SOF Scoop: Pampadour

Pampadour is a new social networking site geared towards beauty. Was it made specifically for me? I like to think so, I couldn’t have made this site better if I was the creator! Add collections, ask questions and clip products! You can make a profile and create collections to and add your favorite products – I have ‘Everyday Makeup’, ‘Achieving Perfect Hair’ of course ‘Perfectly Glossed Kisses’ and more! Add me “Sutton Van Brigsby”.

Our interviewees name is Jennifer Hakimian.  She co-founded Pampadour with Roy Hakimian, her brother-in-law!

 

Sobbing On Fifth: How did the idea for this site come about?

Jennifer Hakimian: I have always been passionate about beauty and my friends would ask me for product recommendations. I use so many different products that it was hard to remember them all, and when I would check the packaging for the name and number, the label was often faded. I'd eventually find it and text it with a blurb, "make sure you use a clean angled liner brush and steady your hand above your cheekbone, and follow your lash line and angle out to create an illusion of a lift..." They would then do a search, find out where the product was sold and then purchase it, if they made it that far! I thought, how inefficient is this? What about a place where I can store and catalogue all my beauty products and be able to easily exchange advice with friends and beauty enthusiasts like me? This is how the idea of Pampadour was born. It took some time but with our amazing team we were able to make Pampadour a place to discover, collect and share beauty a reality.

SOF: What would you say to new Pampadour users about the site?

JH: Welcome to your beauty adventure! The first thing a user sees is our feed, which includes images of products, posted questions, and inspirational photos. Real conversations happen and the beauty discovery is never ending. I would recommend to take the time to browse for products and looks, start building your profile, and engage your friends and the community by starting a discussion and commenting on posts. You will find that the Pampadour community is very eager to share their beauty secrets!
Some of our best features include the ability to tag photos and videos with products. So you can find out, for example, the breakdown of a celebrity look or you can post your own photo and tag it with the make-up you used. Another great one is the ability to attach a product in a comment; if you ask for a recommendation, users can literally respond by sending you the product.

SOF: What lies in the future for Pampadour?

JH: For the immediate future we are launching our Brand Pages. We are so excited to offer brands the opportunity to use our platform and utilize our tools in a new way to connect with beauty enthusiasts. Our mobile site is also in the process of being completed. Having launched our beta, we are always looking for ways to enhance our users' experience and offer them features that will make sharing beauty easier. We are constantly growing and looking to expand our following.

SOF: What is one beauty product you can't live without?

JH: Its so difficult for me to choose one!! But if there is one product I use everyday, without fail, its Chanel Vitalumiere Foundation. It's light, has SPF and evens out my skin tone. 

SOF: Do you have a favorite makeup trend for spring, anything you are particularly excited for?

JH: For the Spring I always look to try fresh new colors. For the younger girls I love bright shadows. For myself I love to play with colored eye pencils. I just bought Estee Lauder Pure Color Intense Kajal Eyeliner Duo in black and blue. I discovered it on Pampadour and bought it right then and there. I love it!

SOF: The possibilities for collections are endless, do you have a favorite?
JH: My most useful collection so far is one called "products I'd like to try", this one is really for me because I love to experiment.
Some of my other favorites are my summer collections and party looks. Collections are a great way for others to see how I group products together, and everyday I come up with new ones to create. I love that I can add videos and photos to these collections as well. I even have a birthday wish list! Now my husband has no excuse being empty handed for my birthday!

SOF: What is the last thing you bought?

JH: The last thing I bought is  Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray. My make up tends to fade when I'm out all night and I needed something to make it last. I started a discussion on Pampadour and this came up as a recommendation. The two recommendations were this Urban Decay product and one by Skindinavia. It turns out that the Urban Decay one is made by Skindinavia!!