Why Serena Williams Created Wyn Beauty for Powerful, Multifaceted Women

The former pro athlete was inspired by her own experience to bring products to the market that outlast sweat.

Serena Williams / Julien De Rosa/Getty Images

Serena Williams spent years on the tennis court perfecting her swing. Little did she know that, at the same time, she was planting the seed for a future business venture: Wyn Beauty.

Day after day, the iconic tennis player would make up her face, then take to the court for practice or a match. But she never found many products that could move with her. In other words, as she worked up a sweat, her glam would slowly melt away.

Now, two years into retirement, Wiliams is the founder of her own makeup line. Wyn Beauty is dedicated to at least two things: creating products for all skin types and all activity types. Her brand’s products are just as fit for hours spent on the tennis court (or the track or soccer field, etc.) as they are for hours spent lounging around the house (or at work or dinner). In other words, they’re inclusive and versatile.

In creating Wyn Beauty, the former professional athlete was filling a perceived gap in the market—and not simply for her own sake, either. Williams had greater ambitions for the company than simply responding to her own notions of inadequacy in the makeup industry.

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She was also, in some ways, responding to this idea that athletes “can’t wear makeup while you play sports.” According to the entrepreneur in a video she filmed for Glamour magazine, “that is definitely a myth. You can wear all kinds of makeup.” She knows that firsthand. After all, she would frequently walk out onto the tennis court with a full face of makeup.

“That’s why I created Wyn Beauty,” she said. “Because you can still be powerful and still be sporty and still look amazing while you’re doing it.”

But while Williams admitted that athletes certainly can wear makeup on the field or court, it is likewise true that—until she created her own company—she found most products to falter when faced with hours of sweat. Wyn Beauty is intended to address that at the same time that it proves athletes can do both: wear the makeup and win the match.

The attitude, which laid the groundwork for her company, is likewise informing her efforts to level the playing field in professional sports. Williams wants women athletes to feel like they can do it all—and to be compensated fairly in return. Her mission in that regard extends beyond the bounds of Wyn Beauty, but the new company certainly plays an important role in it.