Julep, one-of the fastest growing e-commerce startups, is on its way to becoming a star. Over the the last eight years, the Seattle-based company has grown from humble beginnings to employing over 200 people. The online retailer of beauty products launches more than 300 new products every year and has raised over $56 million in venture funding. During a session yesterday at the National Retail Federation’s Big Show in New York City, Julep’s Founder and CEO Jane Park discussed how the company has created opportunity in a crowded e-commerce market.

One of the qualities that makes Julep so unique is its crowdsourced approach to the beauty marketplace. “Our community is the driving force behind our brand,” said Park. “We feel that if we treat our customers like our employees, we’ll be able to keep an honest and transparent line of communication.”

The strategy seems to be working. Julep’s social community is one of the strongest of any e-commerce startup out there. The beauty brand has over 49,000 Twitter followers and over 60,000 Instagram followers. Julep’s products are so popular among the close knit community that nearly 90 percent of what’s manufactured is sold out within a month after being introduced, Park noted. Listening to the Julep community has helped Park guide the direction of the brand. However, while she listens closely to her customer, she stays firm to her vision for the brand.

“I think it’s really important to understand that crowdfunding isn’t throwing your ideas out there and abdicating to what others say,” Park said. “It’s about you defining the conversation and then asking the right questions to get really actionable input.”

Park shared an example of the type of social listening Julep does. During a focus group, it was reveled that Scarlett was the most popular name amongst women. However, when Park investigated further as to why women preferred that name for a beauty company, she wasn’t a fan of what she found.

“We discovered women liked Scarlett because it meant, in their eyes, a vixen,” Park recalled. “In my mind, that wasn’t the direction I wanted my company going in.”

Park ended her session by reiterating how important it is for retailers to create their own opportunity within today’s crowded marketplace, as well as communicating openly within your company.

“It’s easy for everyone to say, ‘Hey, you should take a risk,’ but it’s a hard lesson to learn with resources,” Park said. “How do you take money, time, peoples’ jobs and put it on the line? I think it relies on having communication earlier and instilling it in your brand.”