VIRAL beauty influencer and makeup artist James Charles visited Belfast for the first time this week to celebrate his partnership with Belfast makeup brand BPerfect cosmetics.
Set up by Co Down entrepreneur Brendan McDowell in 2012 this is the first retail partnership for James’ Painted brand, and now means that UK and European customers can shop the full Painted collection without the hassle of international shipping fees or import charges, making the brand more accessible than ever.
To celebrate the launch, James and BPerfect have embarked on a tour of Britain and Ireland, which included a trip to the BPerfect megastore in Belfast’s Castlecourt where James was able to meet fans and see his products stacked on the shelves.
“BPerfect actually reached out to me,” he explains.
“My brand Painted launched about a year-and-a-half ago now and it’s been the most incredible experience but right now my customer base is almost all American because of how expensive international shipping and domestic taxes and all that stuff is.”
“It’s so frustrating and so annoying and out of our control completely, so this was the perfect opportunity - or the BPerfect opportunity - to get my products into the hands of a whole new audience that maybe hasn’t been able to previously.
@the_irish_news American beauty influencer James Charles visited Belfast for the first time to celebrate his brand Painted's partnership with local cosmetics company BPerfect. The collaboration marks Painted's first retail partnership, making Charles' products more accessible to UK and European customers without international shipping fees or import charges. #belfast #fyp #irishnews #northernireland @James Charles @BPerfect Cosmetics
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“So, when BPerfect reached out I was like, ‘oh my god, can we even do this? Are we ready to even do this? We’ve only been around for a year and a half so doing a retail play this early on is a crazy feat.
“But I’m so excited and I’m really proud and I’m really grateful to the whole team for making it happen.”
Brendan claims the brand’s collaboration with James has been years in the making.
“We’ve been in touch with James for years,” he says.
“He used to use our carnival palette back in the day and recently I thought we needed to get some new brands into the megastores, so I reached out to James, and it’s been in the works for a while.
“It’s a proud moment that someone like James trusts us to bring their brand to the UK and Ireland for them - and to be the first retail partner as well coming from a wee country like Northern Ireland is unreal.”
James, who is originally from Bethlehem, New York, started his beauty career on YouTube in 2015 at the age of 17. Since then, he has become renowned for his engaging makeup tutorials and popular catchphrases like ‘hi sisters’ and ‘blend but don’t blend in’.
Any time that I’m really travelling the sisters show up and show out
— James Charles
His unique approach to makeup has seen him rack up almost 24 million subscribers on YouTube, 39 million on TikTok and 20 million on Instagram.
“I’m still uploading to YouTube every single Friday believe it or not, I’m like one of the only people left on the platform,” he laughs.
“But that heyday of the YouTube craze does feel like a million years ago because so much has changed since then.
“I feel like now everyone’s about TikTok and short form content and new brands and innovations, so you have to adapt - it’s still the same old me just elevated.”
However, it’s clear James’ fanbase extends far beyond the digital realm with hundreds queuing up outside BPerfect’s flagship megastore just to catch a glimpse of the American makeup star.
Although some may find this overwhelming James says it was “so exciting to see so many beautiful faces.”
“I feel like any time I go somewhere outside of America it is just the craziest most dedicated group.
Keep practicing over and over again until you feel beautiful because that’s what makeup and art is all about
— James Charles
“I don’t get to travel very often my work is so busy, so I feel like any time that I’m really travelling the sisters show up and show out.”
Between kicking off the tour in Dublin and his Belfast debut James says his time on the Emerald Isle has inspired him to try more Irish makeup brands.
“I’m working on a full face of Irish makeup for a YouTube video.
“I’ve already done half my shopping over there (the south) and I’m doing the rest of my shopping over here (the north) so you’ll have to tune and see which brands are featured.
“There’s lots of them – spoiler alert,” he teases.
James’ Painted range is comprised of the Create Palette (14 shades -10 standard and 4 Metallic), the Basic Palette, the Blush Duo (8 shades), as well as Individual Brushes, Tools and Brush Collections.
He hopes the range will give people the opportunity to get more creative and experimental with their makeup looks.
“Don’t be afraid to wash off and start over,” he says.
“I feel like a lot of people are just too scared to try out a creative makeup look.
“They’re like ‘oh I don’t know how to do that’, ‘I don’t know how to blend like that’, ‘I can’t use that product’, but I think the reality is that it’s makeup.
“Sure, it might look ugly, you might look awful but grab a little makeup wipe, a face cleanser, wipe it off and keep practicing over and over again until you feel beautiful because that’s what makeup and art is all about.”
