Susan Yara

Stylists, the passion we have for our industry can sometimes lead to exhaustion, but there are ways to break free from being confined to the salon chair. Here are three immediate steps to diversify your income streams: 1. Develop and market a digital product like a hair care guide, class, or tutorial. 2. Provide virtual consultations or host workshops. 3. Collaborate with brands you trust and endorse as an affiliate. Taking these small steps now can pave the way for greater freedom in the future. Which of these options resonates with you the most to explore first

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I came across this piece by Elvis Kachi for BeautyMatter, “The Atlantic Divide: The Black Beauty Market Tells Two Stories” and one section really stopped me in my tracks. It features Judy Koloko, the founder of The Steam Bar, who’s had incredible success hosting pop-ups in Selfridges and is about to launch in Sephora through its Accelerate program. Yet despite all that, she shared this experience with a UK retailer: “We wouldn’t have your brand in here because we don’t know how to speak to your community.” That line hit hard, because it’s something we still hear far too often. Black women in the UK are treated like a problem to solve rather than a community to understand, celebrate, and invest in. And the impact runs deep. It blocks opportunities for brilliant founders, holds back innovation, and alienates a group that has always shaped the beauty industry, from driving trends and setting standards to influencing what ends up on the shelves. We are not an afterthought. If you “don’t know how to speak to our community,” then the answer isn’t avoidance, it’s investment. ✅ Hire people who do. ✅ Work with consultants, creators, and platforms who already hold that trust. ✅ Build genuine partnerships based on respect, not tokenism. There’s no shortage of knowledge, creativity, or commercial insight within the Black beauty space, just a shortage of willingness to listen and act. When brands move from hesitation to collaboration, everyone wins. At Brown Beauty Talk, we see this every day, and we’ll keep using our platform to amplify these voices and show the power of our community. 💄 https://lnkd.in/eirP57fz

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“You still sell lipstick for a living, right?” That’s what Mama Lois still asks me when she has something new to show off at the beauty parlor. And I always laugh and say, “Sure, Mom. Let’s go with that.” Yet marketing is a lot more than selling lipstick. Every time I check into a hotel or pull out my e.l.f. Beauty credit card, someone always says, “You work for e.l.f.?!” And in that moment, I’m not just Kory anymore. I am the brand. And I transcend the product and bring it to life in a meaningful way for the brand fans. Marketing isn’t one thing.  Marketing is everything. In Cannes, I asked 25 marketers: What is Marketing?  I got 25 different answers.  I was not surprised. I took the same question back to the e.l.f.fice and asked 150 people.  Answers stretched the imagination, from “selling” to “magic” to “belonging.” I have now done this exercise in a variety of rooms, with a variety of audiences, and the elasticity of answers is the only common thread. When I sat back and digested the wide range of responses and asked myself that very same question - what is marketing? - one word came to my mind. Poetry. Marketing is poetry. Poetry is the rhythmic expression of being a human. And for me, that’s marketing. In this week’s episode of Uncensored Renegades, Jon Evans and I unpack what it really means: ✨MARKETING IS ELASTIC  It touches every function, every team, every decision. ✨BRAND IS COLLECTIVE  Everyone is building the brand with every signal they send. ✨STRATEGY IS CONSTELLATIONING Find your brightest signals and bind the brightest stars that shine. ✨CREATIVITY IS ALCHEMY  People, imagination, ideas and courage is the formula. ✨STORYTELLING IS STORY-LIVING  The best brands live in the moments and shape it in real time. So yes mom, I sell lipstick for a living.💋 And marketers also sell connection, create a place belonging and create the kind of magic that scales businesses. Give this week's episode a listen and let me know what you think in the comments 👇 Apple: https://lnkd.in/g6DPH98u Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gqWpvpk8

