She believed she could, and she did.

Sometimes we think we need all the steps, all the resources, all the software, and all the programs to be successful. But that’s not the case . You have everything you need to make it work, whether you believe it or not.

The game is only over when you stop playing, sis. It’s time to get up, dust yourself off, and finish this year the way you intended to finish it. In the recent years, the number of Black-owned businesses has risen dramatically, with Black women contributing to much of that growth!

Today , for the sake of this challenge , I decided to take the time to honour such an inspirational woman, she went from social media tutorials to building a makeup empire from the ground up . She is certainly one beauty mogul that everyone should know about, her name is Raynell Steward.

Please , Meet Raynell Steward, who is also known as Supa Cent and Wuzzam Supa . She is from New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. She is an influential Instagram star and entrepreneur who has come a very long way. She used her love for beauty and colossal social media following to launch her insanely successful cosmetics line, The Crayon Case.

One thing you’ll learn very quickly about black people is their creativity. It is truly unmatched. The Crayon Case offers everything from makeup brushes and sponges to vibrant lipsticks and pigmented eyeshadows. The line’s standout product is the Box Of Crayons Palette (thecrayoncase.com), a vibrant collection of 18 Crayola-inspired eyeshadow shades. Many of the products are in line with the school theme. (Backpacks, Hall passes, calculators etc) True nostalgia at its finest.

Her love for her family and friends is truly impeccable. In fact, her products are named after her closest friends.

In an interview with rollingout.com , Supa was asked to share the reasoning behind the names of her products and whom they are named after.

Each one of my friends has a product named after them. Simply because they hold so much value in my life. They’ve helped me so much along this journey. Judy has two popular brushes named after her. My very first eyeshadow palette was named after Briki. Ross has her own palette. Tokyo also has her own palette. - Supa Cent

Supa created a brand that specifically had Black women in mind , which makes a phenomenal difference within the beauty industry.

She brings hope that it’s never too late to start fresh. It’s always too late to wait. It’s never too late to change the narrative about something negative, and find the positive. The past year and current year has been a whirlwind, but turning dreams to reality , goals, and desires for success are not over.

If you've seen her before, you probably caught her either on Instagram , Vine or YouTube . Supa made headlines in the year 2018 for an incredible amount of sales in just 90 minutes ! Yes , You read that right ! In 90 minutes , she turned a multi millionaire! I love to see it !

In the following year of 2019 she also had an impeccable turn around as well , selling out in 60 minutes and making 1.3 million dollar revenue.

Success won’t come to you unless you work toward it. Nobody just folds their arms and waits for success to meet them in their living room Or bedroom. Although that would be pretty phenomenal , it’s just not the case. You have to go all out for it . That is what Supa did , her resiliencey and hustle brought her here . If you ever tuned into her lives on Instagram, you’ve heard her mention her existential resume. When I say she’s come a long way , I mean from the ground up .

The Crayon case , Grossed over $1 million in revenue in just under two hours during her 60% off Cyber Monday sale. Supa proved just how much love and support she truly gets from her followers! As the video captures , all the support .

In this particular post , you can see a overwhelmed and very emotional Supa . As she shared to her Instagram page the exciting news! , amongst the praises and congratulations . You can see how grateful and over joyed she is. I was amongst those followers showing support , I even too found myself in tears if joy ! She is someone who has come from humble beginnings and deserves nothing but happiness , love and success in abundance. A true testimony.

I’ve personally been a fan of Supa since coming across her hilarious videos on the social app called vine years ago. All from her very funny comments, opinions , advice and comedy clips. Ultimately left me falling in love with her personality and the fact she is unapologetically herself , all the time.

Good habits, create good decisions. Bad habits create bad decisions. Every decision you make is either getting you closer to the woman you want to be next, or pulling you away from her. I love how she is always encouraging others to dream big but work harder , then success become inevitable.

Anytime you see what it looks like as a breakthrough, it is always the end result of long series of little things , done consistently over time. She believed she could , and she did.

