Apply Now: Our 2021 Grant Program for Black-Owned Beauty Businesses
Roya Shariat, Senior Manager of Impact
As part of our $10M commitment to equity and inclusion over the next five years, we are so excited to share that we’re renewing our Grant Program for Black-Owned Beauty Businesses in 2021. Starting today, May 13, Black-owned beauty businesses that currently produce and sell physical beauty products—cosmetics, products or tools for face, body or hair—can apply to receive one of ten $50,000 grants ($500K total), plus six months of dedicated advisory and business support.
We created the Grant Program last year with the vision of driving equity in beauty by supporting the next generation of industry-defining leaders. Black entrepreneurs have historically faced disparities and barriers in obtaining the necessary resources to build and grow their businesses: in 2020, Black founders in the U.S. raised less than 1% of total venture capital funding, (the statistics for Black women entrepreneurs are even lower).
We selected our first cohort of sixteen grantees (narrowed down from nearly 10K applicants) last September, and spent the following six months getting to know each of them through curated business support and programming. We’re amazed by what our 2020 grantees are building and are grateful to have played a small role in their journeys. The experience of participating in the Grant Program is best described by grantees themselves:
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“The grant was extremely meaningful for us [and] helped support bringing on our first full-time hire. Connecting with each of the senior leaders at Glossier really gave me an inside look to how a successful business operates at scale. So much of that is usually really opaque to me at the early stages, so having that visibility was a privilege.” - Trinity Mouzon Wofford, Golde
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“We have been able to surpass our business goals, secure funding, and continue thriving. Having access to the resources we need within Glossier has been beyond valuable. Just being able to say, "I don't know this" and then almost immediately be connected with an expert is the greatest gift.” - Devin McGhee, Deon Libra
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“Being a part of the Glossier Grant was everything I was hoping for as a growing business. Aside from the actual grant money itself, the access to mentorship and community alone is unmatched. At Hanahana, our main focus this year was around sustainable growth — not only with reaching new customers but also internally and within operations and fundraising. The Grant Program gave me access to mentors who specialized in these areas and direct connections to different experts in the field.” - Abena Boamah-Acheampong, Hanahana Beauty
This year, we’re expanding the program to provide even more support for grantees this year, launching programming into more specific and additive focus areas. Grantees will continue to be paired with a Glossier advisor for mentorship, have access to business programming on more topics, and participate in 1:1 meetings with functional experts on our team (including our CEO and our CFO). We’re also hosting Fireside Chats with industry leaders like Sharon Chuter and Tristan Walker, offering mentorship opportunities with members of Glossier’s Board of Directors, and launching Alumni programming for previous grantees to stay connected with each other and new grantees.
Applications are live today through May 27th and will be reviewed on three main criteria:
- Purpose: The inspiration and purpose behind your business and the impact you hope to achieve both for your customers and the broader community
- Differentiation: What sets your brand and products apart from others in your category
- Business Plan: Your plans for business growth and how Glossier’s Grant Program will help you achieve your goals
You can get started here:
We’ve done our best to make the application process as streamlined as possible, and will inform applicants about our decisions by the end of August. We can’t wait to hear your stories and learn more about your businesses. We’re looking forward to welcoming a new class of grantees and sharing more with our community in September!
