August 11, 2020
BROWN GIRL Jane Partners With SheaMoisture For New $250,000 Fund For Black Beauty Brands
The new conversations centered around racial injustice have caused a revolution in many industries, demanding corporations to diversify everything from their workforce to the products being sold to consumers. This week, Brown Girl Jane, a plant-based beauty and wellness company, announced its new initiative and partnership with SheaMoisture to amplify Black entrepreneurs within the beauty industry.
#BrownGirlSwap is an initiative designed to amplify and support Black-owned independent beauty and wellness brands in the industry. The initial idea started as a pledge to swap out your beauty products with Black-owned companies which developed into a more intensive program. “This year has been such a whirlwind [for us] with so many things happening. [We conceived the idea in] early June at the time as a lot of the social justice movements [with] a new focus [around and economic empowerment],” said Malaika Jones Kebede, CEO of Brown Girl Jane in an interview with BLACK ENTERPRISE.
“My team and I really wanted to start something that was simple and doable but that would potentially have a ripple effect and so we came up with the idea of the Brown Girl Swap, which really is a simple idea asking consumers to pledge to just swap outside of their everyday beauty and wellness products for those made and by Black women founders and owners.”
The grant will help cover a new entrepreneurship program offering business-to-business mentorship with seasoned executives from SheaMoisture and beauty conglomerate, Unilever in addition to a virtual summit presented by both brands centering around Black beauty creators in September called The Black To Business Summit.
“It’s important for us to create and partner on opportunities and spaces that encourage the growth of women of color in business. Our Community Commerce purpose-driven business model enables us to invest in Black female entrepreneurs around the world. As a brand, we have always invested in the underserved, by providing access to opportunities and resources which help to create lasting value for entrepreneurs and their communities,” said Cara Sabin, CEO of SheaMoisture, in a statement to BLACK ENTERPRISE.
“We were so inspired by BROWN GIRL Jane’s three dynamic founders, and the ability of other Black beauty founders to build dynamic businesses. Our brands connected even further over the shared mission to support and uplift these businesses as we continue SheaMoisture’s long history of meeting Black women’s unique needs in personal care.”