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For decades, American beauty culture has been shaped by the gravitational pull of the two major cultural capitals: New York and Los Angeles. But in the years following the pandemic, as people moved away from the coasts, the country’s cultural center of gravity has begun shifting toward the middle of the map. LONA, a new skincare brand debuting in March out of Austin, Texas, positions itself at the intersection of that cultural shift. Founded by beauty industry veterans Annie Vallely and Kathryn Bain, LONA is building a skincare brand inspired by the lifestyles, landscapes, and consumers emerging beyond the traditional coastal beauty hubs. Side note: When I first met Annie last year, as she was developing this brand, she told me that my article on wellness brands tapping into Western culture was included in her pitch deck to show that this demographic is hungry for homegrown brands that speak their language and share their unique POV—not the fast-paced vibe of NYC or the laidback lifestyle of LA, but something (quite literally) in the middle. As Texans, we both felt this shift in the culture, and I was thrilled when she asked me to be the first to share this exciting news. Read more in my exclusive for BeautyMatter: https://lnkd.in/gVPzzDMg

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The beauty industry has come a long way in becoming more inclusive and accessible—but we still have a long way to go. Some of the most rewarding work I do is consulting with beauty brands on how to design and market with everyone in mind. Because inclusive design isn’t just good ethics—it’s good business. I recently had the opportunity to travel to Australia to speak about this on a global stage, joining forces with the passionate team at Guide Dogs Australia as the keynote speaker for their Boundless Beauty summit. 💚 Together, we’re pushing the industry to think beyond inspiration and toward true inclusion. Let’s keep the momentum going. #UniversalDesign #BeautyIndustry #Accessibility #Inclusivity Guide Dogs NSW/ACT

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I’ve been thinking a lot about the news that good light cosmetics is shutting down and the conversation around whether beauty brands really need large amounts of funding to survive mentioned briefly in the article linked below. Here’s my honest take as a founder and beauty/wellness marketeer (no, the double “e” was not a typo 💕): Being a founder is harder than people care to admit. Whatever your idealized version of entrepreneurship is… throw it out the window. The pressure of being responsible for something bigger than yourself can be all-consuming. It’s chaotic, relentless, and emotionally exhausting in ways people rarely talk about publicly. You’re not just building a company. You’re carrying payroll, investor expectations, partners, retailers, and the livelihoods of everyone who believed in the vision. And in beauty… one of the most oversaturated markets in the world, that pressure is amplified. I disagree wholeheartedly with the idea that beauty brands don’t need significant funding to succeed in 2026. Could you bootstrap? Sure, of course you can. But the real question is: How long can you personally withstand the come-up??? Because the early years of building a brand all-in, from scratch are brutal. The pressure, the uncertainty, the constant pivots, that’s the real test. Funding shortens that period of agony dramatically. Capital allows you to build community, activate it, and scale momentum quickly, which is critical in a category where attention moves fast, quality has peaked and differentiation disappears overnight. Without it, founders are often stuck in a prolonged survival phase while the market moves past them. A hamster wheel, if you will. The truth is, most people dramatically underestimate the psychological endurance required to build a brand from nothing. That doesn’t mean founders who choose to step away failed. Sometimes it means they’re human. And sometimes it means they simply chose their energy, their health, or their next chapter. Founders like David Yi built something meaningful and culturally important. That deserves respect, I’m truly so sad to say goodbye to this brand. Entrepreneurship isn’t just about vision and grit. It’s also about capacity; how long you can hold the weight. And that’s a conversation our industry probably needs to have more honestly. So I leave you with one 👇 honest question: Beauty founders, for those who are curious about following in your footsteps… if you could do it over again, what’s one thing you wish you’d have done differently? #entrepreneurship #beautyindustry #founders #startuplife #beautyfounders https://lnkd.in/en3BftHB

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Target's latest initiative positions hair, body and other segments through the lens of fragrance. Which isn't surprising if you've been following the boom in the scent sector since the pandemic. We have a breakdown of the retailer's strategy below... https://lnkd.in/gdpQcBej

