Pan-african beauty Featuring the Beauty Revolution Festival
Beauty and hair master-classes by talented influencers and artists, the latest beauty products and gadgets, as well as insightful panel discussions, were on offer at the second annual Beauty Revolution Festival (#Beautyrevolutionfest).
Beauty enthusiasts showed up in numbers to Africa’s boldest beauty gathering, held on 13 and 14 March at the Sandton Convention Centre in Joburg. With many beauty and hair brands to choose from, we were spoilt for choice and shopped up a storm over two days. The festival was also a great networking platform to meet and mingle with our favourite makeup artists, beauty startups, bloggers, Instastars, hairstylists, hair and beauty brands and retailers.
The Beauty Revolution Festival 2020 in association with Foschini, Nedbank, All4women and YFM was huge and organised to a tee.
Brand manager of Beauty Revolution Aqeelah Hassim talks putting together a festival of this magnitude and everything beauty.
what motivated you and your team to cultivate the Beauty revolution brand?
The beauty industry can be superficial and judge us by our outward appearance, which can be detrimental to our self-esteem. At Beauty Revolution (BR), we represent all the shades and shapes in between, celebrating every colour, gender and sexual preference in our space and community. We hope to lead a movement by encouraging more inclusive conversations and helping to build an industry with more purpose and empathy.
some of your highlights from this year’s Br?
There are so many. I always love working with our BR community of talented content creators and brand partners. They’re passionate about their craft and hard-working, which is amazing to see. This year, we introduced many new features. One of these was the Future of Beauty Summit, which is a growth platform offering business mentorship and investment to young entrepreneurs in the industry. These powerful women are turning over millions of Rands in their first few years of business, showing that the ‘business of beauty’ packs a punch. We get to showcase this to the wider business community.
what are the biggest areas of concern in the beauty industry?
Although we’ve made great strides in the industry locally, representation and diversity haven’t been fully realised yet. For me, kindness and acceptance have a big role to play in the industry. We see different shades and shapes shown in our media, but our perceptions and reactions still need to change for the better. At BR, we prioritise collaborating over competing, and we’re lucky to have a safe space to bring everyone together.
what’ll the next big thing in beauty be?
It’s cool to be kind! I also see collaboration between bigger, more established brands and smaller bespoke or Instagram startups as a way to stay digitally relevant and diverse. International brands, such as ELC and Dr Jart, LVMH and Fenty, and Shiseido and Drunk Elephant, have already started this
movement, and I hope to see it in South Africa soon.
How do you think we can move forward collectively, to celebrate diversity in the beauty industry?
By celebrating our peers and their achievements, and speaking up for ourselves and others when we feel misrepresented. At BR, we use our purpose panels to start conversations about diversity and identity. They’re designed to educate our community, human to human, and encourage them to join in, even if it seems tough.
what message do you feel Br puts out?
Everyone’s welcome here. Be authentically yourself and be kind to others. There’s enough space for all of us to shine – as bright as our highlighter!
If you’re looking for well-curated beauty and professional makeup content that’s relatable and informative, then a visit to beauty vlogger and makeup artist Rushana
Isaacs’ Instagram page or Youtube channel is a must. Rushana, who was part of the Beauty Revolution Festival’s masterclass, is the girlnext-door digital creator to follow for content that doesn’t seem forced, and for easy tips that you can use to improve your face-beat game. Here’s a snapshot of her busy life.
what’s a day in your life like?
I go to the gym in the morning – healthy body, healthy mind, right? That’s usually followed by meetings, studio time and client visits. I find a balance between work and my personal life.
If you had to give your content a label, what would it be?
It’s beauty-based with some lifestyle.
How do you maintain editorial objectivity with the influx of brand briefs?
Brands usually support creativity and authenticity in campaigns. I know what my audience wants to see, so my product reviews are always honest.
what were your Beauty revolution Festival highlights?
I enjoyed presenting my masterclass, interacting with the people who see my content daily and having my favourite brands in one place.
“we see different shades and shapes shown in our media, but our perceptions and reactions still need to change for the better”
If you had to choose one makeup product to use for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
Primer. I wouldn’t apply makeup without it, and it’s my go-to on makeup free days.
Any skincare secrets?
Korean Beauty South Africa (@shopglowtheory on Instagram).
can you achieve a red-carpetworthy glow without makeup?
Yes. With a fantastic skincare regimen and an illuminating primer.
what does the future hold for you?
I’m currently living in my future. Makeup is my favourite art. I want to do this for as long as possible.