American shoppers across all races and ethnicities are buying more beauty and wellness products created and sold by Black founders

Commercial and cultural leadership by this founder community – 91% Black women – grew the U.S. economy via sales, retail traffic, jobs and new products, from beauty AI to skincare, says the 2024 Economic Advancement Report by BrainTrust Founders Studio

LOS ANGELES, March 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Last year, Americans of all races and ethnicities purchased more than $142 million in new beauty and wellness products created by a community of Black entrepreneurs and sold by national retailers, according to the 2024 Economic Advancement Report by BrainTrust Founders Studio.¹

In the last 12 months, the robust U.S. beauty and wellness industry grew again² as overall venture funding to Black founders declined again, to less than one-half of one percent.³ During this period, the BrainTrust Founders Studio nearly doubled its membership of Black-founded beauty and wellness companies. These 209 founders – 91% Black women – collectively achieved nearly $142.6 million in sales, up 42.5% from the prior year, selling 39,000+ product SKUs⁴ across more than 47,000+ retail “doors” and online. While 25 of these founders have successfully raised $114.9 million in venture capital or angel investment since inception, venture-backed companies drove just 69% or $98.5 million of sales.

Who bought these products? The shortest answer is “everyone.” With the exception of products aimed at one solution, i.e., Black hair care, customer demographics mirror the social media followers of Black founders and their brands, and collectively identify as Asian, Black, Caucasian and Hispanic.

Black founders who participated in the 2024 Economic Advancement Report confirmed significant racial diversity among their customers. The BrainTrust Founders Studio does not reveal company-specific information, but confirmed based on 41 fields of data tracked for each member that the collective social media following of studio founders and brands reflects their customers. CreatorIQ, a comprehensive creator marketing platform founded by CEO Igor Vaks, provided a third-party assessment of all participating BrainTrust Studio founders and brands:

Followers of BrainTrust Founders Studio Founders and Company Brands 
Racial and Ethnic Identity Mirrors Buying Customer Base

Source: CreatorIQ

“These data further prove Black entrepreneurs create beauty and wellness products that everyone buys,” said Co-founders Kendra Bracken-Ferguson, CEO, and Lisa Stone, Chief Investment Officer, the BrainTrust Fund. “Despite the fact that venture funding to Black founders has fallen to a three-year low,⁵ Black beauty and wellness entrepreneurs are growing the American economy with new, innovative products and services that drive sales by leading retailers, online and in-store, and create jobs. We are celebrating this commercial and cultural leadership by our members, most of whom are Black women!”

Executive Summary: Economic Advancement Report, 2024 vs. 2023

• Commercial leadership: $142.6 million in collective sales reported by 209 members of BrainTrust Founders Studio, up 42.5% from last year, when 116 members reported $100+ million in sales. Full-time jobs created last year: 332. Largest employer: Pressed Roots. See report.
• Cultural leadership: Who bought? Basically everyone. Many Black-led companies sold more products to Asian, Caucasian and Hispanic customers combined than to Black customers.⁶ See CreatorIQ data above on the social media influence of participating Black founders and brands.
• Product leadership: 39,000+ product SKUs sold in market, up from 4,000+ last year. Most SKUs: Thirteen Lune “pop-up” shops stock 90% BIPOC-led brands, 10% ally brands. See report.
• Retail leadership: Products were sold via 47,000+ retail “doors,” up from 23,000+ last year. Continuing trend: Focus by retailers on shopper thirst for diverse, sustainable products. New trend: Using Black-led AI/tech like Myavana to solve individual consumer needs. See report.
• Ally leadership: As venture funding to Black founders hit a three-year low, allies emerged to partner with underrepresented funders and founders, including many retailers. See report.

For more information, please contact: [email protected] or visit www.braintrustfoundersstudio.com/economic-advancement-report

BrainTrust Founders Studio

BrainTrust Founders Studio, the largest membership-based platform for Black founders of beauty and wellness companies, is led by Founder/CEO Kendra Bracken-Ferguson and Co-founder/Chief Investment Officer Lisa Stone. Both are general partners in the BrainTrust Fund. Venture Analyst Ryan Pierce also contributed to this report.

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¹ https://www.braintrustfoundersstudio.com/economic-advancement-report

² https://www.circana.com/intelligence/press-releases/2024/growth-streak-continues-for-the-us-beauty-industry-in-2023-circana-reports/ 

³ Crunchbase confirmed that venture capital funding to Black founders declined for the third year in a row in 2023 to 0.48% or ~$660 million of the total $136.69 billion raised by founders last year. Techcrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/17/funding-black-founders-down-in-2023 

⁴ “A stock-keeping unit (SKU) is a scannable barcode, most often seen printed on product labels in a retail store.” Source: Investopedia.

⁵ https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/17/funding-black-founders-down-in-2023

⁶ The exception: Products targeted at specific solutions, i.e., Black hair care. 

SOURCE BrainTrust Founders Studio