There is a popular expression you’ve probably heard,

“Luck is preparedness meeting opportunity”

What I mean by that is , The Crayon Case reached that sales figure of 1 million because Supa ensured she was well prepared . If you ever got the pleasure of tuning into her lives on Instagram, She always explains the importance of having inventory . No inventory , disqualifies you from making potential sales ! In other words , Luck is when preparedness creates opportunities.

When asked in an interview on rollingout.com , What advice would she give other upcoming entrepreneurs.

Her response , definitely motivated me .

My advice would be to grind hard, research what you are standing behind. Don’t stand for anything! Don’t take no for an answer. So many people will hold you back along your journey. Don’t be one of them.

If there is 2 words that come to mind to best describe Supa . It would be resilience and strength.

Inbetween contractions , Supa signed contracts ! Now , these were no little contracts , they were in correlaction to her warehouse for her company , The Crayon Case.

This caption for this says

“Just checking in... had to handle biz before delivery”

In my opinion , taking massive action is about relentlessly engaging in activities that move you , your company, or family forward. Only this type of attitude can make someone like Supa rise from obscurity to becoming a global force . In her early years , trial and tribulations, I admire that her circumstances certainly didn’t seem to warrant her being happy and successful . Yet she was. No matter how obnoxious , or annoying or mean someone was online, Supa always found a way to see the positive light . Which leads me to discuss her spontaneous flash sales! Now being under the microscope , its almost impossible to escape the miserable trolls on the internet. However , Supa uses that opportunity to her advantage to run up her bag! Take note!

Supa Cent, is very popular for her words

“There is no elevator to success, you have to use the stairs”

Everyone wants the cheat code to building followers online and growing their social media presence but no one wants to do the actual work. News flash ! YOU are the cheat code! By putting in the work behind your social media presence, and doing your best at where you are TODAY by serving the people that already believe in you – the followers, opportunities, and partnerships will follow.

In an interview with essence.com , When asked what her secret to success in such a sort time , she answered by saying the following ;

“The secret sauce is engaging with your followers. I engage with all my fans, I engage with everyone. Whoever comes to my page, I engage with them! I promote a lot and I’m involved with the people that spend money with me!” - Supa Cent

Supa Cent is truly is an inspiration, especially for fellow Black women. She's proof that it's never to late to start something, even learning. She continues to shake up the beauty industry by being authentically herself.

In an interview with bet.com she gave some profitable advice to upcoming generations on business .

"Your family will support you after the strangers support you," "Reach out to the people who don’t know you, because if they love your products, then they will begin to love you. And most importantly, when you’re promoting, be sure to touch all demographics." - Supa Cent

As an newly entrepreneur myself , I did not realize how true that really is. You have to believe in yourself and the rest will simply fall into place. After some successful years working for a company , I came to the point where I wanted more . I was hungry for a challenge , something where I could stretch , grow and really make a mark in the world. So I did something some people . (Okay , a lot of people) might think was flat out crazy. In a pandemic , I let go of that business and struded out on my own. Let me put it this way , I betted on myself .

There is an exciting sense of accomplishment you feel when you do things normal people consider impossible . You get the chance to prove to them that impossibility only exists in the mind.

Supa’s story is inspiration to all those wanting to actualize their dreams and ambitions. It is indeed possible !

It will attract criticism from mediocre people , but in the end , the results your life produces will speak for themselves.

As my good sis Supa says

Refuse to think and act small .

Supa’s come as you are attitude and willingness to share her story makes her not only an inspiration, but a friend to all. To me shes the big sister , I never had. Supa’s million-dollar come-up is a real Cinderella story, or should I say more like Princess Tiana, another woman from New Orleans who worked her way from waitress to entrepreneur. Rags to riches. In just 90 minutes , Supa became our real life Disney Princess and a shining example of the power of authenticity and social media.

She exemplifies the principles of resiliencey , strength and the importance of being authentically yourself. What I now realized was that she didn’t just seem that way , she is this way. Most of all, her story has helped and inspired me to understand the importance of investing time in bettering myself , not only improves my life, and business but has a everlasting compound effect.

- Ss