Wonderskin: The Viral Lip Stain Surviving Every Polo Match and Power Lunch

Michael Malinsky was sitting in a New Jersey lab in 2015, surrounded by cosmetic scientists who’d spent decades at LVMH and Estée Lauder. They showed him something strange: a lip product that went on bright blue, then peeled away to reveal color that wouldn’t budge for hours. Most executives would have dismissed it as a gimmick. Instead, Malinsky saw the future.

Nine years later, Wonderskin just closed a $50 million Series A round from Insight Partners. The brand’s Wonder Blading Lip Stain has earned over 300 million views on TikTok. Consequently, it ranks as the number one bestselling lip stain on Amazon, with more than 7,000 five-star reviews. And if you’ve attended any Hamptons event this summer, you’ve likely noticed lips that look impossibly perfect through cocktails, dinner, and dancing.

That’s not lipstick. That’s not gloss. That’s Wonderskin, and it’s quietly becoming the beauty secret of women who refuse to reapply.

The Serial Entrepreneur Who Cracked the Lip Code

Before Wonderskin, Michael Malinsky had already built and sold beauty companies. He founded MSM Design in Toronto in 2001, then spent years scaling customer acquisition for major health and beauty brands. In 2013, he launched KF Beauty in London. Within three years, his brand Wunderbrow became a top-ten eyebrow product on Amazon.

However, Malinsky’s approach was unconventional. Rather than chasing young influencers on Instagram, he targeted women over 35 through Facebook advertising. According to Racked, the company spent $80,000 per day on Facebook ads alone. The strategy worked because he understood something competitors missed: older consumers respond to direct advertising, while younger buyers need discovery.

By 2018, Malinsky had left Wunderbrow. A year later, he established DCB Lab, a brand holding and investment company. Then came the pandemic. And with it, an opportunity that would change everything.

How Wonder Blading Technology Actually Works

The Wonderskin lip stain uses patented Wonder Blading technology, which sounds like marketing speak until you see it in action. Essentially, you paint on a metallic blue masque that looks alarming. You wait 30 to 45 seconds. Then you either peel it off or wipe it away with the included activator mist.

What remains is pure pigment infused into the top layer of your lips. According to BeautyMatter, the formula contains squalane for hydration, lactic acid for smoothness, and purified seaweed extract for nourishment. Unlike traditional long-wear lipsticks that dry out lips with alcohol, Wonderskin’s formula is alcohol-free and surprisingly comfortable.

The result? Transfer-proof, waterproof, smudge-proof color that survives coffee, meals, conversations, and yes, kissing. One TODAY Show reviewer applied it at 2:30 a.m. and wore it with a mask for twelve hours. It didn’t budge.

For women who’ve spent decades reapplying lipstick after every sip of wine, this borders on revolutionary.

Why Wonderskin Went Viral on TikTok

In 2022, two years after the product launched, TikTok discovered Wonderskin. The appeal was immediately obvious. Watching someone paint on bright blue lipstick, then peel it away to reveal perfect pink underneath, is genuinely mesmerizing. It’s ASMR meets makeover reveal meets magic trick.

Influencer posts earned tens of millions of views. Cosmopolitan’s beauty editor featured it on the Today Show. Subsequently, creators across every demographic started testing it: Gen Z beauty enthusiasts, busy millennial moms, women over 45 tired of lipstick feathering into fine lines.

According to Business of Fashion, the brand has partnerships with over 3,000 content creators. Additionally, Wonderskin has an in-house team producing content constantly. The TikTok strategy modernized Malinsky’s earlier Facebook playbook: find what people genuinely want to share, then make it easy for them.

Currently, the lip stain has sold over 372,000 units on TikTok Shop alone. Specific shades like Divine (burgundy red) and Whimsical (soft rose) have become famous in their own right. The brand now ranks number 25 on Amazon’s top-selling beauty products overall.

The Three-Generation Appeal That Surprised Everyone

Here’s what caught Wonderskin’s founders off guard: their hero product resonates across three completely different demographics. For Gen Z, it’s the bold visual appeal and TikTok-worthy application. For millennials, it’s practicality and time-saving benefits. For women over 45, it’s long-lasting wear without feathering.

Marina Kalenchyts, co-founder and brand director, told BeautyMatter that this cross-generational appeal was unexpected. “It’s rare to find a product that bridges such diverse age groups,” she explained, “but the lip stain’s unique blend of functionality and innovation makes it universally loved.”

That universality matters in the Hamptons, where benefit galas draw grandmothers, mothers, and daughters to the same tables. Remarkably, a product that works for all three generations eliminates the awkward moment of borrowing someone’s lipstick.

The brand now projects 2025 sales of $100 to $125 million, roughly double their 2024 numbers. They’ve expanded beyond lips into brow products, eyeliner, blush sticks, and pressed powder. Notably, a foundation launch is planned for late 2025.

Why Wonderskin Works for Hamptons Lifestyles

Consider the typical Hamptons summer day: morning tennis, afternoon beach, evening cocktails, late dinner. Traditional lipstick would require reapplication at every transition. Gloss would disappear entirely. Lip stain would fade unevenly.

