Canadians Abroad: Toronto beauty expert found her husband while vacationing in Barbados

Toronto-born beauty expert and makeup artist Christine Cho calls Barbados home, thanks to a Hollywood rom-com-worthy meet-cute.

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“My future husband was a random bartender at a dive bar on the south coast,” said Cho with a big smile.

She walked into the Bajan watering hole 13 years ago while on a brief island getaway with girlfriends. Barbados-born Alexander King was on the other side of the bar.

They talked. King had Canadian connection. His mother was born in Canada, giving him dual citizenship. To Cho’s amazement, his mom grew up not far from her childhood home in North York.

Cho left with King’s phone number on a scrap of paper and no idea the island evening would lead to them getting married and living in Barbados with their five-year-old daughter, Savannah.

She spent some time with the “surfer dude” Bajan with bright blue eyes and Tarzan-style good looks over the next few days, certain it was just a bit of holiday fun.

“I came home in denial,” Cho said.

They stayed in touch and she returned to Barbados for another visit four months later.

King had been thinking about a future together. “He said, ‘I’m selling everything I own and I’m moving to Canada to hang out with you and see how it goes.’”

King hadn’t been to Canada since he was a child. Toronto came with a side of culture shock, starting with the November weather. He got off the plane wearing flip flops. During the seven years they lived in Toronto, King struggled with the clash between busy urban life and his love of fishing, surfing and the easy pace of Barbados.

Cho moves in very different circles. As a frequent expert guest on Canadian morning TV shows, she talks about the latest news and trends in beauty, hair styling and makeup. She also does event, celebrity and bridal makeup and is a regular at red-carpet events like the Toronto International Film Festival, representing a large slate of beauty brands including NARS, Charlotte Tilbury and Canadian company, Make Up Forever.

“He doesn’t like fancy things. He doesn’t like restaurants. He doesn’t like going to nice events and my whole life was like friends and people,” Cho said. “Working with celebrities was part of my life when he came to Toronto. He missed the lifestyle at home, the food, the relaxed vibe and the ocean.”

Cho, 47 and King, 39 made it work. They were married in Toronto in June 2019 and had a second ceremony and “a big bash” on the island with Bajan friends and family six months later.

When she discovered she was pregnant, Cho returned to Toronto to have their daughter. The sudden COVID-19 lockdown kept the couple separated for months. King was able to be there for the birth. They moved to Barbados soon after.

Cho said their five-year-old daughter, Savannah, is like “a little Moana” referencing the Disney character. She’s an ocean-loving child who prefers playing on the beach to screen time.

Cho goes back to Toronto as work demands. Beauty companies also ship products to her and she’s able to do virtual TV appearances from Barbados, like the segment she did for one morning show on Barbados singer Rhianna’s Fenty Beauty line.

In Barbados, she works as a makeup artist for Canadian, American and British brides who come to the island for destination weddings.

King runs fishing charter company Vitamin Sea Barbados with his boat Sea U Lata. Cho jokes naming boats with corny puns is a must.
I met Cho recently over a cocktail at the Crystal Cove Resort, a boutique hotel that overlooks one of the Caribbean island’s famed white-sand beaches.

The self-described “kimchee-flavoured Canadian,” born to South Korean parents, grew up as a tomboy. She thanks her two brothers for that. She also has an artistic side and began working in makeup design while she was studying English at the University of Toronto.

While Barbados is a popular getaway for sun-seeking Canadians, “living somewhere and vacationing is something very different,” said Cho.

“People come here on luxury vacation and let me tell you, the obvious things are wonderful,” she said.

She eats fresh, healthy food, including the fish King catches. They have a mango tree in their yard and get coconuts from their neighbours.
Cho, who does popular TikTok videos about Bajan life, said the downside comes from living on a small island without big-city conveniences, like 24-hour stores. With a very small Asian population, it’s also difficult to source her favourite Korean and Asian foods. Prices for what she can find are higher than in Canada.

“Life is just slower, so I think if you temper your expectations properly, you’ll be fine,” she said.

While city urgency doesn’t exist, that also has a positive side.

“I’m actually thankful to come here and just sit and look at the ocean for an hour,” Cho said.

And she still has that piece of paper with the phone number for the blue-eyed bartender she met one night in Barbados.

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