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As Amazon and TikTok Shop give beauty brands cheaper, faster ways to scale, SEPHORA is revamping Accelerate to focus less on access and more on building brands equipped for long-term success. The retailer’s updated program expands its emphasis on operational readiness and scaling fundamentals as emerging brands face mounting costs, whipsawing trend cycles and growing consumer scrutiny. A big thank you to Carolyn Bojanowski, Sephora's EVP of merchandising in the U.S. for walking me through the new program changes. Beauty Independent

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There is a whole heap of chat in the beauty industry about whether beauty brands should have their own Substack. As with most things, I’m a hard no unless: 1. It truly serves a purpose to reach your customer. 2. As a business, you will commit to being on the platform consistently. 3. If you are on the platform, you behave in the way the platform rewards - don’t be starting a brand Substack and have it sound like the seasonal marketing launch calendar. Personally, I think getting your brand to partner with people that are already on the platform and using it well is a far smarter use of your time and budget. And speaking of people doing it well, here are some of my favourites in the beauty and business categories (and sometimes, both): Zara Wong, Screenshot this. @Dianna Cohen, founder Crown Affair Affair Jessica Hatzis, Creative Director, founder @Willow and Blake, and Frank Bod. Justine Cullen, Late Night Snacking Casey Lewis, After School  Rachel Karten, LinkInBio https://lnkd.in/gfqya6vW

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Exclusive: Biotech beauty company Debut is partnering with IMAGE Skincare to bring its new skin-tightening ingredient to the shelves next year. The San Diego-based company, founded nearly seven years ago, is pioneering new ingredients through advanced biotechnology to specially target various aspects of skin health. “The reason why we exist is we do believe that biology can make better things and it can deliver sustainable performance alternatives to what’s currently available for the world,” CEO Joshua Britton told CNBC. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eJhUKu32

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The beauty industry is always innovating, but one persistent pain point remains: translating online tutorials to real-life application. I found Jacqueline Raich's journey with Primer, her beauty tech startup, fascinating because she's tackling this head-on with an "AI mirror." This isn't just a gadget; it's a strategic solution to a tangible problem. As Raich notes, 95% of women use analog mirrors, while virtual try-ons are stuck on phones. Primer's AI mirror overlays real-time guides directly onto your reflection, personalizing looks and seamlessly linking to a creator marketplace. It's about enhancing the ritual, not disrupting it, and empowering users to confidently recreate any look. For brands, this offers unprecedented data on product usage and a direct path to purchase, redefining how we think about product interaction and consumer engagement in beauty. #BeautyTech #AIMirror #Innovation #RetailTech #ConsumerExperience

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💇‍♀️ Quick beauty service platform Dazzl raises $3.2 million, led by Stellaris Founded by Komal Solanki and Ashish Bajpai, Dazzl offers salon and spa services including waxing, threading, facials, manicures, pedicures, cleanups, and more for women, in 10 minutes. 🛎️ ET reported about it on December 19. Dazzl is launched at a time when the 10-minute services segment in India is booming and platforms are expanding their services. Read more at: https://lnkd.in/gvvym9Ke

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One of the hottest topics in beauty -- and in any industry -- is AI. For my latest story for the Wall Street Journal's Off Duty section, I gave some of the AI and AR experiences a whirl to see what the consumer experience is like and if it could improve my personal makeup, skin and haircare routines. The answer, as a seasoned beauty journalist, surprised me. Machines, it turns out, are quite clever when it comes to assessing skin tone (provided you are in natural light) and coming up with product recommendations but human guidance is not only needed, it really works hand-in-hand with AI to create the ultimate experience for the consumer. One of the best parts of researching this piece was visiting the Clinique counter and working with a sales associate who really knew her stuff and made me feel so happy and relaxed. The other highlight was learning from a stylist for Kerastase that my hair is not fine and damaged but medium and dry. This has changed the way I shop for products and I already see a positive difference. Last, I was disappointed I wasn't able to include a brand new skincare brand called Pure Culture Beauty in my story (it launched after my testing deadline ended). The premise of Pure Culture's offering is it creates personalized skincare systems based on an at-home skin test and skin quiz users' take. The founder Joy Chen told me that her research revealed that most people aren't using the right products even when they are "customized" or they use AI because of two factors: 1.) Most people answer the skin quizzes incorrectly because they don't know their skin type and 2.) their current products might be negatively interacting with each other, doing harm. Chen was able to compare skin quiz answers to the at-home test results (which are objective vs subjective) and found that two-thirds of the respondents guessed incorrectly about their skin type. Fascinating! Take a read if you are interested in learning about actually two of the biggest trends impacting the way beauty consumers are shopping for products today, AI and personalization: https://lnkd.in/eRD64FWU

