June 11, 2020
Beauty Companies Are Stepping Up To Foster Diversity After Black Workers Voice Their Complaints
The recent protests over racial violence and police brutality have inspired many others to create change within their own industries that are in need of diversifying their boardrooms and overall workforce. The beauty industry has long dealt with issues of race discrimination including who has access to lucrative cosmetic contracts. After numerous beauty influencers and insiders stepped forward to speak out against the racist behavior in several work environments, corporations now have to step up to make things right.
Estée Lauder plans to increase its hiring of black workers within corporate ranks and pledged $10 million to various organizations including the NAACP to fight against racial injustice. Bloomberg reported that the move came after a group of 100 employees spoke up with complaints about racist behavior in the workplace.
“Some of these actions will be immediate, others will take some time, but all will be impactful,” Executive Chairman William Lauder and Chief Executive Officer Fabrizio Freda wrote in the memo to staff according to Bloomberg.
Sephora has also joined in and announced they will me joining fashion designer Aurora James’ 15% pledge initiative for corporations to commit to pledging 15% of their revenue or space to black-owned businesses. In a press statement, the company announces that 15% of its shelf space will be reserved for black-owned companies.
“We were inspired to make the 15% Pledge because we believe it’s the right thing to do, for our clients, our industry and for our community,” said Artemis Patrick, EVP and Chief Merchandising Officer of Sephora, in a press statement.
“Ultimately, this commitment is about more than the prestige products on our shelves, it starts with a long-term plan diversifying our supply chain and building a system that creates a better platform for black-owned brands to grow, while ensuring black voices help shape our industry. We recognize we can do better and this pledge builds on our ongoing work to use our resources to drive meaningful and long-term change for Sephora and our industry.”