Huda Kattan
Huda Heidi Kattan (هدى قطان; born October 2, 1983) is an American makeup artist, beauty blogger, and entrepreneur who is the founder and CEO of Huda Beauty, a Dubai-based cosmetics company valued at over $1 billion. Beginning as a beauty blogger in 2010, Kattan leveraged her massive social media following—exceeding 54 million followers on Instagram alone—to build one of the most successful beauty brands of the digital age, with products sold in retailers including Sephora, Harrods, and Harvey Nichols worldwide.
Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Iraqi immigrant parents, Kattan studied finance at the University of Michigan–Dearborn before abandoning a corporate career to pursue her passion for makeup. After moving to Dubai in 2006 and studying makeup artistry in Los Angeles, where she worked with celebrities including Eva Longoria and Nicole Richie, Kattan started a beauty blog at the suggestion of her sister Mona. The blog's success led to the founding of Huda Beauty in 2013, with her first product—a line of false eyelashes—famously worn by Kim Kardashian and sold through Sephora.
Huda Beauty has since expanded to include a full range of cosmetics including eyeshadow palettes, liquid lipsticks, foundations, concealers, and highlighters. In December 2017, private equity firm TSG Consumer Partners acquired a minority stake in the company at a valuation of $1.2 billion, though Kattan subsequently bought back this stake in 2025, making Huda Beauty one of the largest founder-owned beauty companies in private hands.
Kattan has been recognized as one of the most influential figures in the beauty industry. Time magazine named her one of "The 25 Most Influential People on the Internet" in 2017, while Forbes declared her one of the "ten most powerful influencers in the world of beauty." She was ranked number one on the 2017 Influencer Instagram Rich List, reportedly earning $18,000 per sponsored post. In 2020, she was included in Fortune's 40 Under 40 list.
Beyond her business achievements, Kattan has engaged in philanthropy through Huda Beauty, donating to causes including the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Médecins Sans Frontières, and humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza and India. She starred in the Facebook Watch reality series Huda Boss (2018), which featured her family's involvement in running the beauty empire.
Early life
Family background
Huda Heidi Kattan was born on October 2, 1983, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Iraqi immigrant parents. She was one of four children in her family, with siblings including her sister Mona, who would later become her business partner and co-founder of Huda Beauty, and sister Alya, who manages Huda's social media presence.
Her parents' Iraqi heritage would later influence both her global perspective and her connection to Middle Eastern markets that would prove crucial to Huda Beauty's early growth. The family moved several times during Huda's childhood, relocating from Oklahoma to Cookeville, Tennessee, and then to Dartmouth, Massachusetts, as her parents sought opportunities across the United States.
Education and early career
Kattan attended the University of Michigan–Dearborn, where she majored in finance—a practical choice that seemed to set her on a traditional corporate career path. During her time at university, she met Christopher Goncalo, a fellow student of Portuguese heritage who would later become her husband and business partner.
After graduating, Kattan entered the finance industry, but found herself unfulfilled by the work. The disconnect between her corporate responsibilities and her creative passions became increasingly apparent, and she eventually made the pivotal decision to quit her finance job and pursue makeup artistry—a choice that her family initially viewed with some concern given the stability she was abandoning.
Career
Move to Dubai and makeup training
In 2006, Kattan moved to Dubai with her father, who had accepted a job opportunity as a teacher in the emirate. The move to Dubai, which was rapidly developing as a global hub for business and luxury, would prove transformative for Kattan's career trajectory.
A few years after settling in Dubai, Kattan traveled to Los Angeles to formally study makeup artistry, training at institutions that would give her professional credentials and technical skills. During this period, she worked as a makeup artist for celebrity clients including Eva Longoria and Nicole Richie, building experience with high-profile productions and developing relationships within the entertainment industry.
Kattan then returned to Dubai, where she took a position as a makeup artist with Revlon. The corporate makeup artist role provided steady work and industry experience, but Kattan felt constrained by the limitations of working within a large corporate structure.
Starting the blog
In April 2010, upon the advice of her sister Mona, Kattan started a beauty-related blog on WordPress which she named "Huda Beauty." The blog featured makeup tutorials, product reviews, and beauty tips—content that drew on both her professional training and her genuine passion for cosmetics.