Wonderskin Hamptons appeal makes perfect sense when you understand the product’s core promise: apply once, forget it exists. The women who flock to East End events aren’t carrying touch-up kits. They’re carrying phones and credit cards, period.

Furthermore, the brand’s aesthetic aligns with understated luxury. The packaging is sleek white and silver, not garish. The shades range from natural nudes to classic reds without veering into trendy territory. It’s sophisticated enough for a Southampton benefit and practical enough for a Montauk beach day.

Walk into any Hamptons bathroom during a charity gala and you’ll notice something: nobody’s reapplying. The women who discovered Wonderskin aren’t sharing the secret, either. Why would they? Perfect lips that last all night look better when everyone else is fading.

The $50 Million Bet on What’s Next

In May 2025, Insight Partners led a $50 million Series A investment in Wonderskin. According to PR Newswire, the funding will support retail expansion, product development, and research at the company’s New Jersey lab.

“Wonderskin is reshaping the beauty landscape with patented innovation, bold product design, and a deep connection to today’s consumer,” said Rebecca Liu-Doyle, managing director at Insight Partners. “Their ability to fuse science, creativity, and cultural relevance is rare.”

The brand forecasts entering an American beauty specialty chain in late 2025 or early 2026. Currently, Wonderskin sells through Nordstrom, Urban Outfitters, Boots UK, Amazon, and its own DTC channels. Interestingly, the company manufactures most products in the United States, insulating it from tariff concerns affecting competitors.

With 35 employees, headquarters in London, and a dedicated in-house lab, Wonderskin operates differently than typical beauty startups. They develop formulas internally rather than outsourcing. They test extensively before launching. This deliberate approach explains why they have roughly 25 products, not 250.

What Makes Wonderskin Different From Every Other Viral Product

TikTok creates viral beauty moments constantly. Most fade within months. Wonderskin has sustained momentum for nearly five years because the product actually delivers on its promise. The virality isn’t just visual gimmick; it’s backed by genuine performance.

Importantly, the brand learned from early mistakes. Kalenchyts told interviewers that launching new categories too early taught them a valuable lesson about focus. They pulled back products that weren’t working and concentrated resources on what customers actually wanted.

That discipline shows in customer loyalty. According to Beauty Independent, nearly half of direct-to-consumer customers purchase a non-lip-stain product. A third of revenues now come from products beyond the original hero. The company has proven it’s not a one-hit wonder.

Malinsky summarized the strategy simply: “We’ve certainly proven our capacity is not just to ride the coattails of one viral product. We have the tenacity to develop, bring to market and defend other hero items.”

The Clean Formula That Actually Works

Long-lasting lip products have traditionally required trade-offs. You got staying power at the cost of comfort. Your lips survived the day but felt like cracked leather by evening. Wonderskin claims to have solved this problem through formulation rather than compromise.

The Wonder Blading Lip Stain is paraben-free, gluten-free, PFAS-free, vegan, and cruelty-free (Leaping Bunny certified). Unlike competitors loaded with drying alcohols, the formula includes hydrating ingredients that actually improve lip condition over time.

Admittedly, some users report a tingling sensation during application. Others note that the stain works best on exfoliated, moisturized lips. But these minor caveats haven’t stopped the product from earning thousands of five-star reviews across platforms.

For women who’ve cycled through every long-wear lipstick on the market, Wonderskin represents something genuinely new: performance without punishment.

The Peel-Off Moment That Changes Everything

There’s something psychologically satisfying about the Wonderskin application ritual. You paint on the blue masque, feeling slightly ridiculous. You wait, wondering if this will actually work. You peel or wipe, experiencing a small reveal moment. Then you see the color, and it’s perfect.

That experience creates the kind of emotional connection that builds brand loyalty. It’s not just makeup; it’s a mini-transformation every time. The process takes under two minutes and delivers results that last until bedtime.

For women accustomed to the disappointment of products that underdeliver, Wonderskin’s consistent performance builds trust. Once you’ve experienced lips that survive an entire Hamptons dinner party without fading, you’re unlikely to go back to traditional lipstick.

The brand now offers 18 shades, from everyday nudes to statement reds. Ultimately, there’s something for every occasion and every skin tone. The product that started as a TikTok curiosity has become a legitimate makeup staple.

Where Wonderskin Goes From Here

With $50 million in fresh funding and projections of $125 million in 2025 sales, Wonderskin is positioned for significant expansion. The immediate priority is retail distribution in the United States, likely through a major beauty specialty chain.

Beyond that, the company plans to extend into more product categories. Foundation is next, followed potentially by skincare. Each new launch will follow the same principle that made the lip stain successful: patented technology that delivers performance no competitor can match.

“The goal is to have more sustained and healthy growth, with an even faster growing profitability curve attached to it,” Malinsky told Beauty Independent. The company isn’t chasing scale for its own sake. They’re building something meant to last.

For Hamptons women who’ve already discovered Wonderskin, the question isn’t whether to buy. It’s which shades to stock for the season ahead.

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