How We Staffed NYX Professional Makeup’s Baddie Brow Lab Pop-Up Across Vancouver & Toronto (Case Study)

When global beauty brands need flawless execution, they need more than talented brand activation hair and makeup artists — they need experienced coordinators who can scout, hire, and manage large teams seamlessly. They need the expertise of Faye Smith Agency.

Earlier this year, Faye Smith Agency had the incredible opportunity to partner with NYX Professional Makeup to provide brand activation hair and makeup services for their highly anticipated Baddie Brow Lab pop-up across Vancouver and Toronto.

This became one of the largest brand activations we’ve ever coordinated, with a total project value of $45,000 and a team of 12 artists per day across 10 event days. In total, we contracted 39 makeup artists to deliver seamless service across both cities.

With a team of this scale, contingency planning was essential — including securing experienced backup artists. On day one in Vancouver, an artist called in sick just one hour before the activation began. Thanks to our proactive planning and responsive coordination team, we quickly deployed a backup artist, ensuring the experience ran smoothly without any disruption to the brand or guest experience.

This was just one of many adjustments our Faye Smith Agency backend coordination team managed behind the scenes, ensuring every day of the activation ran seamlessly despite the complexities of a large multi-city event.

In this case study, we’re sharing how we executed the project, what made the activation unique, and how our custom event hair and makeup services support brands across Canada.

ABOUT THE NYX BADDIE BROW LAB

The NYX Baddie Brow Lab is an immersive, experiential pop-up activation designed to bring the brand’s viral brow products to life through hands-on services, interactive stations, and personalized beauty consultations. Created as a high-energy brand experience, the activation invited guests to step inside a playful “lab” environment where artistry, education, and entertainment came together to showcase the innovation behind NYX Professional Makeup’s brow category.

The concept was designed not only to introduce guests to hero products, but to create memorable one-on-one experiences that allowed attendees to discover the best brow techniques and formulas for their unique features. This type of experiential marketing activation helps bridge the gap between product discovery and real-world application, making it both engaging and educational for guests.

Guests could experience a variety of interactive services and moments throughout the activation, including:

• Brow mapping and colour matching tailored to individual features and preferences
• Personalized brow routines designed by trained artists using NYX products
• Testing and experimenting with viral brow formulas and tools
• Photo-op moments inside a playful, branded lab environment designed for social sharing

The concept positioned artists as “brow experts,” analyzing each guest’s facial features, style preferences, and brow goals before prescribing their ideal brow routine. This approach created a personalized and consultative experience that aligned perfectly with NYX Professional Makeup’s brand identity while ensuring guests felt confident, educated, and excited about the products being used.

OUR ROLE: FULL TALENT STAFFING + COORDINATION

For this activation, our team provided full-service talent coordination from initial planning through to on-site execution, ensuring every detail aligned with the client’s vision, brand standards, and event schedule. Large-scale brand activations require not only talented artists, but experienced coordinators who can manage logistics, communication, and team performance in real time — which is exactly where our expertise comes in.

Our responsibilities included comprehensive talent management and operational oversight, including:

✔️ Scouting artists from our national roster of experienced professionals
✔️ Recruiting additional specialized talent as needed to meet staffing requirements
✔️ Scheduling and shift management across multiple event days and locations
✔️ Artist onboarding, training, and detailed briefing to ensure brand alignment
✔️ On-site coordination support to maintain service flow and guest experience
✔️ Ongoing client communication and logistical management throughout the activation

We staffed a highly skilled team to support the activation’s service volume and guest flow, including:

✨ 12 artists per day
✨ Across 10 event days
✨ In both Vancouver and Toronto

In addition to staffing, our coordination team worked closely with the client to ensure consistency in service delivery, artist presentation, and overall guest experience across both cities.

Our artists stepped into the role of “makeup physicians,” diagnosing each guest’s brow needs using NYX products within the lab experience. This consultative approach helped create meaningful one-on-one interactions while reinforcing the educational and experiential nature of the activation.

THE CHALLENGE

Large-scale brand activations require precision and flexibility.

This project involved:

• High guest volume

• Tight service timelines

• Multi-city logistics

• Maintaining consistent brand experience

• Managing large teams across shifts

Our experience producing events for brands like NYX, Maybelline, KISS Cosmetics, and Reitmans meant we could anticipate needs and deliver smoothly.

THE RESULTS

✅ Seamless execution across both cities
✅ Fully staffed teams every day
✅ High guest engagement
✅ Consistent brand experience
✅ Strong client satisfaction

Projects like this showcase our ability to scale while maintaining professionalism and artistry.

WHY BRANDS CHOOSE FAYE SMITH AGENCY

We specialize in custom hair and makeup services for brand activations and events, including:

• Pop-ups

• Product launches

• Influencer events

• Corporate events

• Experiential marketing activations

• Fashion events

• Media appearances

Our experienced coordinators and recruiters can scout and assemble teams anywhere in Canada, including Vancouver, Toronto, Kelowna, Whistler, and beyond.

WHAT THIS PROJECT MEANS TO US

Being trusted by a global brand like NYX Professional Makeup is a milestone moment and a reflection of the systems, talent network, and experience we’ve built over the years.

It reinforces our mission to provide brands with reliable, high-quality beauty teams who elevate the guest experience.

Planning a brand activation hair and makeup event?

Let’s build your team.

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