How influencer Yris Palmer built a successful business out of her parents’ apartment: 'I always wanted what I didn’t have'

Yris Palmer knew she would be somebody one day.

The first-generation American has gone from anonymously running an eyelash business out of her Salvadorian parents’ apartment to creating a burgeoning empire called Star Lash, investing in other female-owned businesses like SEV Laser and building a following of over 775K followers on Instagram — and she’s just getting started.

“I used to think, ‘How am I ever going to get there? How can I figure it out?'” Palmer said during a recent interview with In The Know’s Gibson Johns. “It’s frustrating sometimes when you can’t go to your parents for the answers.”

“I come from Salvadorian parents. And, from a young age, I always saw my parents working. My dad never had a day off,” Palmer, who is now one of Kylie Jenner's best friends, said of her humble origins. “Since I was 15, I had my first job, and I always wanted what I didn’t have. We didn’t have a house growing up. It was eight of us living in a two-bedroom apartment. So, from a young age, I’ve always worked. I’ve always hustled. I’ve always been trying to figure out what [was] going to be my thing.”

Listen to Yris Palmer discuss her friendship with Kylie Jenner:

While living in London, Palmer noticed the gorgeous eyelashes that a lot of women had, which was not something that she felt was prevalent in Los Angeles, so it became her “side hustle” when she returned to L.A., doing people’s lashes in her parents’ apartment and posting the transformations anonymously on Instagram.

“I built this whole company off of Instagram and Google. I didn’t have nobody, really, to help me because my parents, again, they didn’t understand it at all,” she went on. “They were like, ‘You need to stay in school. We’re just used to working for somebody else.’ Entrepreneurship was all new. I would sit on Google and I’d be like, ‘OK, how do I register a business?'”

She eventually cultivated a dedicated, cult following that included celebrities like singer Christina Milian, eventually opening up her own space called Star Lash Beauty Bar.

“It takes consistency. It’s hard work. And it’s literally that — it’s that you have to have that will in you that you want it,” she went on. “I always used to think, ‘I’m going to be successful. I’m going to figure it out.’ I just would always have that mindset, and I knew I was going to figure it out.”

And, while she definitely figured it out, Palmer is insatiable when it comes to what she sees for herself and her business and her family. While she recognizes the success that she’s achieved, she told ITK that she’ll continue pushing herself to achieve more.

“Some people look at me and they feel like I’m successful,” she said. “I’ve reached levels of success in my life, but I’m still nowhere near the success that I envision for myself. That’s just a goal that I have for myself that keeps pushing me. And obviously, my baby, you know, having a daughter really just motivates you. You’re like, ‘OK, I really gotta figure it out. Like, I got to get it done.'”

Yris shares daughter, Ayla, with her husband, Staforde Palmer.

With my business, Star Lash, I have so many plans. I’ve definitely thought about franchising it. I want to see different Star Lashes all over different parts of the world,” Palmer added of her grand plans.

Listen to our full interview with Yris Palmer below, and check out Star Lash Extensions here.

If you enjoyed this story, check out In The Know’s recent interview with the Kardashians’ go-to hairstylist, Andrew Fitzsimons, here:

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