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I’m sharing a practical checklist for wellness founders ready to private label—especially my fellow Black women and women of color building clean, hormone-friendly skincare. These are the five essentials I guide clients through at JAK’s Infinity Group. 1) Clarity on audience: define skin concerns, age range, and values so formulation hits the mark. 2) Ingredient priorities for hormonal skin: prioritize non-comedogenic botanicals, gentle actives, and balancing humectants. 3) Branding essentials: clear brand story, packaging requirements, and a consistent visual system. 4) Minimum viable batch sizes: know your launch-volume economics and scaling thresholds before you order. 5) Compliance basics: labeling, safety testing, and regulatory must-haves to avoid costly delays. I coach founders through each step and our formulation team turns those decisions into shelf-ready products. Want help turning your idea into a compliant, market-ready line? Let’s talk. https://wix.to/fQkWg0O #WellnessEntrepreneurs #PrivateLabel #CleanBeauty

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These are the moments you reflect on after almost six years of DEW. DEW MIGHTY is a 2026 NEXTY Award Winner at Natural Products Expo. 🤯 Hosted by New Hope Network When I started DEW MIGHTY in 2020, the idea felt both simple and radical: skincare doesn’t need to be mostly water, and it definitely doesn’t need to come in disposable bottles wrapped in plastic. After spending 15 years working in the science and development of beauty products, I realized the industry had normalized something that never really made sense. So I left the security of a lucrative career to built DEW MIGHTY. DEW is a completely new format of skincare — waterless, concentrated, refillable, powerhouse products designed to work with skin biology while dramatically reducing number of steps and packaging waste. What began as a dream turned into a new reality and a growing community of people who believe skincare can be high-performance and radically better for the planet at the same time. Winning a NEXTY is incredibly meaningful because these awards recognize innovation and integrity in the natural products industry judged by industry experts and we were compared to thousands of submissions. To be acknowledged alongside so many thoughtful brands working to improve the products we use every day is an incredible honor. But this moment is not just about a product or an award. It’s about the people who believed in this idea before it made sense on paper. 🤝The indie store partners (everyday eco warriors) who gave us shelf space when the concept was unfamiliar - visit your local refill shops and you'll understand why they are the change makers. 💧The customers who trusted a tiny solid jelly serum bar to replace half their routine. 🔬The suppliers who stayed in the process even when we didn't "benchmark" since we invented a new catergory that didn’t exist yet. Who often told me it "couldn't be done" but kept pivoting and working with me regardless. 🫧🟦🟧🟪And most of all, every loved one and person who believe that fewer, better products can actually change an industry. Thank you to everyone who has supported and understood DEW MIGHTY along the way. This recognition belongs to all of you. 💕Tiffany, Founder and Creator of all things DEW PS stay tuned for the MOST epic launch at the end of 2026 the product everyone has been asking for. 🤭 #dreambig #smallbiz #gamechanger #naturalproducts #mighty #pov #blacksheep #innovation #nexty #expowest #betterakincare #femalefounder

