Through diligent effort, Black Girl Sunscreen has achieved substantial earnings. As AFROTECH™ previously mentioned, the company was launched by Shontay Lundy in 2016 through a personal investment totaling $33,000. She was inspired to venture into entrepreneurship after suggestions from friends to wear sunscreen while hiking in Los Angeles, CA, led her on a search for products — with few catering to Black skin. Recognizing a gap in the market, she worked to create a hydrating product that would not leave behind the unfavorable white residue often listed as a complaint in the Black community. “There is a little bit of Shontay in all of my products,” Lundy told AFROTECH™ at the time . “What was important for formulating these products was considering what is important for women of color and Black women. We don’t want anything to dry out our skin so while creating Black Girl sunscreen, this and no white residue were the most important factors.” View this post on Instagram A post shared...

Anikitia Abram leads the first Black- and woman-owned candle-making studio in Middle Georgia, according to the Macon. She accomplished this feat in July 2023 with the opening of Pretty Lux Co., which offers candle, skin, and hair products that are “100% vegan, cruelty free, and created with minimal ingredients,” per its website. For Abram, that means using locally-sourced materials and remaining environmentally conscious during production. “Pretty Lux Co. is not just a business; it’s a movement toward greater wellness and understanding, providing a nurturing environment that supports both personal and communal growth,” Abram told the Macon. “This foundational inspiration continues to drive every aspect of Pretty Lux Co., guiding our mission to enrich lives through both our products and our educational initiatives.” Those initiatives encompass a focus on engaging the community in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through candle and skincare development. “By...

“Stay smooth, don’t be ashy” is the slogan behind Abena Boamah-Acheampong’s Hanahana Beauty. The Ghanaian-American founder and chief executive officer launched the skincare and wellness brand in 2017 to provide consumers with clean products to include in their skincare routines. According to Hanahana Beauty’s website, the shea butter in its products is sourced directly from the Katariga women, who are producers based in Tamale, Ghana. Seven years officially into the beauty industry, Boamah-Acheampong’s mission statement to “increase accessibility, transparency, and sustainability” in their products has continued to spark people’s interest in backing her brand. During an interview with Forbes’ “New Money” podcast, she shared how she built Hanahana into a multi-million dollar company with over $2 million in sales. A pivotal part of the Hanahana Beauty journey was when the company received its first check in 2022 from a Black woman investor , per the outlet. From there,...

In April, Future dropped his ninth studio album — “I NEVER LIKED YOU.” As the focus of several memes and conversations, the Atlanta-based rapper had the attention of fans and opposers alike. And, Future may have plans to take it up a notch by giving people something more to look forward to. Nayvadius Wilburn has documented plans to enter the fragrance industry with Sinsational by Future. What seems to be a play on the words “sin” and “sensational,” Future appears to be staying on-brand with his lyrical content as a trademark filing suggests a launch of his own fragrance.

Beauty platform Fyyne just hit the market. The ideation of Fyyne was created by Jeffrey Fasegha alongside Al-Ameen Ogundiran and Olu Olubanjo. Fasegha reveals while playing semi-pro hockey at his university, finding a reputable hairstylist for his hair type was increasingly difficult. He soon recognized fewer technologies in the beauty space were a perpetuating factor leading to less visibility for Black hair artists. Fasegha confirms many artists were using text or direct messages as their primary mode of contact for customers. “As a former semi-pro hockey player, it was impossible for me to find a barber who could cut my hair when I was moving from one town to another every other week. I had to grow my hair out and wait to go back home before I could get a cut,” said Jeffrey Fasegha, Co-founder and CEO of Fyyne, according to a press release. “When I moved to Toronto for university, I was literally stopping people on the street to ask them where they got their hair done. It took me...

Black women-owned beauty businesses deserve more funding to help jumpstart their revolutionary ideas, and thanks to the PITCH PLEASE! competition a few lucky entrepreneurs will be able to do just that. PITCH PLEASE! — a pitch competition powered by Pull Up For Change’s Impact Fund and New Voices Foundation — gathered several up-and-coming Black women-owned beauty brands to pitch their best business ideas that aim to disrupt the industry. After sharing why these brands are the next big thing to help shift the beauty landscape, judges announced this year’s finalists during the 2021 Essence Festival. Winners of the competition — who took home $100,000 — include holistic wellness company Peak and Valley — which provides sustainably packaged, mindfully sourced, and inclusive products; and clean lifestyle beauty brand Peculiar Roots — which specializes in a unique line of products specifically designed to care for locs and natural hair. Other winners include plant-based skincare and...

The issue of diversity in the beauty industry has been a long-standing debate, especially when Black women are excluded from the conversation. Beauty standards according to the media have contributed to the stigma of racial bias that still exists today, which is what motivated entrepreneur Melissa Butler to create an inclusive brand where women of all shades are represented. Frustrated with the unrealistic standards of beauty defined by the industry, Butler created The Lip Bar — a vegan and cruelty-free beauty brand helping to remind the beauty world and its consumers that everyone is beautiful.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by The Lip Bar (@thelipbar) “I’m determined to change the way people think about beauty and their experiences with beauty,” she said. “More than anything, I’m just determined to increase the self-esteem of women everywhere.” Butler originally started out as a licensed stock broker on Wall Street before quitting her job and committing to her brand...

The beauty industry has taken a huge hit since government officials have ordered all non-essential businesses across the country to close to combat the COVID-19 outbreak. Hair salons and nail salons have halted their services to the public leaving many of them without income and business altogether. Both beauty professionals and the public were quickly hit with the reality that social distancing leaves many without beauty care and others without jobs. However, beauty app Cherie is showing their dedication to the beauty community by providing funding through the Future Beauty Fund Initiative for small beauty businesses and local beauty professionals based in Los Angeles. View this post on Instagram A post shared by cherie (@cherie) “Our vision with Cherie is to build a community around beauty lovers. Like every industry, our community has been affected by COVID-19 and we just want to play our part in supporting them during this difficult time,” said Kelly Chen, co-founder of Cherie....