In the Dominican community, many of us know Dominican-American TV personality and actress Julissa Bermudez, from her hosting days on BET's music video countdown show 106 & Park. She has since had her plate full and gone on to host quite a few more programs, been the spokesperson for brands like Steve Madden, had her own reality TV show with bestie Adrienne Bailon called Empire Girls back in 2012, cohosted Fox's entertainment news show Central Avenue, and landed the role of María de la Ruiz on Amazon series Hunters, starring Al Pacino. Her latest project: launching her very own beauty brand, república, inspired by the Dominican beauty remedies she grew up with. "The name is a nod to where I was born. I really wanted this to be a heritage brand," she said. "I also want people to feel transported in the comfort of their own homes, so when they use the sugar body polish, they have a sensorial experience as if they took a trip to the Dominican Republic, by way of the ingredients, like sugar, which is a natural resource in DR and the main ingredient in my debut product." The brand launched with its Sugar Body Polish ($42), a gentle body polish that leaves dull skin smooth, polished, and with a radiant glow almost immediately after.
"I've always said people don't exfoliate enough — including myself. At one point, I became obsessed with doing DIY scrubs to combat my dry, flaky, ashy skin, especially during the winter months in NYC," she said. "Sugar is gentle yet effective, and combined with the natural oils, I love that república doesn't strip your skin but helps restore and balance, which is what I love and why I named it a polish."
While Bermudez believes that the Dominican community has impacted the overall beauty landscape, she definitely doesn't feel that Dominican models get enough recognition and acknowledgement in the industry. "I don't think Dominican models get enough credit. There's so many top models who are walking the biggest fashion shows and doing campaigns, and people don't know they are Dominican" she said. "Our beauty is so diverse, and we don't have one 'look' per se, which is what I love when I think about the landscape of beauty. In NYC, my favorite is seeing women from all walks of life sitting at a Dominican hair salon with a set of rollers under a dryer."
