"The name is Beauty Conscious Cosmetics," Waller said. "I’m really close to both my grandparents and I wanted to include that in there so at first BC stood for Benie and Carl."

After some time, Waller realized her business's name could also reflect the reasoning behind its inception. 

"I actually figured out what I was doing was being conscious of women and the different experiences they had with makeup, like their undertones, and I feel like overall it’s a very conscious brand," she said. 

She chose to keep BC as beauty conscious because her business’s mission is to be overall aware of those differences and serve those in underrepresented communities. 

Waller documented her time learning how to do makeup online through social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. After sharing her journey, she found out other women struggle to teach themselves and feel underrepresented by the industry, too.

 She started small with lip glosses, but Waller said she's always had an entrepreneurial mindset and knew she wanted to grow BC COSMETICS. 

"Even when I was really little, I knew I wanted to be in business," she said. "My parents have their own business. My uncle does, too, so when I saw the reaction of people and them having the same desire to be represented or to have representatives represent them correctly, I felt like this was the perfect opportunity."

Her business was founded before she began her time at MSU, but her entrepreneurial interests led her there. She recalls touring "The Hatch," MSU’s startup incubator space, and one conversation she had with an advisor for the Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation stuck with her.

"He was just telling me all the resources they have for us, like funding businesses," Waller said. "He was really big on not taking any ownership of your business, but just really helping you propel that business."

After enrolling at MSU, she said the opportunities for her brand were extensive, including access to competitions, investors and connections. With these opportunities, she has experienced some growing pains, especially with ownership over BC COSMETICS. 

"I feel like when you are growing or scaling a business, eventually you will have to get more people on board, which I love the idea of," she said. "However, in certain markets you have to separate ownership and I feel like having that deep connection to my brand, it's a hard thing for me to think about."

In the cosmetics industry it’s common for larger brands to acquire smaller ones, creating opportunity to scale those products. While she knows this could be in her future, she worries the authenticity and messaging of her brand could change if she doesn’t hold the same level of ownership. This is especially difficult when her main audience is women of color. 

"We’re the most underrepresented,” Waller said. “Our complexions are usually deemed hard to match, which can lead people to feel very left out and lost for hope. I feel like I really experience that myself. It’s a big market gap."

Waller said she wants her brand to continue being a safe place for women to feel supported and included. 

During her time at MSU, Waller has been deeply involved in the program, holding a spot on the Entrepreneurship Association E-Board and working with advisors from the institute. 

Lori Fischer, one of Waller’s advisors and the director of operations at the Burgess Institute, said she met Waller at one of the competitions done through their Venture Creation program. The program is a non-academic initiative for MSU students of any year that guides them through several aspects pertaining to their businesses, including research and support. 

"I liked her mission," Fischer said. "When I first met her she was nervous about pitching, but through the years she has become so involved. Two years ago she had never pitched before and now she’s one of the leaders in entrepreneurship in our ecosystem."  

Fischer said she thinks Waller is on the right track and that BC COSMETICS is so much more than just another makeup brand.  

"She’s really looking at her customers to find out what problems that they encounter with beauty products and she tries to provide a solution not just in a product, but in education as well," Fischer said. "She has a line of how-to videos and encourages and supports everyone."

One of Waller’s friends, marketing senior Megan Rabaut, met her while they were both serving on the Entrepreneurship Association E-Board. Waller as the social media director and Rabaut as the marketing director. Rabaut said Waller is exceptional when it comes to branding. 

"Her branding for social media is amazing," Rabaut said. "It’s actually something she helped Michigan State’s Entrepreneurship Association with. Rebranding our social media website and creating a brand kit which was awesome."

Rabaut said before Waller joined her on the E-Board, she was buried in responsibilities, handling all the marketing herself. They decided to open another position and Waller’s past experience with building her brand through social media made her perfect for the role.  

"Katyra was a freshman at the time and just blew her interviews out of the water," Rabaut said. "I knew that she would be so great at social media. She just has such a great, creative mind and niche for it."

Rabaut said it’s only a matter of time before BC COSMETICS blows up. 

"She’s really committed and motivated and having thick skin to lose competitions and continue to pursue that product and fight for it, you really gotta believe in it," Rabaut said. "She really does believe in her product and brand which is really inspiring to see."