How Momoi Supe Created His Beauty Universe

Momoi Supe has been obsessed with eyebrows since he was in high school.

“I clearly remember plucking my eyebrows in front of my dad, or I would ask my yaya to pluck my brows with my dad looking at me. Dedma lang siya. That’s how it started,” he says. Plucking eyebrows was a trend in their high school classroom. “Marami kaming mga bading, mga seven kami. Lahat kami nagpa-pluck ng brows.” 

But eyebrows wouldn’t become central to Supe’s career until much later. Instead, wanting to live a creative life, Supe defied his father’s wish for him to become an accountant or lawyer, and instead studied interior design at the University of the Philippines. He was an intern for National Artist Leandro V. Locsin and spent years practicing as a licensed interior designer. “But I got bored and I missed doing makeup. Back in high school and college, that was my hobby. I would do my classmates’ makeup for parties and events. Sabi ko, try ko kaya ibalik? I was earning and I had the means to buy makeup,” Supe narrates.

Excel Panlaque

Momoi Supe: From Interior Design to Brow Expert

Supe studied makeup at HD Makeup Studio and Academy in Metro Manila, and started juggling makeup and interior design—doing bridal projects and being in charge of rapper Gloc-9’s grooming for three years. 

In 2014, Supe’s mom got sick. “She had a stroke. It was really bad. She was in the ICU. Naubos yung savings ko and bills were piling up.”

He moved to Dubai to work at an architectural and design start-up. “I just spent eight months there. It was really tough since it was a start-up, but I really needed the money. I decided to go back home. When I returned to the Philippines, it was back to zero.” 

Soon after he got back, a friend asked him to accompany her to get her eyebrows done. Supe was surprised to see that the line was so long. In fact, they had to wait for four hours. “May pera sa brows,” he thought. “Why don’t I try?” 

The next time he booked an interior design project, he used the down payment to study the art of brows. That’s how Strokes Eye Beauty Studio was born. 

Excel Panlaque

The first location was Supe’s condominium unit in Quezon City. “That’s where everything started—in the condo where I was staying. Later, I realized we needed to open a new location because clients were sitting on my bed, my dining chairs while waiting for their turn.”

He moved Strokes Eye Beauty Studio to another condominium unit also in Quezon City, near ABS-CBN. “Clients were really lining up. Some of them would come as early as 7 a.m. and we’d finish at 10, 11 at night. They traveled from everywhere—Bataan, Pangasinan.” 

One of his clients offered him a spot in Greenbelt. From there, Strokes continued to grow, opening branches in Shangri-La Plaza, Vertis North, One Ayala, and Opus Mall.

Business had become so successful that he decided to leave interior design behind and devote himself to Strokes full-time. At one point, booking an appointment with Supe required a wait of up to a year, a testament to just how in-demand he had become as a brow artist.

As demand continued to rise, Supe also trained his bridal makeup team to become brow artists. “They’ve been with me since day one,” he says.

According to Supe, eyebrows are good when they fit your facial structure. “It’s a fact that most faces are not symmetrical. Most of the time, mas nakaangat yung isang brow bone. A lot of factors also affect the symmetry of our face, like sleeping on one side. Sometimes, when you’re talking, the muscles on one side are more prominent.”

That’s where he comes in. “I like it when eyebrows are well-groomed, pareho yung haba. Like they say, brows are sisters, not twins. They won’t be perfectly identical but there are ways and techniques to make them look identical.” 

Excel Panlaque

Momoi Supe on Brows, Identity, and Self-Confidence

For Supe, eyebrows are not just about beauty. He has worked with clients who have lost their brows due to illness and medical treatments, including cancer patients. He has also worked with domestic violence survivors. For them, recreating their brows was not simply a cosmetic procedure but a way of regaining a sense of normalcy and confidence. “Yung maibalik yung self-esteem at self-confidence nila, yun yung nakaka-happy,” he shares.

He recalls a client crying after their brows were finally fixed. “Hindi daw maayos-ayos yung brows niya pero naayos namin. Naiyak siya. Hindi ko alam na ganun pala yung impact nung ginagawa ko. Those are the moments that make you realize that we’re doing something for them.” 

Supe and his team have mastered the art of creating brows that complement each client’s unique features. Over the years, his clientele has come to include celebrities, including beauty queens, many of whom have entrusted him with crafting their signature brows. “Before they fly out, our Miss Universe candidates, such as Pia Wurtzbach, Catriona Gray, Michelle Dee, Chelsea Manalo, and Bea Millan-Windorski have an appointment with Sir Momoi,” a member of his team tells Allure Philippines at the shoot.

