Beauty industry tycoon Maria Hatzistefanis aka ‘Mrs. Rodial’ shares the secrets of her success

Lesbos, the 1990s. A young girl reads fashion magazines and dreams of, one day, flying away.

At the age of 18, she leaves to study and manages, after a series of events that were not always very pleasant, to create a world-renowned brand of beauty products which, according to Sunday Style Times, is worth more than 100 million pounds. Her cosmetics pamper Hollywood and she has entered our homes through our TV screens as a dragon - investor in the Greek Dragons ' Den. Now Maria Hatzistefanis, aka @ Mrs Rodial, is introducing Rodial to Cyprus, with product names that contain dragons and snakes as if taken from a fairy tale - just like her own career path. And, in conversation with IN Business magazine, she reveals how to become an overnight success.

As Maria Hatzistefanis told me from the beginning of our conversation, there is no way for success to be built in 24 hours, even if the title of one of her best sellers is ‘How to Be an Overnight Success: Making It in Business.’ It took 24 years of hard work, clear thinking, a strong team, a touch of luck and a special aura, which is evident in her modest yet cordial and confident air as she greets the world for the recent Rodial launch event in Cyprus. The event took place in collaboration with Relia Trading and saw Hatzistefanis, aka @ Mrs Rodial personally greeting us one by one to welcome us.

It's finally in Cyprus!

Maria Hatzistefanis reveals that she had been considering bringing Rodial to the country for years but was looking for the right partner to share her vision with. “We met with the Relia team and Ioannis Charalambous, Director of Brands & Spa Development at Relia Trading LTD, recently and there was instant chemistry. I realised that they are a strong team and have understood the DNA of our brand - which is luxurious, bold and uncompromising - to be able to communicate it in the best way in the country," Hatzistefanis explains. She states, in fact, that she is impressed by the work that Relia is doing because, as she elaborates, this shows that in Cyprus and in Greece there are people who work hard and want to bring in innovative products and ideas: "Having left Greece about 24 years ago years I had left the country in other times and conditions...".

Hatzistefanis, whose products are inspired by the needs of her own skin, from what she requires but cannot find, had identified a gap in the market for a skin care line that offers targeted treatments with immediate results and long-term benefits: "I am a Greek woman, certainly our products are much closer to Cyprus than to the woman in England, where we are based. I believe Cypriots will like Rodial - which will be available exclusively at Beauty Line - very much. It's no coincidence that since I started, many people searched on the internet or went to Harrods and Selfridges and found them (the products) and sent me messages that they would also like to have them in stores in Cyprus."

Doing business with dragons

"Finally", I ask her, " how can someone be an overnight success in just a few words" - as is the title of one of the best her sellers - to get the answer, "As Jay - Z said, the secret to success is not giving up. That’s it!" So, even when he often gets to the point where he wonders why he's still doing this job, he thinks well and manages the situation.

Her success, however, was not built in 24 hours, as she admits. The fairy tale begins somewhere 24 years ago with difficulties and the lucky says.

At 18, she leaves Lesbos and goes to study English Literature in Athens, where she also works as an editor for fashion and beauty magazines. "Lesbos is my homeland. But it's an isolated, non-touristy island, and I've always wanted to get away. Maybe if I had grown up in Athens, my life wouldn't have taken this turn," she says.

So, moving even further away, she finds himself in America to pursue an MBA and then ends up working in an investment bank in London, something she lacked the passion for. Dismissal is not long in coming, which marks her later success.

With 20 thousand pounds, which she had saved at the time, she starts to create Rodial at home, within a fiercely competitive beauty sector.

On the Greek TV show Dragons ' Den, in which she participates for the second season as an investor, Hatzistefanis urges, among other things, the entrepreneurs who ask her to have a clear mind and to work hard. But are these two of her own ingredients for success? "Clear thinking is definitely needed. Competition is very high in the beauty industry. To the point, in fact, that I often ask myself 'why am I doing this, one company did that or the other, are we good enough?'. As you can see, if you don't have a clear mind, you quickly give up." Now, regarding hard work, Maria Hatzistefanis explains that it does not mean sitting for long hours in front of a desk, but when you have adversity, having the ability, mentally, to access the situation and move forward.