The timing proved fortuitous. Social media platforms were rapidly expanding, and there was growing demand for accessible beauty content that went beyond traditional magazine coverage. Kattan's tutorials combined professional expertise with relatable presentation, helping viewers achieve sophisticated looks without professional training.
The blog quickly gained traction, establishing Huda Beauty as a recognized name in the Middle Eastern beauty community. By 2015, it had become the number one fashion blog in the Middle East—a remarkable achievement that demonstrated both the quality of Kattan's content and the underserved demand for beauty education in the region.
Founding Huda Beauty cosmetics
In 2013, Kattan took the leap from content creation to product development, founding a cosmetics line under the Huda Beauty name. Her first product was a line of false eyelashes—a category she had identified as underserved based on her own frustrations finding quality falsies that looked natural and were easy to apply.
The false eyelashes were released through Sephora, giving Kattan access to one of the world's premier beauty retail networks. The product achieved immediate success, amplified when Kim Kardashian was photographed wearing Huda Beauty lashes. The celebrity endorsement—which came organically rather than through paid promotion—catapulted the brand to international attention.
Product expansion
Building on the success of the false eyelashes, Huda Beauty expanded into a full range of cosmetics. The company introduced eyeshadow palettes, liquid lipsticks, lip liners, highlighter palettes, foundations, concealers, baking powders, and liquid eyeshadows—each launch generating significant buzz through Kattan's social media channels.
The brand became known for bold, pigmented products that performed well on camera—reflecting Kattan's understanding of how cosmetics functioned both in real life and in the social media images that increasingly drove beauty purchasing decisions. The Instagram-friendly aesthetic of Huda Beauty products helped drive organic sharing and user-generated content.
Social media influence
Kattan achieved extraordinary success on social media platforms, particularly Instagram, where she accumulated more than 54 million followers as of 2025. This massive audience provided Huda Beauty with an invaluable marketing channel, allowing the company to launch products with built-in awareness and demand.
The commercial value of Kattan's influence was reflected in her ranking as number one on the "2017 Influencer Instagram Rich List," reportedly earning $18,000 for each post of sponsored content. This made her one of the highest-paid influencers in the world at the time.
Kattan's influence extended beyond her own promotional activities to affect broader market dynamics. In 2017, after she mentioned a Foreo beauty device on her YouTube channel, the product sold out within a week at Harvey Nichols and Bloomingdale's Dubai—demonstrating her ability to move entire product categories through recommendations.
TSG Consumer Partners investment
In December 2017, Huda Beauty received a minority investment from TSG Consumer Partners, a San Francisco-based private equity firm with experience in beauty industry investments, having previously backed brands including Smashbox and IT Cosmetics.
The transaction valued Huda Beauty at approximately $1.2 billion, officially establishing Kattan as a billionaire beauty entrepreneur. The investment provided capital for further expansion while allowing Kattan to retain majority control of the company.
The partnership with TSG was intended to support Huda Beauty's continued growth, providing access to operational expertise and capital for expansion into new markets and product categories. At the time of the investment, the company was reportedly generating approximately $200 million in annual sales.
Leadership transition and return
In 2020, Kattan stepped down from her role as CEO of Huda Beauty, transitioning to focus on creative direction while professional management handled day-to-day operations. The move was part of a broader pattern among founder-led beauty brands that brought in experienced executives to manage scaled operations.
However, in February 2024, Kattan returned to the CEO role, bringing what observers described as "fresh energy" to the brand. The return coincided with a strategic repositioning of Huda Beauty, including a complete rebranding of the company's logo unveiled in July 2024.
Buyback from TSG
In 2025, Kattan announced that she had regained majority ownership of Huda Beauty by buying back the minority stake that TSG Consumer Partners had acquired in 2017. The buyback was facilitated in part by her sister Mona Kattan's separate transaction involving Kayali fragrances and private equity firm General Atlantic, which provided funding structure for the Huda Beauty repurchase.
The buyback made Huda Beauty one of the largest founder-owned beauty companies still in private hands, returning full control to Kattan and allowing her to pursue her creative vision without the constraints of private equity ownership.
