Black Beauty Roster is kicking off its first in-person BBR Beauty Summit in New York on Friday, and has taken on some heavy-hitting panelists to do so.
The summit, in partnership with Instagram, will draw a wide swath of industry creators and professionals, including Sir John, Danessa Myricks, Vernon Francois, Kim Kimble, Elsa Majimbo, Sam Fine, Sheika Daley, Julissa Bermudez, Larry Sims, Jessica Cruel, Jaleesa Jaikaran, Naeemah LaFond and Simi Moonlight.
It’s an expansion upon Black Beauty Roster’s founding mission when it launched in 2020 as a collective of Black professionals in the beauty industry, aimed at connecting professional talent with job opportunities, said Maude Okrah Hunter, Black Beauty Roster’s founder and chief executive officer.
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“The big pillars we’ve leaned into are around education, opportunity and advocacy, and that led us to the BBR Beauty Summit,” Hunter said. “We’re trying to create pathways that take away barriers in the industry, and education is one of the most critical pieces of doing that.”
The event, which will take place at the Meta offices in New York, will entail a mix of both workshops and panels. The audience, Hunter said, is “a diverse audience and a mixture of creators, beauty professionals and beauty industry leaders.
“We wanted to ensure that people could take tangible steps and actions that they could apply to their different careers,” Hunter continued. “Being able to hear from a direct source, like a Jessica Cruel, Sam Fine, Kim Kimble or Larry Sims about their experiences is really big.”
Topics will include securing brand deals, mental health, maintaining relevance, entrepreneurship, agency reputation and social media, among others. Sponsors include WME Fashion, SalonCentric, Oribe, Tarte Cosmetics, Ulta Beauty, Meta and Coca-Cola.
“You’re in rooms where you hear a lot of nos, but you see the market opportunity and impact that you can bring,” Hunter said. “We find that there are brands and companies pausing or leaning back on diversity and inclusion, and we believe that when we bring information, we empower the next generation of creators, beauty professionals and talent.”
Added Kristie Dash, Meta’s head of beauty partnerships, “The Black beauty community pushes culture forward on Instagram and beyond, in the beauty space and throughout pop culture. One of my team’s biggest goals is to create spaces to bring creators and thought leaders together to scale education and foster community, so when I first met Maude and realized she shares that vision at Black Beauty Roster, it was clear that we should partner on this summit.”
