A college connection that birthed Topicals Founder Olamide Olowe changed the trajectory of her life. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Olowe is behind the popular skincare company Topicals, which sells skincare products for people with chronic skin conditions such as eczema and hyperpigmentation. Founded in 2020, by 2022, it had become one of Sephora’s fastest-growing brands, selling one product every minute. Meeting Richelieu Dennis Olowe’s trajectory to founder was not her initial calling. In fact, she attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) on a full-ride scholarship to participate on its track team. Additionally, she was studying to become a doctor, she said during an interview on the “God Is My Creative Director” podcast. While there, she was introduced to another student, Rechelle Dennis, the daughter of SheaMoisture Founder Richelieu Dennis. “My freshman year, I’m standing there with one of my teammates, and a woman comes over to me and is like, ‘Hey, you...

SheaMoisture is extending grace to Black women creatives in honor of Women’s History Month this year with the introduction of the Emerging Visionary Grant — a program dedicated to supporting women who are using their art to make a difference in their communities. The Emerging Visionary Grant — a $50,000 funded opportunity — is meant to amplify the voices of modern Black women and  “empower and nurture the change makers who are creating history while servicing their communities.” The grant program — in partnership with cultural education platform Good Mirrors — is open to Black women artists, filmmakers, writers, and more across other creative areas. The ideal candidate is a creator who’s in the process of building up their influence in their community and has an existing platform filled with work that showcases how they’re uplifting it. Courtesy Photo Applications for the grant program close today, and those interested can apply here. A judging panel comprised of Good Mirrors and...

SheaMoisture is continuing its long-standing commitment to Black women and the beauty community with the launch of a bold new campaign. Today, the pioneering beauty brand unveiled its It Comes Naturally campaign — a new brand initiative intentionally created by a powerhouse team of Black artists and multicultural creative partners that highlights the unapologetic beauty and resilience of Black women. View this post on Instagram A post shared by SheaMoisture (@sheamoisture) The campaign — which coincides with the brand’s community investment program — arrives amid the global social justice movement with a forward-looking outlook on celebrating Black identity. Each of the six Black women artists commissioned for this campaign — including Monica Ahanonu, Rachelle Baker, Bisa Butler, Alexis Eke, Linda Mawala, and Reyna Noriega — were recruited to help mold a distinctive and revolutionary campaign to revitalize the stories, legacy, and heritage written by Black women over several...

It’s widely known that the beauty industry rarely ever caters to Black consumers and business owners, but brands and entrepreneurs across the board are working together to help shape an inclusive future. Beauty giant SheaMoisture, in partnership with BROWN GIRL Jane — a luxury, plant-based wellness collection centering the needs of dynamic women of color — has announced the launch of their joint entrepreneurship program and $250,000 investment fund to support Black-owned independent beauty and wellness brands. View this post on Instagram A post shared by SheaMoisture (@sheamoisture) According to a press release, the #BrownGirlSwap initiative was created in an effort to help Black women founders in the beauty and wellness spaces amplify their brands, receive entrepreneurial mentorship from industry veterans, and be awarded critical funding to uplift their businesses. “Our partnership with BROWN GIRL Jane comes from our shared mission to support and uplift Black-owned businesses,”...

Gina Belafonte is someone who walks the walk and talks the talk. As the executive director of Sankofa, she’s combining the arts and activism to carry on her father’s legacy. Though initially starting out as an actress, Gina Belafonte is now focusing her efforts on the organization her father started and choosing to focus her efforts on larger social justice causes. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t use entertainment to get her point across. On March 1, HB95 — a celebration of Harry Belafonte’s 95th birthday — will be a star-studded event that will take place at the Town Hall Theater in New York City. Proceeds will benefit Sankofa, whose mission “educates, motivates, and activates artists and allies in service of grassroots movements and equitable change,” per the organization’s official website. Their outreach is, of course, grassroots in nature — they work with local partners to amplify their message, but their amplification involves some of the biggest names in the entertainment...

Cantu Beauty and the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) are here to bless some nontraditional students with funding for programming and scholarships! According to PR Newswire, the award-winning multicultural hair care brand will invest $150,000 for nontraditional students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) across the nation. “Higher education is a catalyst that propels Black and brown communities forward,” said Dametria Mustin , global vice president of marketing, Cantu Beauty in an official statement. “Cantu continues to remain committed to paving the way for the next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs, and shapers of our community through financial support and seminars preparing nontraditional college students for success early on in their careers.” Nontraditional undergraduate students include those who may have delayed their enrollment into postsecondary education, attend college part-time while working full-time and also have dependents other than a spouse....

Brooklyn Nets owners Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai are trying something ground-breaking that’ll change the game for Black business-owners looking for financial assistance. According to CNBC, as part of their $50 million commitment to help minority communities, the sports owners have launched “EXCELerate,” a $2.5 million Black business loan program to help those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds for the program will come from the Tsai foundation’s Social Justice Fund — which was started last year to help resolve economic inequities in Black communities. “We know that there is no social justice without economic opportunity,” Tsai said in a statement, “which is why we are so excited to launch the Brooklyn EXCELerate Loan Program aimed at elevating Brooklyn’s BIPOC [Black, indigenous, and other people of color] business owners post-pandemic and doing our small part to overcome barriers this community faces in accessing capital.” What’s unique about the program is that instead of...

Last year, then New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday pledged the remainder of his NBA 2019-2020 salary ($5.3 million) toward his newly-established Social Justice Impact Fund. According to Bleacher Report, the Milwaukee Bucks player is following up on that progress to announce the second round of applications distributing up to $1 million in grants to Black-led nonprofits and Black-owned businesses in select U.S. cities. A press release reports that this time around the focus of the grants from the Jrue and Lauren Holiday Fund (JLH Fund) will be allocated to the Greater Milwaukee, New Orleans, Indianapolis and Los Angeles areas, primarily catering to organizations that focus on having a social impact and creating a more equitable future for marginalized communities. “When we first decided to start this fund, it was at an inflection point of two pandemics – the disproportionate effects that COVID-19 had on the Black community and businesses, and equally as devastating, the murders...