Diary of a Founder: The Business of Beauty

“The face I was born with is enough and should be celebrated.”??

-Sharareh Siadet

This past week, I attended The Business of Beauty Global Forum at Stanly Ranch in Napa Valley, California. This was a special moment for me personally and professionally as I remember back in 2018 when Moj Mahdara had this big idea for a Global Beauty Summit and said she was calling Imran to make it happen. Fast forward, in 2020 Moj and I intentionally started bringing our fellow beauty colleagues together to unite around the need to collectively figure out this thing called “Covid” and its impact on our businesses. This desire led to us creating BeautyUnited , a non-profit with a mission to provide community, education and access to support the next generation of beauty and wellness leaders. This week our vision and work collided to join the Business of Fashion Team - Imran Amed , Priya Rao , Sheena Butler-Young and their incredible team to partner on this first Business of Beauty Global Forum.?

For two and half days, we engaged in provocative talks, interactive discussions and immersive activities centered around uniting leaders from 5 continents across the beauty and wellness industry.?

From Session 1 “What does Beauty Mean Today?” to Session 2 “Where Will Growth Come From?” to Session Three “How Do We Create Customer Connection”, the over 40 speakers and attendees went deep in exploring the impact our industry is making across self-expression, global impact, economic advancements and sustainability.

Through our partnership, BeautyUnited hosted three provocative discussions:

The Politics of Black Hair with Holly J. Mitchell (Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors), Hannah Diop (Founder & CEO of Sienna Naturals and member of BrainTrust Founders Studio ), and moderated by Julee Wilson (Executive Director at BeautyUnited & Beauty Editor-at-Large at Cosmopolitan Magazine).

The Beauty of Compassion with Pamela Anderson (Canadian-American actress and activist) and Moj Mahdara (Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Kinship Ventures &?Co-Founder and Co-Chair of BeautyUnited)

How to Leverage AI to Connect With Today’s Beauty Consumers with Leslie Ann Hall , CEO Iced Media and me (Kendra Bracken-Ferguson, in my role as co-founder BeautyUnited).

Alongside the phenomenal programming were the moments to connect with everyone from Sephora to Nordstrom to Forerunner Ventures to A-Frame. It truly was interactive, inspiring and insightful.??

From all of us at BeautyUnited, we are honored and grateful to be supported by the Business of Fashion and our fellow peers, mentors and friends.?

I’ll leave you with a few quotes that continue to resonate and inspire me:

“I rewrote my beauty narrative.”

- Sharareh Siadat , Founder & CEO of TooD Beauty

“Consumers want a real touch and looking for that immersive human touch and experience.”

- Zaher Dassouky , General Manager at Chalhoub Group

“Allyship is not allyship if it falters when there is pain.”

- Schuyler Bailar , Internationally-celebrated inspirational speaker, author, and advocate for trans inclusion, radical body acceptance, and mental health awareness.

“We are all human beings.”

- Beatrix Dixon, CEO of The Honey Pot Company

“I have always thought of myself as entrepreneur and now I’m finding new ways to express that,”

- John Legend, American singer, songwriter, pianist, record producer and actor

“We need to understand what’s happening on the inside to support our outside.”

- Eurie Kim , Managing Partner at Forerunner

“We have to find the spark.”

- Kirsten Green , Founder and Managing Partner at Forerunner

“You can not give that much power and control to other people to make you feel bad.”

- Monique Rodriguez , CEO of Mielle Organics

“It’s not always the corporate jargon that drives people toward your brand. Its coupled with following your gut and spirit and what’s right for your brand.”

- Isamaya Ffrench, British make-up artist and creator of wearable art

“We need to leave room for grace and that things change.”

- Charlotte Palermino , CEO & Co-Founder of Dieux

“I see the romance in everything. I think life is great even in the difficult times. There is always something great around the corner.”

-Pamela Anderson, Canadian-American actress and activist

“All of us are trying to find our way to self.”

- Moj Mahdara, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Kinship Ventures & Co-Founder and Co-Chair of BeautyUnited?

For more amazing programming from the first Business of Beauty Global Forum 2023, please visit this website.

And to learn more about BeautyUnited, visit https://www.thebeautyunited.org/