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"Changing Your Eyebrows Changes Your Heart & Your Life" – Insights from the Founder of "Hollywood Brow Lift" on Beautiful Eyebrow Transformation
Many people may feel overwhelmed, thinking, "It's difficult to draw eyebrows!" As a beauty professional, I have focused on people's makeup in the city, and I've noticed that many have not updated from the once-popular thin and straight eyebrows.
If the eyebrows, which create more expression than the eyes, remain the same as before, the overall impression will likely appear outdated. For this article, I interviewed Hitomi Fukui, a professional in eyebrows and the founder of the eyebrow improvement technique Hollywood Brow Lift. I asked her in detail about Japan's eyebrow situation and the importance of eyebrows, which "determine 80% of a person's facial impression."
PROFILE
Hitomi Fukui
President of JULIA IVY Co., Ltd. / Founder of Hollywood Brow Lift / CEO of TROIAREUKE JAPAN
After graduating from Waseda University, she started her career in the media industry. After working as a reporter for about nine years on the information program "King's Brunch," she spent five years as the host of the business program "Kenja no Sentaku." After gaining experience in both media and business, she transitioned into a businesswoman who develops management, brand, and education projects in the beauty industry. She manages 15 esthetic salons and promotes consulting in the beauty industry as well as education for professionals.
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Japan's Eyebrow Situation: 10 Years Behind
In 2020, Fukui developed the eyebrow improvement technique "Hollywood Brow Lift (HBL)" from scratch and has been leading the establishment of the new profession of "Brow Artist" as the president of the Japan Eyebrow Association (JEBA). In January 2025, she plans to launch the industry's first eyebrow-specific cosmetic brand, HBL BEAUTY, utilizing her expertise in the Hollywood Brow Lift treatment.
What exactly is the Hollywood Brow Lift that Fukui created?
"The Hollywood Brow Lift is a treatment I developed in Japan after being captivated by brow lamination, a type of eyebrow perm I encountered during my stay in America. This trend has been popular in the U.S. for about ten years, where it's considered fashionable to have an upward eyebrow hair flow. Witnessing this made me feel that people's expressions were very confident and radiant.
"Although it is not yet mainstream in Japan, when you look at Western celebrities, K-POP artists, and the visuals of Korean cosmetics, you can see they have stylishly groomed raised eyebrows. Having traveled around the world, I feel that Japan's eyebrow culture is lagging compared to other beauty-forward nations."
"I personally want to bring brow lamination to Japan and thought many people would appreciate this treatment, so I initially ordered the solutions from the U.S. However, I soon realized that the ingredients would violate Japan's Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act."
While eyelash perms are well known, they involve applying rollers to the eyelashes, minimizing strain on the eyes. In contrast, eyebrow treatments involve the perm solution coming into direct contact with the skin, which necessitates more caution regarding the ingredients.
"When I first received the brow lamination treatment in America, the solution evaporated and stung my eyes. Realizing that I couldn't use the American products as they were, both legally and for safety reasons, I decided to develop a domestic solution.
"While many might assume that Hollywood Brow Lift is imported as perm solutions and techniques from Hollywood, it actually employs a completely new proprietary cosmetic solution."
Fukui faced a challenging journey to develop it, using her knowledge from running beauty salons for ten years.
"While searching for factories that could create the product I envisioned with the cooperation of experts in hair science and cosmetics development, everything felt like a blind endeavor. Developing something new that doesn’t yet exist in Japan was extraordinarily difficult."
Nevertheless, Fukui took on the intricate development challenges to share the uplifting experiences she had with her neat eyebrows with many people. Currently, Hollywood Brow Lift is implemented in about 12,000 salons across the country.
Fukui's Hollywood Brow Lift can be received not only at eyebrow salons but also at eyelash salons, esthetic salons, and hair salons. However, many people struggle with their daily eyebrow makeup. Therefore, in January of this year, the eyebrow-focused cosmetic brand "HBL BEAUTY" was born to make morning makeup time more positive.
"HBL BEAUTY" promotes the message "Changing your eyebrows changes your heart and your life" as a cosmetic that transforms natural brows into beautiful brows.
“I think many people have an aversion to eyebrows, hiding them with bangs or giving up on having beautiful brows. But in fact, eyebrows determine 80% of your facial impression.
"Think of anime or manga. A sharply arched eyebrow looks mean, droopy eyebrows give a sense of unreliability, thin eyebrows convey a gentle and modest image, while thick and dark brows often belong to characters with strong will.
"If you cover your eyebrows with your hand, it becomes very difficult to show anger even if you are making an angry face. Since eyebrows influence impressions more than eyes do, I encourage investing more in eyebrows in makeup.”
“When my eyebrow makeup goes well in the morning, my mood lifts, and my expressions become more lively. This brings positive effects to my inner self, leading to a positive life.
"If you have an aversion to eyebrows, are you trying to complete your look with just one item? It's difficult to achieve beautiful brows using only a pencil or just a powder palette. Those who feel uneasy about it should consider relying on the power of multiple products.
"Many people tend to fill in their eyebrows with color, but this can lead to a dull impression. At HBL BEAUTY, after setting the natural hair flow with 'HBL Eyebrow Styling Mascara,' I recommend using 'HBL Eyebrow Pencil' or 'HBL Eyebrow Art Liquid Pen' to add individual strokes where necessary.”
Creating Emotionally Resonant Products with Kanazawa Institute of Technology
Even the "HBL Eyebrow Art Liquid Pen" showcases an extraordinary commitment to its development.
“I was particular about having the same thinness as baby hair, and that it colors in one stroke and dries quickly. A fresh texture blends well, but if it gets into the skin's texture, it smudges.
"After testing prototypes and repeatedly checking for smudges under a microscope, I created more than 50 prototype versions before release! Usually, smudging is considered good skin adhesion, so the factory had no knowledge of this, and I formulated it from scratch.”
Fukui is tirelessly working to establish eyebrow beauty in Japan. Recently, a research program in collaboration with Kanazawa Institute of Technology focusing on sensory engineering has begun.
“I want people to feel happy by beautifully finishing their eyebrows with ‘HBL BEAUTY.’ Therefore, I thought about the usability of the products and started this research with Kanazawa Institute of Technology.
"We are analyzing aspects like the weight and axis of the products from the perspective of sensory engineering, aiming to make eyebrow makeup more enjoyable.”
Developing a Neo-charismatic Era where We Can All Create a Game Changer with Our Eyebrows!
Fukui, through eyebrow beauty, delivers the joy and excitement of life. What drives this passion?
“When I was young, there was a charisma boom in the beauty industry with renowned hairstylists and nail artists. Many people aspired to become hairstylists and nail artists because of them. I was one of those who wanted to be charismatic too.
"Recently, as fewer people are referred to as charismatic in Japan, I witnessed brow artists performing eyebrow beauty treatments in America, working with great pride. It reminded me what charisma looks like. I also felt compelled to create a profession that generates an aura like theirs that everyone admires, which led to starting the training of brow artists for Hollywood Brow Lift.
"With 'HBL BEAUTY' for daily use, I intend to transform eyebrow beauty from a negative perception into a culture. I want to create a neo-charisma era and continue to make game-changing impacts in the future.”
Users of "HBL BEAUTY" report transformations such as "I've started to enjoy eyebrow makeup," "I've gained confidence," and "I've become a new version of myself." Fukui, as an eyebrow beauty icon, creates individuals who take pride in their work and fosters internal changes. The neo-charisma era has already begun.
Text by Rie Tsugita
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