Nearly a month after the launch of Rihanna’s makeup line, the beauty community is still raving about the diversity of the products. Rihanna’s debut makeup line, Fenty Beauty, has finally done what previous makeup brands refused to do- create inclusivity for all skin colors.The lack of representation for women of color within the beauty community is a known problem, and Rihanna has taken matters into her own hands. When the promotional photos first launched, the internet nearly exploded with praise for the inclusivity used in the advertisements. Included in the images were women of all races and skin types: albino, latina, asian, African American, and every shade in between.
The most raved about product from the line is the Pro Filt’r Foundation, which released 40 beautiful shades during the brand’s first launch. If you’re unfamiliar with makeup and wondering why this is such a big deal, most makeup companies only ever release 10-20 shades of foundation. Typically those 10-20 shades are just varying tones of beige colors, suited for people with white skin. Although I myself am a white woman, it’s hard to support brands that don’t offer makeup for people of all skin tones. I have spent countless hours in drugstores, Ulta, and Sephora over the years and have rarely seen makeup for darker skin. What Rihanna has brought to the beauty community is such a wonderful thing, and the shade range is unlike anything I have ever seen. Many companies do not create makeup for women of color because they believe there isn’t as high of a demand for darker foundations. The problem with this is that companies are missing out on such a large market of people that won’t buy their products because they don’t cater to all skin types. It seems as though many makeup companies have specific audiences they want to cater to, which discriminatory in a sense. Recently, the founder of makeup brand IT Cosmetics gave a speech about inclusivity in the beauty community. The woman spoke about lack of representation of larger women, but conveniently left out anything about women of color. This brand also does not offer products that suit all skin tones, so the assumption can be made that they only want to cater to lighter skin tones. That being said, Rihanna has done something much needed in the world of makeup. Women of color have always been wearing makeup, and it’s upsetting that in 2017 we are just now getting a brand that promotes such diversity in its shades. Rihanna’s makeup line directly addresses this ongoing problem by creating a new realm of diversity. Rihanna has shown the world there is beauty in every skin type and everyone is worthy of representation.
Fenty Beauty has set a new standard for makeup brands and has surpassed nearly all companies with the shade selection available. Let Fenty Beauty be the new standard, the expectation for all other brands following this launch.
