I remembered The Lip Bar from their infamous 2015 “Shark Tank” rejection—the moment Kevin O’Leary called founder Melissa Butler and her creative director “colorful cockroaches” and told them they’d never succeed. As someone who loves bright colors and wears lipstick—probably the only makeup item I’ve ever worn throughout my life—I’d been following the brand’s journey. When I found myself in Detroit a decade later, I knew I had to visit their flagship store, especially since my favorite color is fuchsia, and I was determined to finally get their Playmate shade, which is often out of stock online.
Walking into The Lip Bar at 1444 Woodward Avenue feels like stepping into a celebration of color. The bright and welcoming 800-square-foot space displays lipsticks like jewels across the walls—over 40 shades in liquid mattes, glosses, and liners. A beauty bar occupies one side for makeup services, and a brow bar sits ready for appointments.
Melissa Butler’s Bumpy Road to Success
Melissa Butler’s journey to creating this beauty destination began on Wall Street, where she worked as a licensed stockbroker at Barclays after graduating from Florida A&M University with a degree in finance. The corporate environment was stifling, with rigid beauty standards judging everything from her hair to her skin tone.
In 2012, while still working demanding Wall Street hours, Butler started making lipstick in her Brooklyn kitchen. She was fed up with a beauty industry offering limited shade ranges, filled with chemicals, and catering to narrow standards. Butler taught herself cosmetic chemistry through reading and reaching out to experts. For three years, every product came from her own hands. In 2014, she left Wall Street even though The Lip Bar wasn’t making enough to replace her salary.
In 2015, Butler and creative director Rosco Spears appeared on “Shark Tank,” asking for $125,000 for 20% equity. All five sharks rejected them. O’Leary’s “colorful cockroaches” comment was particularly cruel, with Daymond John adding “you are never going to create anything new in this world. It’s lipstick.” O’Leary told her not to waste her time on Earth trying to sell lipstick. The appearance could have killed the business.
Instead, the public humiliation became the brand’s origin story. Butler used LinkedIn to cold-contact corporate buyers, connecting with Target after eight months of persistent outreach. She also took Mark Cuban’s advice: become the face of the business. Years later, The Lip Bar erected billboards across Detroit: “Shark Tank told me to quit. 10 years and 2 million units sold. Thanks, Mr. Wonderful.”
Leaving Negativity Behind
The Lip Bar launched at Target in 2018. In February 2019, The Lip Bar opened its first flagship in downtown Detroit, Butler’s hometown. The location was intentional—Detroit, experiencing its own renaissance, provided the perfect backdrop for a brand built on resilience and proving doubters wrong. The brand entered Walmart in 2021. By 2023, it had become the largest Black-owned brand at Target, expanding from three shelves to 24. The brand made its largest expansion in September 2023, launching in 3,300 CVS locations, doubling its presence to over 5,000 stores. Butler’s strategy was intentional: people in urban environments without big-box retailers shop at CVS for essentials, making the drugstore crucial for reaching underserved communities.
The Lip Bar’s Enthusiastic Sales Associate, Lena! Photo: Tamara MC, Ph.D.
At Home on Woodward Avenue
In October 2023, the brand relocated to its current Woodward Avenue location, tripling its space. The flagship serves as a testing ground for new products and a community space where customers can try everything before buying.
Bawse Lady has become Target’s number one red lipstick across all multicultural color cosmetics brands. But The Lip Bar has grown beyond lipsticks. The Just a Tint 3-in-1 Tinted Skin Moisturizer with SPF became the brand’s second-best-selling product. The Quick Conceal Liquid Caffeine Concealer combats puffiness and dark circles. Fresh Glow offers a two-layer compact with bronzer and blush designed for all skin tones.
One shade stands out in The Lip Bar’s success story: Playmate. Whitmer adopted the fuchsia shade as her signature color, wearing it prominently during her 2022 reelection campaign. In her book “True Gretch,” Whitmer revealed that fuchsia was her mother’s power color, becoming the shade she wears “to get shit done.” The Lip Bar officially renamed it “Big Gretch” in 2023, and the shade is now sold under both names—Playmate and Big Gretch. When Whitmer took the DNC stage in August 2024 wearing the shade, social media erupted. Posts received millions of views. The Lip Bar’s Instagram gained 14,000 likes overnight. Customers flooded the store asking for “that Big Gretch color”—not realizing it had already been carrying that name for a year.
The Lip Bar continues to thrive, with 2025 sales projected to be up 40%. Butler has been recognized as one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Women in Business and featured in Forbes, Fast Company, Entrepreneur, Allure, Cosmopolitan, and Essence. Unfortunately, I didn’t meet Butler during my visit, though Lena said the founder—who still lives in Detroit—stops by occasionally for special events or when she needs something from the store.
Lip Bar Lipsticks on Display Photo: Tamara MC, Ph.D.
Maybe The Lip Bar is My Lucky Star
On a personal note, I was in Detroit for the Society of American Travel Writers conference. I had skipped out on the awards luncheon to visit The Lip Bar. Arriving at the ballroom only ten minutes before the ceremony ended, I slipped into the darkened space and scrambled to find a seat. The only one available was at the front. I sat down and had just started eating my wilted salad while everyone else had finished dessert when my name was called. The Travel Journalist of the Year, Lowell Thomas Bronze was announced and it was me! I was in shock. Although I almost missed the award because I was too busy trying on lipstick, I wouldn’t change a thing!
Learn more about The Lip Bar at thelipbar.com.
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