Sugardoh

How Aliyah Marandiz Grew Personal Care Brand to Over 300 Ulta Stores

February 4th, 2025

Founded By

Aliyah Marandiz

Founders

Profitable

Yes

Year Started

2020

Customer

B2C

Founded By
Aliyah Marandiz: Founders
1

Profitable
Yes: Year Started
2020

Customer
B2C

Who is Aliyah Marandiz?

Aliyah Marandiz, founder of Sugardoh, hails from Austin, Texas, and studied Sociology and Studio Art at Santa Clara University before venturing into tech and marketing, later channeling her passion for sustainable beauty solutions into creating Sugardoh.

Aliyah Marandiz, founder of Sugardoh

What problem does Sugardoh solve?

Sugardoh solves the problem of painful and harsh hair removal methods by offering an easy and skin-friendly sugaring paste that customers can use comfortably at home. Many people, especially those with sensitive skin or coarse hair, struggle with traditional hair removal options, leading them to seek out gentle yet effective alternatives, making Sugardoh a popular choice.

Sugardoh Homepage

How did Aliyah come up with the idea for Sugardoh?

Aliyah Marandiz's journey to founding Sugardoh started with a personal challenge: finding a hair removal method suitable for her sensitive skin and coarse hair. During her college days, she stumbled upon sugaring, an ancient method from Middle Eastern cultures, mainly through DIY YouTube videos and family insights. This inspired her to create her own sugar wax in her dorm room, as she realized traditional products were not user-friendly and often required salon visits.

Driven by her desire to make sugaring accessible and consumer-friendly, Aliyah identified a gap in the market where sugaring wasn't widely available for home use despite its benefits. Her curious and determined mindset led her to meticulously perfect her home recipe and conduct extensive research, exploring how she could bridge this gap with a product that was easy to use and skin-friendly. Facing the challenge of turning a DIY solution into a scalable consumer product, Aliyah persevered through numerous rejections from manufacturers until she found one willing to take a chance on her vision.

Through trial and error, Aliyah adapted her idea based on feedback and personal experience, crafting a product that prioritized sustainability and ease of use. The journey taught her the importance of resilience, a supportive community, and trusting her instincts in transforming an artisanal solution into a business valued by many. Her story underscores the power of personal experience in driving innovation and creating inclusive solutions in the beauty industry.

How did Aliyah Marandiz build the initial version of Sugardoh?

Aaliyah Marandiz founded Sugardoh by adapting an ancient Middle Eastern sugaring method for modern consumers, facing considerable challenges in the manufacturing process. Unlike typical beauty products, making the sugaring paste involved heating ingredients to over 200 degrees Fahrenheit, which posed significant safety challenges and required finding a container that wouldn't melt. After six months of cold-calling manufacturers and facing repeated refusals, Aaliyah finally convinced one to take on her product. The initial development involved extensive testing to achieve the perfect consistency, which was critical for both beginners and professionals. This journey was fraught with difficulties, as working remotely with manufacturers meant enduring feedback delays and numerous iterations to perfect the formula.

What was the growth strategy for Sugardoh and how did they scale?

TikTok

Sugardoh experienced significant growth by leveraging TikTok as an effective marketing channel. Aaliyah Marandiz, the founder, consistently posted content that balanced education and entertainment, focusing on the visually appealing and ASMR-friendly nature of sugaring. The viral nature of these TikTok videos led to a substantial increase in orders, sometimes jumping from five to 500 in a single day.

embed:tiktok

Why it worked: TikTok's algorithm favors engaging and visually stimulating content, which matched perfectly with Sugardoh's demonstration videos. The platform also enables organic reach and virality without the need for significant ad spend, allowing Sugardoh to achieve low customer acquisition costs and rapid brand awareness.

Community Building and Accelerator Programs

Sugardoh prioritized community building both online and through accelerator programs, which allowed them to nurture relationships and gain valuable exposure in retail. The Target Accelerator Program, for instance, helped the brand secure interviews and eventual placements with major retailers like Ulta Beauty.

Why it worked: Networking through accelerator programs opened doors that cold emailing wouldn't have. It provided platforms for making meaningful industry connections and receiving mentorship. Engaging consistently with the community fostered a loyal customer base that felt personally connected to the brand, further driving word-of-mouth marketing and repeat purchases.

From the onset, Sugardoh emphasized organic social marketing over paid ads, which proved to be cost-effective given the high cost per acquisition associated with paid campaigns. By focusing on unique content creation and sticking to an authentic brand voice, Sugardoh has managed to maintain engagement with its audience across platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

Why it worked: Organic social marketing allowed Sugardoh to build genuine relationships with its audience, encouraging a sense of trust and community. This strategy not only helped in acquiring new customers but also in retaining existing ones, as people felt more personally connected to the brand and its values. Additionally, the content resonated with trends and cultural moments, further amplifying its reach and effectiveness.

What were the biggest lessons learned from building Sugardoh?

Persistence Pays Off: Overcoming manufacturing challenges with Sugardoh required continuous perseverance and creativity, as Aliyah reached out to countless manufacturers until finding the right partner. Success often demands relentless effort and refusal to accept setbacks.
Build Authentic Connections: Leveraging programs for minority and women founders helped Sugardoh form valuable relationships. Aspiring founders should seek out grants, accelerators, and networking opportunities to build a support system.
Anti-Marketing Strategy: Sugardoh thrived by focusing on organic content that didn't look like traditional marketing. Engaging with audiences in a genuine, entertaining way can lead to viral growth.
Adapt and Pivot Quickly: Rapid TikTok-driven growth presented challenges, like inventory shortages and customer service hurdles. Building a flexible team and being ready to pivot are essential when scaling fast.
Value Your Community: Friends and family played vital roles in Sugardoh's early success, showing that surrounding yourself with trusted individuals who support your vision can strengthen your business foundation.

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