2020 Was the Year the Beauty Industry Really Stepped Up to Make a Difference

The politically charged makeup brand Lipslut donated 100 percent of its earnings from the sale of its RGD lip shade to organizations like Feeding America, Doctors Without Borders, and No Kid Hungry.

Then, ahead of the 2020 presidential election, the brand expanded its collection of F*ck Trump lipsticks with three new shades, and 50 percent of the earnings for every one of these products sold goes to civil rights organizations targeted by the Trump administration.

In June, Sharon Chuter, founder and CEO of Uoma Beauty, launched the Pull Up or Shut Up Challenge, which asked companies across the beauty industry to disclose the percentage of Black people at their company to highlight their presence, or lack thereof, in leadership positions in corporate America.

MAC donated $10 million to 250 organizations worldwide via its Viva Glam campaign to support at-risk communities and those affected by COVID-19. The brand announced this news on April 2 via Miley Cyrus's Bright Minded series on Instagram.

The parent company behind Dove, Suave, and Tresemmé donated $20 million in products and services to fight against COVID-19 in March. This included giving $8 million through donations of food, soap, personal hygiene, and home cleaning products to its partner Feeding America and donating more than 200,000 masks to local hospitals in New Jersey to help protect healthcare professionals.

Henkel Beauty Care Hair Professional supported stylists during COVID-19 by donating $200K to the Professional Beauty Association (PBA) to support the PBA COVID-19 Relief Fund, as well as 200K units of hair product and monetary funding to organizations such as Beauty Changes Lives, Dress for Success, Seattle's Union Gospel Mission, and Project Beauty Share in major hot spots like Los Angeles, New York, and Washington.

In March, Bumble and Bumble and its parent, brand Estée Lauder Companies, utilized one of the brand's factories to manufacture hand sanitizer for front-line medical staff and other community members. The factory that participated in the coronavirus relief effort was located in Melville, NY.

Heyday first stepped up during 2020 by offering virtual skin consultations for essential workers fighting the pandemic — many of whom were experiencing skin irritation from wearing masks for long periods of time at work. Each session lasted roughly 15 minutes and gave healthcare workers the opportunity to talk with someone, as well as ask skin-care advice.

Then, after Aurora James created the 15 percent pledge asking brands to commit at least 15 percent of their shelf space to Black-owned brands, Heyday was the first beauty company to take the pledge.

In April, Nivea and its parent company, Beiersdorf, donated 200,000 Eucerin, Nivea, and Aquaphor skin-care products and 500,000 medical-grade sanitizers to hospital workers around the country.

As a thank you to front-line healthcare employees, Sephora launched its "Project Care" program in May, which donated select beauty products to over 65,000 essential workers. Employees working in the brand's stores, distribution centers, and corporate offices across the US nominated 500 individuals on the front line to receive the packages.

Then, in June, the beauty retailer took the 15 percent pledge and committed to stocking its stores with more Black-owned brands.

Aveda launched a multimillion-dollar relief program, Aveda Cares, to benefit stylists and more than 6,000 independently owned salons and spas around the country that carry Aveda products. The initiative's goal was to help salons recover from COVID-19 closures.

To support licensed professionals in the US who were unable to work due to COVID-19, L'Oréal USA Professional Products donated to the Professional Beauty Association COVID-19 Relief Fund. The fund supplied emergency aid for short-term needs like food and bills.

The brand also launched an initiative to provide relief to Americans and small businesses alike by freezing the existing payments of very small and small-size enterprises in its distribution network, including independent hair salons, until businesses resume.

In March at the start of the pandemic, Coty Inc, the parent company of CoverGirl, Sally Hansen, and Calvin Klein fragrances, focused its production efforts on making hand sanitizers for medical professionals and emergency services.

Then, Coty Professional Beauty established a $650K COVID-19 industry relief fund for hairstylists, manicurists, and makeup artists.

In May, Glossier pledged $1 million to the Black community. The brand donated $500,000 to organizations focused on combating racial injustice, while the other $500,000 was used to create grants for Black-owned beauty businesses.

Through the brand's Grant Initiative For Black-Owned Businesses, 16 companies out of nearly 10,000 applicants were selected to receive either $10K, $30K, or $50K in funding to help get their business off the ground.

In June, Anastasia Beverly Hills donated $1 million to the Innocence Project, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Black Visions Collective, and The Marshall Project to help fight systemic racism and injustice.

To address the shortages, Monat shifted production at its US-based hair-care and skin-care manufacturing facility and gave away 240,000 two-ounce bottles of hand sanitizer to government entities, nonprofit organizations, and customers across North America.