New & Emerging Black-Owned Brands You Need On Your Radar
In honor of Black History Month, we wanted to shout out 12 incredible new Black-owned beauty brands that are making waves right now and paving a new path for Black-business owners. From the haircare brand embracing curl textures to the family-owned brand, AfroPick, which celebrates Black culture and creativity in a major way, these brands are making their mark. We’re also stoked to try the products from the brand new – and first-ever Black-owned clean beauty brand stocked at Sephora –LYS Beauty. These ground-breaking brands deserve your support now and forever…
1. Nuele Hair
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Price: $34
Motto: Clean, non-toxic, natural hair care that makes hair styling manageable
Nuele Hair was Founded by Dr. Christine Martey-Ochola and Anne Cheatham with a clear vision in mind: they wanted to create products that enable you to switch up your hairstyle with minimum damage. They also wanted to support healthy, glowing, well-nourished, manageable hair that didn’t call for chemical relaxers or keratin treatments. The result? A natural, clean hair care product fueled with rich ingredients that nourish each and every hair strand. The ingredients are ethically sourced from countries like Ghana and Morocco, where they support local female farmers harvesting these ingredients.
Currently, their line includes one hero product, the Hair Serum, $34, which uses a blend of five concentrated oils to detangle, restore, enrich, and protect your hair throughout the day.
2. Topicals
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Price: $35 and under
Motto and Mission: To create an inclusive beauty space for everyone
At its core, Topicals is a skincare line that leaves no one by the sidelines. The two female founders, Claudia Teng and Olamide Olowe – who experienced their own skin issues growing up – wanted to create a space where people of color with real skin issues felt represented and seen. Topicals now carry a range of soothing skincare products fueled by medicated botanicals that are efficient, effective, and gentle on all skin types. We also love that their social and website imagery features real skin everywhere. Can we get a hallelujah?
3. Bread
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Price: $30 and under
Motto and Mission: Giving your curls the bread and butter they need to thrive!
Former L’Oréal brand manager, Maeva Heim set out to create a brand that not only cares for curls providing your locks the essential nutrients they need, but one that celebrates hair care as a whole. Kinda like bread and butter for your hair. The product line currently holds daily staples like Hair Oil, $24, and wash-day must-haves like the Hair Wash, $20, and Hair Mask, $28.
After trying the Hair Oil Everyday Hair Gloss, we can confidently say it’s the best-smelling and one of the most beautifully-packaged haircare products we’ve ever tried! The texture is rich and thick so that it coats strands easily, and it adds major shine that can sometimes be hard to achieve on type 4 hair.
4. AfroPick
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Price: $20 and under
Motto: Afro picks that tell a story
Created in the summer of 2020 by the Walker family, AfroPick celebrates the history of Black hair and its innate ability to tell a story. Understanding that an afro pick is so much more than a hair tool, the Walker family set out to celebrate the symbol of Black power, culture, and creativity that it has become. The line features a range of plastic and metal picks adorned in vibrant patterns with names like Fresher Prince, $18, and Ancestors, $20.
We also love the tributes to Black heritage and art, like the Ori AfroPick, $20, which pays homage to Yorubaland of present-day Nigeria, Togo, and Benin; Ori, meaning “head” in Yoruba. This reflection in the design, which is done in the style of face painting used in the Yoruba tribe, is a true celebration of Black culture.
5. The Glowcery
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Price: $20 and under
Motto: Kinda like a green smoothie for your skin
The Glowcery is a 100% natural, vegan and cruelty-free skincare line that launched in March 2020. The brand prides itself on using the highest quality superfood ingredients to give your skin the glow up it deserves. Think of it as a daily smoothie for your skin, without all of the fuss! Despite the fact that the brand is less than a year old, it’s garnered rave reviews online and was awarded the Best Facial Oil of 2020 in the Women’s Health Beauty Awards.
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6. FORVR MOOD
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Price: $50 and under
Motto: A love letter from Black women, to Black women to embrace self-care
Created by influencer and YouTube queen, Jackie Aina, FORVR Mood aims to create a space and opportunity for self-care for Black women. Understanding that Black women are often defined as strong and resilient, perhaps not giving themselves the love and nurturing they may need, FORVR Mood wants to spoil Black women with a little slice of luxury. The line currently features a range of calming candles that smell truly divine, as well as silk accessories to give your hair the TLC it deserves.
