This lineup has products to love now and forever.
February 9, 2022.
Clean formulas for textured hair, results-oriented serums, shade-inclusive makeup, and easy-drinking wellness tonics are just some of the categories that Black beauty entrepreneurs are creating. If that innovation is something to be celebrated, then the evolving support system is also something to be celebrated.
Aurora James has launched the 15 Percent Pledge, a nonprofit that encourages retailers to stock Black-owned brands in proportion to population data. Thirteen Lune was an online hub for Black- and brown-led beauty lines. At the same time, destinations like Nordstrom have made a concerted push to expand their lineup and reimagine the shopping experience to better serve any and all; Ulta, which counts Pattern Beauty founder Tracee Ellis Ross as its diversity, equity, and inclusion advisor, has just announced another round of customer- The mission to support a rising class of diverse leaders and bring fresh ideas to fruition is what makes the avenues for ground-level support meaningful.
The result is a serious wish list of Black-owned beauty and wellbeing must-haves. The Vanity Fair team has assembled 28 companies that are making waves, from doctor-backed skin-care lines with a Hollywood fan club to fashion-favorite makeup brands. Take your needs into account from head to toe.
The editors of Vanity Fair independently selected all of the products featured on the magazine. We may earn an affiliate commission when you buy something through our retail links.
Two British women of West African descent, Liha Okunniwa and Abi Oyepitan, founded Liha, a beauty brand that draws inspiration from the traditions of their home country. The tuberose-smelling product is an example of the line’s focus, with an added reminder to slow down and be present. Liha is a fusion of African spirituality and traditional English folk remedies.
A curly hair-care regimen with a cocktail of products can be difficult to travel in an era of plastic-consciousness. Megan Graham, a former Vogue marketing director, dreamed up Ries as a thoughtful, practical solution after juggling. The Essential is a bottle with an airless pump design that is dishwasher-safe and can be used while on the road. The brand uses recycled, nontoxic materials in keeping with its responsible mission.
The brand earned a place in the program because of Eadem’s approach to beauty. The only product to date is a dark spot serum that is safe for all skin tones, but it has generated a lot of buzz. The clean formula has encapsulated vitamins C and niacinamide, which are said to ease hyperpigmentation.
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Behind the scenes of the cover shoot of Vanity Fair.
The behind-the-scenes ofpriyanka-chopras-vanity-fair-cover-shoot can be seen in the video.
The beauty mogul has a product line that supplies a shortcut to that supernatural aura. The Pre-Show Glow treatment contains alpha hydroxy acids and rooibos, which are native to South Africa, to help with high-beam skin seen on Savage x Fenty models. The bonus of physical exfoliation is also provided by a reuse of an applicator. If a baby line is next, bets are on it being the fifth anniversary of Fenty Beauty.
Maeva had a front-row seat to her mother’s braiding business as she grew up in Australia. By 2020, she was going to create her own hair-care line, aimed at deconstructing the stigma that textured hair is synonymous with time-consuming maintenance and heavy product application. Bread Beauty Supply takes its name from the idea of daily essentials and uses oils and extracts from her home country. The hair oil from the brand is a crowd favorite because of it’s lightweight solution.
Epi.logic takes an elegant, results-oriented approach and was launched by Chaneve Jeanniton, M.D. The next best thing to a time machine is this one, with epidermal growth factors and peptides to spur the body’s natural repair processes.
Pat McGrath is an imaginative genius in the world of editorial makeup. She paved the way as a powerhouse Black artist backstage and is known to all as Mother. Her makeup brand has all the performance of a pro line, thanks to the frenzy-inducing flash drops. The new limited-edition Bridgerton collaboration has a shadow palette that serves up drama.
The inspiration to launch a sun-care brand was born out of personal need for Black Girl Sunscreen. She wanted a formula that would wear ultra-sheer on deeper skin tones and that would reinforce the message that SPF protection is important for everyone. UV exposure can cause hyperpigmentation and speed the breakdown of collagen. The lineup now includes a kids formula and a matt version. Recent investment and a growing retail presence bode well for innovation.
Golde was founded with the idea that self-care wasn’t always reserved for the warrior. Five years ago, she and her partner, Issey Kobori, launched the brand with easy-to-mix latte powders, followed by a pair of clean face masks. Golde expanded to Target with a trio of powdered “Super-ades” supported by magnesium, digestive enzymes, and hyaluronic acid. It’s easy to use thisCollagen boost, good for skin and nails, if you add coffee or matcha.
The seed for Pattern was planted by Tracee Ellis Ross, who had hours and hours in the trenches with her hair. The hair-care brand has become her secret weapon, both on the red carpet and onscreen. The range has expanded to include everything from a cooling scalp treatment to the styling product Edge Control. This versatile leave-in conditioner is a good starting point.
One of the newest additions to Violet Grey’s notoriously tight edit is a blend of fruit acids and vitamins that is part of the debut skin-care lineup from veteran New York dermatologist RoseMarie Ingleton, M.D. The doctor tends to high-profile faces, and her products marry top-tier efficacy with a dose of tradition, by way of a Jamaican superfruit blend. A layer of Ingleton’s Signature moisturizer adds an additional dose of barrier protection to the formula, which offers a gentle means of fading spots and boosting collagen.
