Image by @Eparalifestyle
Beauty rituals have been part of Black history for decades, with countless rituals passed down through generations, often having deep cultural significance amongst African and Caribbean communities. This month we celebrate a culmination of those years of black beauty and the impact it has on modern black owned skincare brands today. I was lucky enough to enter the skincare world at a time where a lot of black owned brands began to make their debut and since then there are numerous black owned skincare brands that are really making waves within the beauty industry.
One of the greatest challenges that black owned brands face within beauty is raising funding. But with the rise of consumer interest in skincare and the push for black consumers to see themselves not only in marketing; but also as founders, investment opportunities slowly became more abundant. This opened the door for some of the amazing brands we see today. The most notable brand of which would be, Topicals, founded by Olamide Olowe. Topicals managed to raise a staggering $2 million during one of their seeding rounds, allowing them to invest in ingredient formulation, skincare education and continuous development of their team members. Aside from being black owned, Topicals are widely recognised for being a solution based skincare brand, shown by the debut of their now cult, Faded Gel. Faded gained its cult status, due to it containing all the best ingredients you could need when dealing with hyperpigmentation. Having a product like Faded with multiple tyrosinase inhibitors allows you to have a shortened, yet effective routine for dealing with skin concerns.
Diversity within skincare is often an afterthought for most skincare brands, but for brands like Eadem, it is the most important thing. Eadem was co-founded by Alice Lin and Marie Kouadio to specifically serve the concerns of melanated people across the globe, which is well established through their marketing, ingredient choices and brand messaging. The Eadem range consists of a dark spot serum, moisturiser and cleansing balm, which are the three key steps of anyone’s skincare routine. Throughout the entire Eadem range, hydrating and calming ingredients are present in every product to ensure skin barrier support and to reduce inflammation; which fits in with their melanin supporting ethos. My personal favourite product from their range is the Cloud Cushion moisturiser! With moisturiser being a basic part of the skincare routine, brands that make an extra effort to formulate a unique texture, really stand out to me.
From the name alone, Hyper! Skin was a brand that was destined to make an impact in the skincare space. Hyper Skin made their debut with a dark sport serum that contains some of the very best skincare combinations that skincare science has to offer. Combining vitamin c, with kojic acid, alpha arbutin and licorice root, to make the perfect serum for managing hyperpigmentation. This serum is comfortable to apply and can be used in your morning or evening routine, to give your skin an extra boost.
The consumer interest in black owned skincare brands continues and with the success of brands like Topicals, Hyper Skin and Eadem, there will be many more to grace our shelves in the coming years.