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Finding the best value while caring for our planet🌎 is another reason that secondhand is out-pacing original supply chains. We’ve been paving the way in this paradigm shift, proving that our technology can make fashion more sustainable 💞 , from sourcing, tracking, & manufacturing. But one of the main aspects is that we’re providing from source designer to secondhand buyer the capability at defining their own narrative by telling their story, which builds brand loyalty & inspires community. It also creates a path for longevity. Ultimately, this doesn’t hurt the bottom line, as proven, but instead, gives more meaning to brands & greater power to buyers who equate value w/protecting our planet. 🌎

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Launching an indie beauty brand isn’t easy, but the right insights can make all the difference. At Society of Cosmetic Chemists, California Chapter Suppliers’ Day, Jen Novakovich collected expert starter tips from industry leaders as part of IBAStudio. Featured in this reel: Jennifer Santos, Kenton Hipsher, Daphne Benderly, PhD, Milt Gillespie, Dan Kolhoff, and Alexandra Mozina. For emerging brands, keeping up with regulatory changes and new requirements can be extremely challenging. This week, IBA’s e-conference, Cosmetics Convergence Fall Edition: Indie Beauty Compliance, will provide expert-led sessions covering everything from MoCRA safety substantiation to influencer compliance, retailer requirements, and new state-level EPR and ingredient regulations. Have you registered yet? https://lnkd.in/dSPnp_AK This is your chance to learn directly from regulators, attorneys, and industry veterans shaping the future of indie beauty. Agenda/Speakers Meeting Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Obligations Before Enforcement Hits. Jason Bergquist (RecycleMe), Christopher Rendall-Jackson (Farella Braun + Martel LLP), Colin Preston, Ph.D. (Ramboll) US Cosmetics Safety Substantiation: Obligations To Prove Products Are Safe - Before the Regulators Ask. Angela Diesch (Amin Wasserman Gurnani / NSF JC Chair), Christina Ross (Credo), Zoran Gavrić (The Regulatory Company | TRC | PRIMS software / European Responsible Persons Association) Navigating Washington State's New Ingredient & Packaging Restrictions and Compliance Deadlines: Status Updates on 1 pmm Lead Rulemaking. Shari Franjevic (Washington Department of Ecology), Shannon Jones (Washington Department of Ecology) Beauty Influencer Marketing Without Missteps: Avoid Legal Pitfalls in Influencer Campaigns. Jennifer Santos (Institute for Responsible Influence, former NAD), Denise Herich (The Benchmarking Company) US Federal and State Regulatory Roundup. Akemi Ooka PhD (IBA), Meredith Petillo (IBA) Litigation Update: Class Action Trends + Trendy (But Risky) Claims. Aliza Karetnick (Morgan Lewis), Ronie M. Schmelz (K&L Gates), Will Wagner (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) Digital Labelling & Serialization: Data Management, Consumer Communication and Regulatory Potential. Amy Reiter (GS1 US), Connie Nguyen (MAXIM), Felix Ngatunyi (Amazon) Retailer Requirements & Product Scanning Apps Rundown. Shannon Hess (Responsible Sourcing Partnership), Maggie Spicer (Source Beauty ESG), Valerie George (Simply Formulas), Sean Ansett (John Paul Mitchell Systems)

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What if clean beauty didn’t mean compromise? 💄✨ On today’s episode of The Kara Goldin Show, I’m joined by Tisha Thompson, Founder & CEO of LYS Beauty — the first Black-owned clean makeup brand to launch at Sephora and one of the fastest-growing brands in the category. Tisha shares how she built a high-performance, inclusive, and accessible beauty brand without compromising her values. Such an incredible story! If you’re building bold, challenging industry myths, or leading with intention, this episode is for you. 🎧🎙️Tune in now on The Kara Goldin Show. 🎙️🔗 https://bit.ly/4bYOMYf #TheKaraGoldinShow #TishaThompson #LYSBeauty #FounderJourney #Entrepreneurship #CleanBeauty #Leadership Tisha Thompson LYS Beauty

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