Redoux is a beauty brand that was founded by friends Asia Grant and Alejandro Cuevas in order to come together. The line has added a new soap that smells like palmarosa and eucalyptus in the shower. The business received a grant and will likely see more additions.
Naa-Sakle Akuete’s maternal line goes back to colonial-era Ghana, where her grandmother worked as a midwife. She says that shea butter is known as women’s gold in her country. In 2000, after the family settled in the States, Eugenia launched a bulk-supply business to help support small-scale women producers. Shea was front and center when Naa-Sakle created Eu’Genia: a handsomely packaged line. The range includes an everyday tier of 80 percent shea and a pregnancy formula of 90 percent. Ultra-sensitive skin can be treated with a dermatologic-grade version (100 percent).
The mood boards on Ami Colé celebrated the rich skin and art of African people. The brand is named after the founder’s mother, and she has a background that shines through. The first three products last year were all about subtle enhancement and were based on her time as a product developer. The Light-Catching highlighter is a universal shade that is meant to make the skin look hydrated. The new Skin-Enhancing concealer is a continuation of the beauty approach.
Years of experience with a common skin condition inspired the creation of The Established, a collection of ethicallysourced, plant-powered beauty essentials. The Elixa body serum has a mix of oils that impart a smooth finish. It is a simple recipe from the self-proclaimed minimalist queen.
The singer has become a light warrior in the skin-care space thanks to clean ingredients and a lifestyle tilt that reflect her long-standing reputation for bare-faced beauty and self-acceptance. This cleanser is made with manuka honey and redness-calming turmeric. The fine print says that everything in your life can be turned into gold, while the accompanying affirmation says that I am devoted to this moment.
Abena Boamah was dismayed by the lack of transparency in the beauty industry and decided to create her own conscious line of shea butter. Boamah helped cement Hanahana Beauty’s core commitments to natural ingredients and female empowerment by working with the Katariga women of the shea trade. The brand is built around loving the skin you are in, and nurturing it to its fullest potential. Skin Nutrition is a mineral-rich powder mask filled with red clay, willow bark, and spirulina. It promises to clarify benefits for a brighter glow.
Ozohu Adoh found her way into beauty through personal experience, searching for products that addressed her dry, temperamental skin. She created Epara, a line that looks after complexions that can be prone to hyperpigmentation. The brand name, taken from a Nigerian dialect, means “to cocoon” oneself, and this hydrating serum does just that, with brightening Licorice root extract, frankincense oil, and floral extracts to strengthen the skin barrier.
nude lipsticks for women of color were inspired by what the beauty industry used to call “nude.” The two Harvard Business School grads raised $1 million in venture capital, and another recent influx of capital is bolstering further brand growth. The product lineup for Mented now includes foundation sticks and powder, eye shadows, mascara, and all manner of lip formulas.
When she opened her beauty boutique in Harlem in 2015, she didn’t have an effective treatment for her dark spots from breakouts and pregnancies. Hyper Skin was launched with a debut vitamin C serum that is gentle enough for deeper skin tones, which can be sensitive to hyperpigmentation. The best-selling formula contains kojic acid and vitamins E and C.
It was a trip to Africa six years ago that inspired her vision for a beauty brand. 54 Thrones is known for its luxurious slant on tradition, with body butters and face oils. The line has more in store.
After being a pregnant woman and finding herself discouraged by the lackluster alternatives, Kitiya Mischo King came to launch a nail brand. She created a line of 10-free polishes called Mischo Beauty. This deep red has a shade name that is related to the fashion shows ahead.
All Things O’Natural was started by a man with a vision of a world that appreciated nature. All Things O’Natural strives to bring the earthly elements back to beauty with a product line that ranges from shampoo and conditioner to African black soap and body butter.
The Oui the People website states that no brand is just a brand and that founder Karen Young wants to spur more inclusive conversations around beauty and the body. Oui the People’s range now includes bath soaks and this all-over rejuvenation treatment, which was originally focused on elegant shaving tools. It has a blend of gentle acids and humectants to help smooth skin.
Tiffany Staten founded London Grant in 2016 after she found herself looking for clean products to nourish her sensitive skin. The Honey Coco body polish has a blend of raw honey, Brazilian sugarcane, and coconut palm sugars that leaves skin feeling silky smooth and hydrated.
Sharon Chuter believes that beauty begins when you decide to be yourself. That’s why she named her brand Uoma. The makeup that has turned up backstage at shows like Pyer Moss speaks to inclusivity, with a breadth of shades for such products as this double-ended Sculpt & Strobe stick. The Badass Icon shade names honor a lot of people.
CurlMix is a beauty brand for curly hair. The business expanded into a complete hair-care line after launching in 2015 with do-it-yourself kits, which they called Blue Apron for curly hair products. CurlMix is a success story of trial, error, and triumph.
Black Opal was founded in 1994 by a Greek chemist looking for makeup solutions for his Jamaican wife. The brand is now Black-owned and catching attention after an acquisition in 2019. Ryan Destiny was the first beauty ambassador. One of her favorites is this balm with a barely there tint.
images: Vanity Affair
source: Vanity Affair