Luck cannot do it all

Apart from hard work and clear thinking, luck plays an important role in her life. Even if she doesn't believe in the luck factor alone. "When you work in a focused manner and don't give up, luck will come, but it certainly won't find you while you're sitting idle," she says, describing the moment when luck knocks on her own door, when she succeeds in making her products world-famous. And all in an era without influencers and social media. "When we started, we worked a lot with Hollywood and celebrities. How did it happen; At one point, we were asked to put our best selling products, such as the Snake Serum, in the goodie bags of an after Oscar party, which happened to be attended by many celebrities that year. At that time, the promotion of brands was done only through campaigns. But we didn't have the budgets - and we still don't have them today - to pay some famous people to participate in our campaigns.” And here's where the luck factor comes in: "You give away the products at a party and if one of the 100 goodie bags happens to be picked up by a celebrity who happens to be there and happens to mention one of your products in a magazine, then luck smiles at you. You see, the magazines were asking directly back then, for example, 'Ms. Jennifer Lopez what product do you use?' and she answered 'Bee Venom', let's say. So we invested in connecting with Hollywood agents, through a PR company, sending out lots of free party products."

This is how Rodial became known - a fact that was also helped by the products’ imaginative names, such as Snake Serum or Dragon's Blood - and with collaborations with celebrities, such as Kate Moss and the Kardashian sisters, followed.

The price of success

Today, Rodial is present in 35 countries and in over 2,000 luxury department stores worldwide, while Hatzistefanis (aka @mrsrodial) is followed on Instagram alone by 859 thousand people, including many celebrities and members of the international jet set. However, the pandemic contributed to her becoming more active on social media. “Before, my social media was very static. I was just uploading some posts to the feed. I didn't do stories and in general I didn't like talking to the camera, I didn't like it. But then the pandemic came and all the shops were closed, budgets were reduced. I had no other choice. I said then 'I'll wake up and talk, I'll get my routine up'. So I started to use social media more and connect with the public a little more."

After all, as they say, success always has its price. "For me there is always work, family and social life. And I always say that one can do two of them very well per phase of life." Today, she focuses on her professional and social life, as her two children have grown up.

I don't know what will come next...

In addition to Rodial and NIP+FAB, she is now investing capital as well as her business experience in ideas for the second round of Dragons' Den. “I pick some good ideas. And although many people would think that by going to Dragons', I would invest in beauty, that's all I don't do. I've been living it for 25 years. For me it is more refreshing to be involved in another area, where I can also learn, while transferring my own knowledge. I really like everything that has to do with healthy food, with nutrition, with things related to nutrition".

For the end I kept a question reminiscent of the ones the dragons ask on Dragons's Den: For what amount would she discuss a takeover of Rodial. "Ever since I started the company, everyone has been asking me what my end game is. But I'm not a serial entrepreneur, who builds companies and sells them on. I don't know if I would have the energy to start a business from scratch. After all, I still love what I do and most days I do it with good energy. A takeover of my company is not something I am seeking. I don't know what will come next..."

ABOUT RODIAL

• Rodial was founded in 1999 in London.
• Its name comes from the pomegranates, which the founder's grandmother used as a raw material for cosmetics that she made herself.
• The brand's products are available worldwide in department stores such as Selfridges, Harrods and Neiman Marcus.
• The brand's Hero products such as Snake Serum, Dragon's Blood Sculpting Gel, VIT C Brightening Pads and Banana Lowlighter are chosen by celebrities and influencers worldwide.
• Maria Hatzistefanis refers to these as heritage series, as they have already been around for 10 to 15 years and invests in their re-promotion.
• The company launched parabens free products 10 years ago and renews all of the product formulas every year, while it is 96% vegan.
• To facilitate the treatments of the luxury brand Rodial being used in a more economical range, Hatzistefanis created the company NIP+FAB.

This interview first appeared, in Greek, in the December issue of IN Business magazine. Click here to view it.