Of course nail techs know Essie well. And pretty soon beauty consumers will too.  In May, Essie Cosmetics debuted a new print advertising campaign to introduce founder Essie Weingarten to consumers. The campaign leverages the brand’s most recognizable qualities: of-the-moment colors, the iconic polish bottle, and the wit of the company’s founder.

“When you pick up a bottle of Essie nail polish, the first thing you do is turn it over to see the name. The names are so witty and distinctly Essie,” says Madonna Badger, founder of Badger & Partners, the firm that created the ad campaign. “Who knew that Essie herself creates all the names, as well as the colors? We had to make Essie the focus of the campaign.” Weingarten’s style comes through the inventive, high-concept still-life photography snapped by a French duo known as Coolife.