Diversity: There’s still a long way to go
New research reveals that 56 per cent of non-white UK beauty consumers don’t feel represented by the skincare industry. So what can be done? Vikki White reports
WWith cosmetics selling well again after lockdown, the UK beauty industry has a new, important focus.
Brands at the forefront of our make-up and skincare scene are more determined than ever to make beauty accessible for everyone.
As part of the Mirror’s Black History Month coverage we spoke to Munnawar Chishty, Vice President of Beauty at No7 Beauty Company (no7company.co.uk) to find out how the firm is placing DnI, diversity and inclusion, front and centre.
“When I started in the beauty industry, I’ll be honest, it was a big deal that Naomi Campbell was on the cover of Vogue,” says Munnawar. “I could find a foundation shade range that matched my skin, but it didn’t have my yellow undertone. I was still doing a bit of lipstick under my eye to cover the bags.
“There wasn’t anybody that I saw in a magazine that represented who I was.
“Now Priyanka Chopra (the 39-year-old Indian actress and model) is in some adverts, you see a wide range of models on telly and the products are more diverse.
“You’ve had amazing brands come through, but there is still more to do and I feel privileged to be in a position where I can be part of that change.”
As part of No7’s recent We See You campaign to launch their Pure Retinol Collection, research found that 56 per cent of UK consumers with non-white skin tones didn’t feel represented by the skincare industry with products designed for them.
“Everybody can think of a moment in their life where they felt they didn’t belong, and for some people that’s how they still feel today in the beauty industry,” says Munnawar, adding that the campaign is “not your standard beauty ad, which is dated – a sterile version of beauty with a celeb that women should look up to and aspire to.
“Who says that should be a thing? I think real women, untouched – which is what we’ve always done – that is what modern-day beauty is and that represents everybody.
“I hope people like the advert, but if nothing else it’s started a conversation. As a brand, I believe we can create change in the industry and change the narrative.”
Retinol is an “amazing power ingredient” offering a host of benefits for multiple skin types and ethnicities.
So it’s no surprise No7 Advanced Retinol 1.5% Complex Night Concentrate was the fastest-selling single product on Boots.com. Munnawar says No7 has looked closely at all of its ranges, expanding to 480 foundation shades and examining the details, which include product names, coding and numbers.
“If you go back in history, a lot of names are not appropriate so we’ve reworked our naming conventions as well as codes and numbers,” she says.
When Naomi appeared on the cover of Vogue in 1987, she was the first black model to appear since Donyale Luna in 1966.
The magazine now has its first black editor, Edward Enninful, who said when he took the helm in 2017 that his Vogue was “about diversity – showing different women, different body shapes, different races, different classes, tackling gender”.
No7 has increased the diversity of its consumer testing panel (numbering some 80,000) by 121 per cent and training its 1,600 UK beauty advisers on all skin needs.
“I think the progress we’re making is great – I see progress across the industry, but there is still more we need to do,” says Munnawar.
“It shouldn’t be that it’s a conversation – it should just be.”