning mousse, gradual tan, crystal clear tanning mousse (the first of its kind in Ireland). She also wants to expand the current make-up offerings.

“I spent years doing so many faces, with different skin types and ethnicities. I knew branching into make-up was a bit of a risk from a tanning brand. We started out slowly by bringing out glowy products for the body and face. We then did a collaboration with Maura Higgins, which was tanning and glow products for the skin.”

After this, Bellamianta launched colour cosmetics in conjunction with renowned make-up artist Paddy McGurgan. “We have a new product development team here. Foundations are on the way, they will be coming early next year. Skincare is also something I want to add to the product range,” she reveals.

Balancing family life

Her family has always been supportive of her dreams. Linda shares three daughters, Holly, Ruby and Savannah, with her husband Jason.

When she first launched Bellamianta, she was on the maternity ward after giving birth to Ruby. When Iconic Bronze was launched, she was pregnant with Savannah. “Thankfully my pregnancies haven’t been difficult. That was just my journey, I am not saying that is right for everybody.”

When you are self-employed, you don’t have the same maternity leave benefits as other people, but Linda says she has a good support network around her. “Jason has always been a very hands-on dad. He also has his own business and is very entrepreneurial. We juggle it. His mother is a great help and so is my family. I also have a babysitter.”

All of her daughters are very active — playing camogie, football, Irish dancing and gymnastics. “It’s a balancing act.”

And her kids have all shown an interest in the business. “Ruby maintains she will be the boss of Bellamianta and Iconic Bronze when she’s older,” Linda laughs. Holly, who is the eldest at 15, has worked in the warehouse, done tan application videos and been involved in Iconic Bronze events.

Linda’s sister worked for Bellamianta for years and she’s now opened up her own marketing company, with Bellamianta and Iconic Bronze being her first customers. Linda’s dad works in the warehouse, while her mother is the managing director.

“It’s been great to give them these opportunities. Mummy took early retirement from the civil service but soon realised she was climbing up the walls!

“My dad is a builder and when you get to a certain age, being on the sites in the cold and rain is hard.” While she sometimes disagrees with her family, any arguments are quickly forgotten.

Learning curves

Throughout her journey, Linda has had to learn some tough lessons. “Trust your gut instinct. So many times we listen to other people’s opinions. Yes, you want advice, but do not let that overshadow what you know deep down. Have confidence in yourself.”

She adds that people should stop comparing themselves to others because comparison is the thief of joy. “That’s a phrase my friend had. Everyone is on their own journey and there’s room for everyone out there.”

Overall, other people in the industry have been supportive of her. “I always try to be approachable. I am a people person and wear my heart on my sleeve. I would easily go up to someone and start a conversation.” And Linda advises people who are thinking of setting up their own business to just go for it. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you can’t stop thinking about it, just do it. I had to take that plunge, there was a fire in my belly.”

• bellamianta.com, IG and TikTok: @bellamianta
• iconicbronze.ie, IG and Tik Tok: @iconicbronze

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