Can we also just say, the fragrances are an immediate mood booster, but it’s the names that really get us: Phero-Moans, Left On Read, and Matcha Business. Love!
7. Flo
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Price: $7 and under
Motto and Mission: Inspire people to feel crazy confident and empowered during their period
Created by two best friends, Tara who was sick of using chemical period products, and Susan who wanted to start a business. After years of research, the pair created Flo, a brand dedicated to empowering those who menstruate and enabling them to find sanitary products that love and nourish their body.
Flo now sells tampons, pads and liners made from natural, plant-based, biodegradable and hypoallergenic materials like organic cotton and bamboo. The company also donates its products to fight period poverty in the UK through Red Box Project and provides menstrual products to asylum seekers and the homeless via Bloody Good Period.
8. LYS Beauty
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Price: $22 and under
Motto and Mission: Making the clean beauty space inclusive and available to everyone
Founder Tisha Thompson is on a mission to diversify the clean beauty space, and she’s certainly making waves. In fact, as of February 19th, LYS Beauty will be the first Black-owned clean beauty line stocked in Sephora. LYS is an acronym for ‘love your self,’ as Tisha wants to encourage people to inject self-care into their daily routines to help fuel confidence.
The collection of makeup products include a Triple Fix Serum Foundation, $22, as well as brushes, blush, bronzer, and powder, all with a universal shade offering and high-performance results. Another reason to love the brand? The affordable price range, which is often uncommon when it comes to clean beauty. The line, which launches soon at Sephora, ranges from $12 to $22, and despite the affordable price range, it hasn’t compromised on the luxury aesthetic!
9. Partum My Beauty
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Price: $14 and under
Motto and Mission: To encourage mothers across the world to feel their best
There’s no denying that pregnancy and post-partum is a beautiful experience, but it’s also a period of time where your body and mind goes through an immense change. Partum My Beauty offers healing wellness and beauty products to help new mothers get the self-care they deserve both mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. The brand currently offers a range of plant-based teas as well as a bath soak to help heal and nourish the body.
10. Humanrace
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Price: $50 and less
Motto and Mission: A skincare space dedicated to the everyday pursuit of wellbeing, by Pharell Williams
Curated by icon Pharell, Humanrace is a skincare line that dedicates itself to the pursuit of wellbeing. In their own words, “We believe that every individual has the potential to understand themselves better and wake up every day feeling empowered to turn good into actions. Our goal is to help you in this quest.”
The line currently features three innovative skincare products: the Rice Powder Cleanser, $32, Lotus Enzyme Exfoliator, $46, Humidifying Cream, $48, which are all packaged in refillable containers. You’ll also notice that the brand name on each product is in brail, proving inclusivity and empowerment are at the heart of their brand.
11. Covet & Mane
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Price: Dependant on length and quantity
Motto and Mission: Hand cut extensions that blend seamlessly into your hair
Hair extension brand, Covet & Mane, created by Dafina Smith, has been featured on The Real Housewives of Atlanta and is super popular with celebrities like Nikki Minaj. The hand-cut extensions have a cult following for a reason; not only are they durable and flexible for comfortable wear, but the silicone-free hair also blends seamlessly with your natural locks.
12. Keys Soulcare
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Price: $40 and under
Motto: Dermatologist-developed, clean formulas, skin-nourishing ingredients, and soul-nurturing rituals
Created by Alicia Keys, Keys Soulcare is every bit as mindful and holistic as you’d expect. The brand takes a 360 approach to skincare and honors the connection between mind, skin, and soul. Inspired by her own skincare journey and love for ancient beauty rituals, the line not only holds clean, dermatologically-tested skincare formulas but calming candles and beauty tools that’ll help your mind and body look and feel it’s best.We’re currently obsessed with the Sage + Oat Milk Candle, $38, which we use every night when we do our nighttime skincare routine. It fills our bathroom with the most calming and restorative energy.
For more amazing Black beauty brands, check out the Black-Owned wellness brands we’re loving right now.
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