The retailer is making good on its 15 Percent Pledge.
A Ton of New BIPOC-Owned Beauty Brands Are Coming to Sephora
It's been eight months since Sephora was the first retailer to commit to the 15 Percent Pledge, the movement led by designer Aurora James that's pressing stores to use at least 15% of their shelf space for products from Black-owned businesses. The idea behind it is that Black people represent 15% of the U.S. population, yet that representation is rarely reflected among the brands offered at the big-box stores we shop. Now, we're starting to see James' work pay off and how retailers like Sephora are putting their promises into action.
Back in June 2020, as part of its pledge announcement, Sephora revealed it would be revamping its internal incubator program—an initiative created to help launch more women-owned beauty brands—to include entirely BIPOC-owned brands. Today, February 9, the retailer is finally sharing who that new class of beauty founders will be, a handful of which you'll probably find familiar if you've spent any time on Instagram in the last year.
They include: Christina Funke Tegbe, founder of 54 Thrones; Marie Kouadio Amouzame and Alice Lin Glover, cofounders of Eadem; Alisia Michelle Ford, founder and CEO of Glory; Desiree Verdejo, founder and CEO of Hyper Skin; Nia Wellman, founder of Imania Beauty; Priyanka Ganjoo, founder of Kulfi Beauty; Megan Graham, founder of Ries; and Olamide Olowe, cofounder and CEO of Topicals.
Each brand has a uniquely distinct point of view. Ries, for example, is a sustainable brand that's aiming to revolutionize travel toiletries with luxe-looking, biodegradable packaging. Kulfi Beauty is an inclusive makeup like centers around products made for South Asian skin tones and undertones (but can be used by anyone). And Eadem is all about science-backed ingredients that care for skin of color.
“We wanted to make sure that even within the group of BIPOC-owned brands there was diversity in the brand portfolios,” Priya Venkatesh, Sephora senior vice president of merchandising for skin care and hair, tells Glamour, noting that the founders range in ages and backgrounds as well. “The criteria we used to select them wasn’t all that different from the criteria we use to select any brand that’s sold at Sephora, because we want them to succeed in our environment.” The three things Sephora considered? Brand vision, prototypes in the works, and how passionate each of the founders are.
Advertisement“The things all these women have done to keep their businesses going during the pandemic is so impressive,” says Venkatesh. “It’s a great group. I think it’ll be a really good outcome.”
According to the Sephora SVP, the incubator program is already underway and founders are undergoing a vigorous bootcamp on everything from marketing and inventory planning to supply chain operations. They'll also have access to grant funding to help with job creation, among other needs, as well as receive mentoring from success stories like Tatcha's Vicky Tsai and Briogeo's Nancy Twine.
But most importantly, all eight brands will eventually make their way to Sephora shelves this year. “That will put us on track of doubling our assortment of Black-owned brands by end of 2021,” says Venkatesh. “Some will launch a little bit sooner, some will launch a little bit later—it'll depend on inventory.” One brand you can definitely count on seeing soon, though, is Topicals, the Gen Z skin care line making waves for "making flare-ups fun.” Venkatesh says it's currently set to launch on Sephora.com in March.
This also isn't the end of Sephora's efforts to support BIPOC-owned brands. “We have other BIPOC-owned brands that are coming to Sephora outside the incubator program,” says Venkatesh, adding that Qhemet Biologics just launched on its site and LYS Beauty is coming later this month. “And it’s important to note that while they’re all BIPOC-owned, they’re not necessarily only for BIPOC consumers. A lot of these brands are for everyone.”
Lindsay Schallon is the senior beauty editor at Glamour. Follow her on Instagram @lindsayschallon.
This story originally appeared on: Glamour - Author:Lindsay Schallon
