L’Oréal USA has announced its partnership with the NAACP, and the creation of the Inclusive Beauty Fund.
L'Oréal USA is a subsidiary of the L'Oréal Group, a leading beauty company managing over 35 iconic beauty brands.
The NAACP is the largest and most pre-eminent civil rights organization in the nation.
Through this inaugural round of funding, L’Oréal USA will award 30 one-time grants of $10,000 each to Black-owned small businesses, Black entrepreneurs and professional services in all sectors of the U.S. beauty industry.
As small businesses in America have been hit the hardest by the economic fallout due to the pandemic, Black-owned businesses are shutting down twice as fast as others according to NBER. This prompted L’Oréal USA to team up with the NAACP to identify the most promising Black-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs in the beauty industry that are most in need of investment.
“As the leading beauty company in the United States, we believe that we have a responsibility to invest in the small business owners and entrepreneurs who are the lifeblood of our dynamic beauty industry. We are proud to team up with the NAACP to advance our shared mission of creating a more inclusive and equitable world during this time of great economic vulnerability for so many. We hope the Inclusive Beauty Fund will introduce us to entrepreneurs in the beauty industry that we can build strong relationships with well into the future,” said Angela Guy, chief diversity & inclusion officer, L’Oréal USA.
L’Oréal USA will also provide grantees with professional mentorship and business development support with the participation of top executives from its leading beauty brands and its professional beauty products distributor, SalonCentric.
The Inclusive Beauty Fund is part of L’Oréal USA’s larger commitment to support the NAACP’s mission, which will include additional initiatives to be announced in the future.
“Black-owned small beauty businesses are the heartbeat of their neighborhoods, and beauty business owners are navigating tremendous challenges stemming from the Covid-19 and recent events. The NAACP is proud to partner with L’Oréal USA to help support these entrepreneurs and ensure the longevity of the services and community their businesses provide,” said Yumeka Rushing, chief strategy officer, NAACP.
Grants are available to new or existing beauty businesses of all kinds, including but not limited to salons, spas, barber shops, stylists, makeup artists, entrepreneurs, startup founders, haircare specialists and beauty schools.
Applications for the financial grants opens today January 29, 2021 and proceeds through February 18, 2021.
All submissions must be conducted through Hello Alice: https://hialice.co/LOreal-HelloAlice-Grant.
The candidates selected to receive the grants will be announced in April of 2021.