Huda Boss
In 2018, Kattan began starring in Huda Boss, an original reality series on Facebook Watch. The show featured Kattan alongside her family members—including sisters Mona and Alya, husband Christopher, and other relatives—as they navigated the challenges of running the Huda Beauty empire.
The series provided behind-the-scenes access to the family dynamics and business operations that powered Huda Beauty, humanizing the brand while extending Kattan's media presence beyond social media platforms.
Business performance
As of 2024, Huda Beauty reportedly generated approximately $450 million in annual sales, making it one of the largest independent beauty brands globally. The company was ranked as the number four top makeup brand in 2024, surpassing established competitors including LVMH's Dior and Fenty Beauty.
Philanthropy and activism
Through Huda Beauty, Kattan has participated in various philanthropic initiatives. In June 2020, she announced that Huda Beauty would donate $500,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund in response to the George Floyd protests.
In 2021, Kattan and Huda Beauty started a petition calling for beauty brands to disclose when they have retouched or edited images and videos in their marketing, aiming to combat what she described as "toxic" social media beauty standards that can harm mental health.
Through Huda Beauty, Kattan has also supported Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), the Asian American community, and various food drive initiatives including the 100 Million Meals campaign. In 2021, the company donated one million meals through the initiative.
In May 2021, Kattan and Huda Beauty donated $100,000 to Help India Breathe, a COVID-19 relief fundraiser launched by author Jay Shetty and his wife Radhika Devlukia-Shetty.
In November 2023, Kattan donated $1 million to two humanitarian organizations working in Gaza: Médecins Sans Frontières and Human Appeal.
Controversies
Antisemitism controversy
In July 2025, Kattan posted a video to TikTok that promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories, claiming that Jews and Israel were behind World Wars I and II, the September 11 attacks, and the October 7 attacks. The video was subsequently removed by TikTok for violating the platform's community guidelines.
French cosmetics retailer Sephora announced it would conduct an investigation regarding the incident and evaluate its partnership with Kattan and Huda Beauty. The controversy generated significant backlash and raised questions about the company's relationships with major retail partners.
Pro-Iranian regime controversy
In January 2026, amid the 2025–2026 Iranian protests, Kattan faced additional backlash after posting a video that critics characterized as pro-Iranian regime propaganda. The video showed protesters burning images of the Iranian opposition, leading to boycott campaigns against Huda Beauty products.
Friendship ending with Eva Longoria
Kattan had maintained a friendship with actress Eva Longoria for over ten years, dating back to when Kattan worked as her makeup artist in Los Angeles. However, in 2024, the friendship ended over political disagreements related to Longoria's continued support of Israel during the Israel–Hamas war.
Personal life
Marriage and family
Kattan met her husband, Christopher Goncalo, during high school or their college years at the University of Michigan–Dearborn. Goncalo, who is of Portuguese heritage, has been integral to Huda Beauty's business operations, serving as Co-Founder and Co-CEO with responsibilities for business development, operations, and logistics.
The couple moved to Dubai together in 2006 and married in June 2009. They have one daughter, Nour Giselle Goncalo, who was born on June 25, 2011. Nour has begun developing her own presence on social media, posting TikTok content that has attracted significant attention.
Religion
Kattan is Muslim and has spoken publicly about her faith and its importance in her life.
Family business involvement
Huda Beauty operates as a family enterprise, with multiple members of the Kattan family involved in the business. Sister Mona Kattan serves as co-founder of Huda Beauty and also founded Kayali, the company's fragrance brand. Sister Alya Kattan manages Huda's social media presence, while husband Christopher Goncalo handles business operations.
This family structure has been featured prominently in the company's public presentation, including through the Huda Boss reality series, positioning Huda Beauty as a family success story rather than a purely individual achievement.
Awards and recognition
- Time magazine "25 Most Influential People on the Internet" (2017)
- Forbes "Ten Most Powerful Influencers in Beauty" (2017)
- Influencer Instagram Rich List #1 (2017)
- Fortune 40 Under 40 (2020)
- Cosmetify Beauty Influencer Rich List #1 (2021)
- BBC 100 Women (2023)
See also
References