Black History Month 2018 Recap
CEO and Founder, Kimberly Smith (centered)
So much Black girl magic and Black boy joy took place and shattered ceilings this month. We salute everyone who had their part in making history. As we close out on the final day of Black History month and we have chosen four amazing moments in February of 2018 that just scream Black excellence. Here are some of our most memorable Black History Month moments
This year our CEO and founder, Kimberly Smith was mentioned in the Rack article, "Before Fenty: Over 100 Years of Black Makeup Brands." The article outlined the past and present struggles of Black women in the beauty industry but it also showed others exactly why brands should cater to our needs. “Now people see it. There’s money to be made by making nuanced shades for women of color,” says Smith. Marjani Beauty stands to ensure the Black community is served and consistently breaking the mold of beautiful all 2018!
Remember when two Black women went to pitch their business on the hit show Shark Tank and they were called cockroaches? They were also told that they could not sell colorful lipstick because other beauty brands would have already done it? Well, the ladies of the Lip Bar didn't take, "no," for an answer. Melisa Butler and Rosco Spears used their Shark Tank rejection as motivation and it paid off because the brand is now in Target stores! Fans showed how much bright, bold colors were needed and appreciated in the Black Beauty community!
The first annual Black Joy Parade went down in Oakland, CA. With over 14,000 attendees the Black Joy Parade was created to provide the Black community and allies a live experience that celebrates our influence on cultures past, present and future. The photos and videos went viral on social media of the Black community in a space where it was celebrated to share our unique contributions to the Black experience. We saw traditional African clothing, historical greek organizations and plenty of Black owned businesses vending. Find out more about next year's event on their website.
The biggest moment of Black History Month 2018 was the release of the Black Panther film! The film continues to break box office records with $700M already in the bank, according to Forbes. The first Marvel movie to have a primarily black cast celebrates Black people in a way that also tells the multi-dimensional story of those of the African diaspora. We showed up and showed out for the premiere of this film.
Our favorites ladies such as Zendaya and Jackie Aina even bought out entire theaters to treat fans to a movie night to see the film. Also, Black Panther is so good that we won't blame you for going back more than once and we are excited to see what history the film will continue to break in the next couple of weeks.
Remember, Black history is happening every single day! Take a moment to celebrate others in your community. We are all the next Black Bill Gates in the making.