Forget warm, neutral and cool undertones — celebrity makeup artist-turned-brand founder Hung Vanngo is reimagining how consumers should shop for foundation with his brand’s foray into complexion products.
“I wanted a foundation that looks amazing in person and looks fantastic in photos,” Vanngo told Glossy. “But the goal was also to make a foundation where you can easily find your shade.”
On July 13, the brand will launch its new Red Carpet Skin Luminous Foundation in 38 shades, as well as a foundation brush called the Evolving Face Brush, for $46 and $36, respectively.
Vanngo described the formula as a lightweight serum foundation, with users only needing a few drops for medium-to-full coverage. It’s packed in a small, lightweight plastic bottle that users shake before using.
Vanngo told Glossy he dug in his heels as the team reviewed sample after sample from the brand’s Japanese contract manufacturer. “I had a very clear vision of what I wanted,” he said. “I pushed for the maximum coverage, but it still has that balance [so it] doesn’t feel heavy, and we got it. I think it’s really fantastic.”
As previously reported by Glossy, Vanngo has worked as an established celebrity and editorial makeup artist for decades. Today, he counts Anne Hathaway, Selena Gomez, Lindsay Lohan, Scarlett Johansson, Rose Byrne, Penelope Cruz and many more A-listers as clients. Vanngo told Glossy that he used lab samples of the new foundation on his celeb clients almost exclusively during its production.
Vanngo has amassed more than 4 million followers on Instagram by sharing close-ups of his work on famous clients, while his YouTube channel has more than 600,000 subscribers thanks in part to detailed makeup tutorials on a mix of models and celebrity guests.
“When I launched my YouTube channel, I understood [the challenges consumers have around foundation selection] even more, because that was the No. 1 thing they were always asking [about]: how to choose a foundation,” Vanngo told Glossy.
Historically, many brands have endeavored to make shade-matching easier by labeling foundation and concealer with numbers to signify depth and letters to denote undertone, which requires consumers to understand the difference between a warm, cool and neutral undertone. “It’s too confusing [for consumers],” Vanngo said. In fact, he said that when an individual’s foundation looks “off,” it’s almost always because the user picked the wrong undertone, not the wrong color.
Even artists like himself rarely have time to try numerous foundation shades on a client before starting, Vanngo told Glossy. So he exclusively uses neutral foundation, which means he can add blush or bronzer to warm up or cool down a client’s complexion instead of betting on the undertones built into a foundation, which can be tricky for anyone to navigate, he said.
Vanngo’s team has effectively streamlined the shopping process by allowing consumers to only consider depth, which allows an individual to look great across a range of colors, he said.
“This foundation was developed based on Hung’s artistry versus the typical category conventions,” Samantha Kitain, CEO of Hung Vanngo Beauty, told Glossy. “You don’t really have to know your undertone; it’s more about matching the depth of your skin and finding the shade that’s right there.”
Hung Vanngo Beauty launched in September of 2025 with a mix of bold, high-impact lip, cheek and eye color products sold in Sephora and DTC. The brand’s bestsellers today are its lip products, including its Creamy Matte Longwear Lipstick and newly launched Glossy Lip Shine, at $29 and $26, respectively. The line is backed by Unilever Ventures and True Beauty Ventures.
Kitain spent more than 11 years at Tarte Cosmetics, including more than two years as chief marketing officer, after nearly 5 years at L’Oréal Group working in marketing for Vichy and SkinCeuticals. She joined the team in January 2025, eight months ahead of Hung Vanngo Beauty’s launch.
Waiting until the company’s second year to launch the foundation was a strategic move for Kitain. Now, with a dedicated audience and several successful launches under their belt, the team is ready to bet on expanded shelf space at Sephora and the internal investment required to manufacture 38 shades of a single SKU.
“If foundation is not your biggest launch of the year and main focus when you do it, you’re not doing it right,” Kitain told Glossy. The launch represents the first products from the brand’s new Japanese contract manufacturer, but not the last this year, Kitain told Glossy.
Upcoming launches are likely to be bold: Kitain is betting on a cultural shift in the cosmetics category in the coming year. “I do think we’re moving towards a more maximalist aesthetic,” she said, “but with a little bit of restraint.”
