The cosmetics business, says an Ottawa woman who has just jumped into it, "is 99 per cent marketing and one per cent product." Even so, she seems very confident of success, thanks to her marketing savvy and a new six-in-one beauty powder she says will make it easy for women to glow with the perfect facial makeup.

The creator of that powder is Andi Marcus – president of Mistura Beauty Solutions, longtime Rockcliffe Park resident, businesswoman and writer better known as Andrea Cullen.

The 35-year-old was married last year to Hayden Marcus, president and chief executive of CNG Global Services, an Ottawa-based global network services company. It was the second marriage for both. And, since her new husband had made more than $20 million in the technology boom of the 1990s, she probably never needed to work again.

But Mr. Marcus advised her several years ago, by which time they were already living together, that she needed to find an outlet for her creative energies. "You need to focus on something, or you'll be bored," he told her.

The result is Andi Marcus – the name she uses as head of a cosmetics company with just three employees so far. Her husband is interested and supportive, and his company provides her with office space in a business park off Hunt Club Road. But it's her project, both stress.

It's just a coincidence perhaps, but Ottawa has already produced one of the biggest successes in the cosmetics world of the past few years. That's Randi Shinder, who began from scratch and built a company estimated to be worth more than $80 million.

Ms. Shinder is believed to have pocketed more than $40 million when she sold a majority stake in her company, FusionBeauty, to pharmaceutical billionaire (and Ottawa Senators owner) Eugene Melnyk last year. She remains CEO of the company, maker of LipFusion, which gives women fuller lips. Ms. Shinder is currently moving her operations base from Ottawa to Toronto.

And Melissa Shabinsky, another Ottawa native – and Ms. Shinder's former business partner – recently created a cosmetics company called Revolution Organics.

Ms. Shabinsky plans to launch her organic product in late spring, and is already marketing the company online by saying: "Revolution Organics is committed to creating an organic revolution in beauty that will forever change the face, body and soul of the beauty industry."

She adds in her blurb: "Our brand offers consumers, for the first time, organic beauty products where scent, texture and packaging do not have to be compromised simply because they are organic and natural. Revolution Organics creates a beautiful, safe, healthy, organic alternative to unnatural products that contain harmful ingredients."

The deal under which Ms. Shinder bought out Ms. Shabinsky is confidential. Asked about it, all Ms. Shabinsky will say is: "I am very proud of the role that I played in establishing and developing FusionBeauty as a leading brand in the beauty industry."

Ms. Marcus is refreshingly honest when she says the cosmetics business is 99-per-cent marketing. Still, she has a strong belief in her product, which, she says, "takes the guesswork out of makeup."

While her company is Ottawa-based, the product is made, to her specifications, in the United States. It would have been more than twice as expensive to produce in Canada, she says. Mistura's "six-in-one beauty solution replaces blushes, bronzers, foundations, concealers, eye shadow and lipstick in less than 20 seconds," her promotional material says.

"It really does work on all skin types," she says. "Light or dark, teenaged or mature ... this formula adapts. It self-adjusts to create a healthy glow. Our trial results were staggering. So many people get caught in the vicious cycle of devoting time and energy to products that cause skin problems, which they end up covering with more products."

How much does it cost to start a cosmetics company from scratch? You might be surprised how little.

Asked to tally start-up costs, Ms. Marcus estimates she's spent $80,000 in her first year of operations, and that includes some product. Then she remembers she's just spent an additional $15,000 on a lavish product launch party this month at the swank Empire Grill in the ByWard Market.

She estimates she probably saved as much as $40,000 in start-up costs by doing much of the work herself, including writing material for the packaging, and by having other tasks done in Ottawa rather than in the U.S.

Ms. Marcus's makeup kit, which might be all a woman typically needs for a year, retails for about $50. She plans to limit the number of retail outlets to keep the product exclusive. The first to stock it in Ottawa are Synergy Spa in Orleans and Fluid Colour Concept Salon on Bronson Avenue.

She is convinced her product will be a money-maker. "I'll be happy with $3 million in profit in the first year. I think that is highly achievable."

Longer-term goal? "I'll be happy with a $3 million profit every year."

If the product is a success, Ms. Marcus says it might be difficult for her to sell and walk away. But she says her husband "works his buns off" in his tech job, and she'd like him to retire in a few years.

"Much as I love living in Rockliffe, I love being on a 100-foot yacht more," she says.