Being a risk-taker paid off for entrepreneur Shontay Lundy, the founder of Black Girl Sunscreen. The New York native began cultivating the brand after nudges from friends suggesting Lundy should consider wearing sunscreen, as she became an avid hiker after moving to Los Angeles. While diving into research for products catering to Black skin, Lundy was not convinced by her findings. To her disappointment, the sunscreen sector underserved Black people and she recalled zero options that resonated with her. Recognizing an issue, Lundy decided to be the change and disrupt the $8.5 billion sunscreen industry. Although Lundy never manifested she would become the head of a million-dollar sunscreen brand, she was determined to follow what made her happy.
Camille Rose — one of the largest Black-owned hair-care brands in the U.S. today — is not new to mass retail partnerships, as it has existing relationships with retailers like Target, Sally Beauty, CVS, and more. After being in business for over 10 years, Camille Rose has announced today that it has scored its most distinguished partnership deal to date with Ulta Beauty, launching in both physical U.S. stores and online, according to Glossy. Retail Brew reports that after becoming the most-requested brand from Ulta shoppers, the retailer reached out to form the new partnership. “Ulta will heighten our awareness and provide a different consumer, one who may be more ingrained in the beauty experience,” founder Janell Stephens told the outlet. The news of this new partnership arrives after Ulta announced a grand diversity plan to do a bigger push behind Black-owned beauty brands and double the amount of brands stocked at its store locations. Similar to the retailer’s action plan, we’ve...
Ulta Beauty has reiterated its commitment to investing in Black-owned beauty brands. Not only has the beauty retail giant announced Tracee Ellis Ross as its new Diversity and Inclusion Advisor, but it will also invest $25 million into providing more access to the industry for BIPOC brands along with more shelf space for Black-owned brands. In her new role, Ross will provide insight and counsel while driving accountability to Ulta Beauty with a primary focus on diverse leadership development, BIPOC brand development, and supplier diversity. “I look forward to formalizing an already existing dialogue and partnership around diversity and inclusion with Mary Dillon and the Ulta Beauty team,” said the “Black-ish” star in a press statement. “This work requires commitment and accountability from Ulta Beauty to ensure measurable goals are achieved. I am hopeful and optimistic our work together will create foundational change.” Inclusive branding within marketing campaigns is another...