Kapaun graduate making it in New York makeup world

Kelli Bartlett took a good, long look in the mirror of a New York City theater in 2011.

Bartlett, a Wichita native, was acting in a production of “Chicago.” In her free time, she taught the cast makeup tricks.

After teaching them how to do a “ ’20s-era smoky eye,” she had a realization.

“I said, ‘The jig is up – you’re a makeup artist.’ ”

Bartlett, who first moved to New York City after graduating from Kapaun Mount Carmel High School in 2005, now directs makeup artistry for Glamsquad, an app-based beauty service growing in popularity.

Elle magazine recently featured Bartlett in its “This Is My 30” campaign, profiling different women near 30 years old, “giving a snapshot of what it looks like for all different women,” Bartlett said.

And it all started when Bartlett was growing up in Wichita and spending time with a grandmother who doubled as a Mary Kay sales representative.

“From a very young age, I saw what the power of makeup can do,” said Bartlett, 28. “I’m a redhead, and my lashes are really light naturally. Once you put mascara on, you feel like a totally different person.”

Bartlett said she dabbled with makeup throughout high school and landed her first part-time gig at the Mac Cosmetics counter at Dillard’s in Towne East Square.

At the time, she wanted to go into theater and did makeup for many of Kapaun’s plays and musicals.

Arri Simon, a music student at Wichita East High School at the time, met Bartlett at Kapaun’s production of “Guys and Dolls,” and they became friends.

Simon, now a composer in New York City, calls her one of his best friends.

“She’s worked her butt off for everything she’s done,” Simon said. “I’m just super-proud of her.”

In her free time, Bartlett danced and became a soloist with Ballet Wichita.

Jill Landrith, the ballet’s artistic director, said she would get fan letters sent to the office saying, “Who is that red-headed dancer? We need to see more of her.”

“Sometimes people when they work so hard, they tend to have this stern countenance and furrowed brow,” Landrith said. “Kelli was always the most delightful person to have around in rehearsals – such a warm, engaging person. Really a joy to work with.”

Bartlett said she aspired to be like other Wichitans who went on to successful performing careers.

“There’s something in the water in Wichita,” she said. “There are so many incredible performers that come out of Wichita, Kansas, and that was sort of the dream.”

She moved to New York City after graduation and enrolled at New York University.

After graduation, she acted in New York theaters until realizing she was more dedicated to makeup. She went back to Mac and was eventually promoted to a team manager at the brand’s flagship Times Square location.

She heard about the Glamsquad concept and felt intrigued.

Glamsquad’s founders were planning on doing on-demand hair blowouts, or stylings.

“I said, ‘Hey, if you guys are already thinking about being a blowout business, makeup in conjunction with hair makes sense,’ ” Bartlett said.

When Bartlett joined Glamsquad in its early days in November 2013, there were four people associated with the app. It wasn’t even in beta testing yet.

Now Glamsquad is a big business, doing close to 1,500 appointments per week in the three cities it operates in: New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

“That’s a lot of hair and makeup,” Bartlett said.

Glamsquad is an app-based, on-demand, on-location beauty service.

People who live in New York, Los Angeles or Miami can download Glamsquad’s app. Whenever they want their hair styled or makeup done, they can book Glamsquad, and a team of stylists will come.

Bartlett compared it to Uber, Lyft and other on-demand services.

“It’s not necessarily a new concept. … It is something that makeup artists and hairstylists have been doing for celebrity clients for years,” Bartlett said. “We really wanted to take that same luxury experience and bring it at an affordable cost.”

Glamsquad does hair blowouts starting at 45 minutes and $50. The makeup applications cost $75 and are 60 minutes long.

In New York, Glamsquad also does manicures and pedicures. It is about to launch airbrush makeup service in New York as well, Bartlett said.

Glamsquad, which was officially founded in January 2014, wants to make “getting ready easier,” Bartlett said.

“We just want to make women look and feel good,” she said.

The demand for such services is growing quickly in New York, with apps such as StyleBee, Priv and CityMani crowding the market, but she’s confident Glamsquad will remain a leader.

“I wouldn’t feel so good about this business if there weren’t other people trying to do what we do,” she said. “It’s always good to have competition, but ... no one invests the amount of time and the amount of energy that Glamsquad does.”

Bartlett said she was flattered when Elle included her in its “This Is My 30” series. It worked out for Bartlett, too – the magazine used Glamsquad for many of the other women’s photo shoots, “which is awesome for us,” she said.

The chances of expanding to Wichita are slim, Bartlett admits, but Wichita will stay on the list of potential markets.

“I know intimately how absolutely beautiful the Wichita woman is, and it would be an absolute honor to help them get glammed,” Bartlett said. “Do I think it will happen by 2016? Probably not, but it is my dream if we’re not in Wichita, we’ll probably serve one of the surrounding areas … Dallas, Kansas City, Chicago.”

Bartlett said she tries to return to Wichita three to four times per year “at the bare minimum.”

When she’s home, she said, she always starts her day with doughnuts and a copy of The Eagle.

This story was originally published October 4, 2015 at 6:25 PM with the headline "Kapaun graduate making it in New York makeup world."