As Aina said, there is still work to be done in the beauty world, but she also sees through the apologies the industry continues to give. “I really think when you want to serve a specific demographic, you will,” she said. “Brands know how to create technology that fills the pores of products, we know how to make lip plumpers, we know how to do all of these different things, so I feel like all the standard excuses … we are still so used to being told, “Oh, it’s harder to do that …”, but it’s not impossible, so make it possible. We have so many products that take decades of innovation, but we still make them and so, for me, I just learned that there is literally no excuse. “
Also, as the inclusivity advocate clarified, the process of making darker shades “is not at all more difficult.” Yet the lack of diversity extends beyond the products themselves. “There are brands that still go out of their way not to represent diversity in their campaigns, they don’t work with diverse models, they don’t even respond to specific demographics,” she listed, “and yes, it’s very obvious that they don’t want to.”
But, fortunately, customers are no longer at the mercy of the same list of companies. If a makeup house doesn’t want to expand its demographics, “It’s okay. I don’t have to force it. I can go where I’m celebrated,” she said. “I can go where I am loved and thank goodness there are so many more brands out there today that love me and make products for people like me.”
