Ask the experts

The Truth About Troy Surratt

Having trained under the late, legendary {Kevyn Aucoin}, {Troy Surratt} has ‘grown up’ to become one of the beauty industry’s most well-respected {make up} artists. Sought-after by the AAA-list, his work has graced the faces of the world’s most stunning women – and his incredible, self-titled range is testament to his skill, dedication and boundless creativity.

Born and raised in Kansas, Surratt relocated to New York to attend The Fashion Institute of Technology and Design – and it was there, whilst training as a fashion illustrator – that Troy’s interest in make up artistry was piqued. The segue from fashion to beauty seemed like a natural progression, and Surratt sought the tutelage of Kevin Aucoin, the master of {contouring} – where he learned all the tricks of the trade.

One of Troy’s favourite quotes is ‘Once you find you’re path, you’ll never be lost’ and he claims that he always had the desire to create his own brand. The result of nearly a decade’s research – harnessing centuries-old and futuristic Japanese technologies, the classic chic of Paris and infectious energy of New York City – {Surratt Beauty} was launched to a rapt, expectant audience.

Starring the most vivid, velvety-textured {powders}, phenomenal long-wear cream textures and covetable colour ranges, the packaging was also of the utmost import to Surratt – who wanted to create products that could be used without destroying women’s manicures, whilst feeling comfortable in their hands.

Troy realised the majority of packaging engineers were ‘heterosexual men, who are not the end user – who have never had a manicure’, he worked with a team to go back to the drawing board. His brushes are the softest and the most luxurious; Troy collaborated with a Japanese ‘brush master’ (someone who has dedicated his whole life to the creation of exquisite brushes) to make ‘making up’ the intimate and sensual ritual he feels it ought to be.

‘Innovation is one of the most important things to me’ says Surratt, who asks himself about every product; ‘How can I make it better?’. For him, no product is ever ‘finished’ – once launched, he looks for ways to tweak the formulation or upgrade the packaging to make it more wearable, user-friendly or… more beautiful.

The result, is that {Surratt} is a rule-breaking range for all those serious about make up. It defy’s convention without veering too far towards ‘scary’. Everything from built-in pencil sharpeners to bespoke palettes make this the brand for beauty connoisseurs…

DISCOVER SURRATT BEAUTY >>



Verity Douglas

Verity Douglas

Content Editor

Cult Beauty’s Content Editor and a Cult Beauty OG, Verity loves nothing more than the marriage of language and lip balm. A quintessential Libran, she’s a self-professed magpie for luxury ‘must-haves' and always pursuing the new and the niche — from the boujee-est skin care to cutting-edge tech. Balancing an urge to stop the clock with her desire to embrace the ageing process (and set a positive example for her daughter), Verity's a retinol obsessive and will gladly share her thoughts about the time-defying gadgets, masks and treatments worth the splurge...