Excel Panlaque

Strokes Beauty Lab: Product Line, Bestsellers, and Brand Identity

Starting his own brand was always part of Supe’s vision for Strokes. “Originally, my dream was to launch a product line after 10 years. We did it in five.” 

Supe is the first to admit that Strokes’ services can be pricey. Through the products of Strokes Beauty Lab, the brand hopes to reach a wider audience, allowing more people to experience Strokes. 

R&D and product development took them about a year. By the time they were ready to launch, it was September 2020. “Nag-launch kami during pandemic. Sugal talaga siya.” It was a gamble that paid off. Strokes Beauty Lab’s launch was a hit. 

“The first collection was all about brows. The hero product was the Microblade Pen Perfector. I wanted to bring the art of microblading at the studio into the hands of consumers,” Supe recalls. The long-wearing detailing pen creates strokes so thin it can mimic eyebrow hair, creating the illusion of naturally defined brows. It remains one of Strokes’ bestsellers today. Also part of the collection were the brow gel called Brow Fixer, Brow Colorist, which is a tinted brow pomade, and the Brow Sculptor Duo. “A lot of makeup artists started using the products. It became part of their makeup staples,” Supe shares.

Strokes Beauty Lab’s product range has grown to include lipsticks, eye shadows, eyeliner, concealer, and other cosmetics. In fact, their Soft Veil Filter Foundation has dethroned the Brow Pen as the brand’s number one bestseller. “Actually kabado ako doon. I revised the formula 10 times. But the results were so good. It was so well-received,” Supe says. It’s become the best-selling foundation on two e-commerce platforms in the Philippines. 

Supe believes one of Strokes’ strengths is its commitment to staying true to its identity rather than following trends. “That’s what sets us apart,” he says. “Also, aside from the formula, I really focus on the packaging. My background is in high-end interior design, so I’ve always been trained to appreciate craftsmanship, detail, and elevated design. I carried that mindset into cosmetics. I make sure our packaging feels premium and, most of the time, it’s customized.”

Excel Panlaque

Siáge Fragrances and the Strokes Wellness Studio: Supe’s Next Chapter

There’s a question that he asks every time he creates a product: “Ito ang parameter ko: ‘pag gumawa ako ng product, ilalagay ba ito ni madam sa kanyang Birkin? Yun lang,” he says. “Kung ilalagay niya ito sa Birkin, go. Kung mahihiya siyang ilabas ito sa Birkin niya, no.”  

In 2023, Supe launched Strokes Nail Spa & Wellness Studio. “The idea of the Wellness Spa was born because a lot of our clients were asking, ‘Why don’t you do nails? Why don’t you have a foot spa? They wanted a one-stop shop.” For Supe, it was also a chance to return to his interior design roots. “I designed a lot of spas and I was missing designing and building concepts.” 

The Strokes universe continues to grow. Recently, Supe introduced Siáge Fragrances, bringing his penchant for elevated design to an entirely new medium. To prepare for the launch, he studied perfumery, earning the AFP Level 3 Diploma in Perfumes from the Hong Kong Perfumery School, completing The Art and Technology of Perfumery Foundation Plus Workshop from Perfumers World in Bangkok, and the Introduction to Fragrance Evaluation and Composition course from Xuelei Fragrance Academy x ISIPCA Paris in China. Supe plans to head to Paris next to further hone his craft. On the day of the shoot, he had just returned from Milan, where he attended a fragrance show.

Siáge Fragrances’ first collection is called Chapter 1: Trace. “It features four light and airy scents that tell stories of love and memories—First Bloom, Quiet Stay, Petal Rain and Still There. Fragrance evokes emotions. It evokes memories, it reminds you of something,” Supe says. 

For Supe, fragrance is just the latest expression of a lifelong pursuit of beauty and design—one that continues to evolve as the Strokes universe expands into new categories and experiences.

Still, he remains grounded in where it all began.

“I want everyone to know that I’m not from Manila,” Supe says. “I come from Koronadal, South Cotabato. I’m a probinsyano who simply dreamed—and eventually made it. So don’t give up on your dreams. Kahit nasaan ka man, kaya mo.”

Excel Panlaque

Art direction by Mikiyo Ricamora. Photography by Excel Panlaque. Styling by Ryan Viloria.