Blackfishing Beauty Brands: Brands Masquerade as Black Owned

We have already discussed the growing phenomena of White Women smothering themselves in makeup, literally painting themselves, and, in more severe cases, tanning themselves beyond recognition to appear as a person of color, all while receiving brand sponsorships and opportunities while actual women of color are often overlooked.

But what happens when it is not only individuals but brands, who not only dress up as Black Owned, but do it at the expense of actual Black Owned brands?

Let's step back for a minute and consider this: how many truly Black Owned beauty brands can you name? Vera Moore, one of the first Black-owned brands, established her own line of skincare products for black women in 1979. Iman’s eponymous brand, which has been proudly serving "women with skin of color," officially launched in 1993.

I shared a few brands here not that long ago, but in comparison to the number of brands that exist who market toward the Black Demographic but are not, in fact, Black Owned, the number is staggeringly low.

But what is worse is that there are brands that are, instead of operating in transparency, choose to Blackface their image to appear Black Owned while keeping down actually Black Owned Brands.

"If you thought of Black Opal, Black Radiance or black|Up, the gag is they’re not actually black-owned," says Jasely Molina, writer for The Fader. "And though they do make products designed for black skin, many black-owned beauty brands have suffered from a lack of visibility." 

Visibility is huge, especially in the beauty space. Black Owned brands are often overshadowed or even threatened by Black marketed brands, which results in many of Black Owned brands remaining less well known or even going out of business.

One of the brands that find themselves in this predicament is BLK+GRN, a "marketplace connects Black women with natural lifestyles to high-quality, toxic-free brands.". Since Black Opal has rebranded as BLK/OPL (owned by Mana Products) they lay claim to "BLK" and is currently opposing BLK+GRN's trademark, despite the two brands being in two very different areas of the beauty space. 

"BLK + GRN was founded with the purpose of connecting Black women with all-natural products without compromising their values, their health, or their standards." said the company's owner, Dr. Kristian H. in her piece on Medium. "We believe firmly in the power of supporting small Black-owned brands, and we exist as the antithesis of the actions of Black Opal, and others like them. We are pushing against the colonization of the marketplace."

But in pushing against Black Opal, BLK+GRN, an "actual Black-owned, Black-run, and Black-affirming company that supports over 65 Black women-owned brands" is now in danger. Litigations costs, something Mana Products could sneeze at, would literally strangle BLK+GRN into non-existence. Sidenote: BLK+GRN has launched a GoFundME just to be able to obtain their trademark.

Black Opal's Instagram vs Blk+Grn's Instagram

blackup's Instagram

In the meantime, this revelation comes as news to all of us who have supported brands such as Black Opal, Black Radiance, and black/Up. I was ecstatic to see black/Up in Sephora, even snagged a few of their products believing I was supporting Black Business. I mean, look at their Instagram and their branding, how could I have known they weren't Black Owned? Same for Black Radiance.

Guys, we have been Black Fished by brands masquerading as Black Owned. And I am not here for it.

It is not that a company that responsibly creates products for Black Women must be exclusively Black Owned. It's that any company that does so should not do it at the expense of those within that community. Sure, care about Black Women, we have only been yelling about that forever. But don't solely care about my dollars, care about my humanity and community as well.

Meaning, do not unjustly "stop my bag". Or the bag of my people.

I say all of this to say this: Sis, if you really are "about that action" of supporting Black Owned, be sure that the brands you are supporting are truly Black Owned, not masquerading as such while attempting to keep actually Black Owned brands down, all while are simply looking to profit from the Black community. Do your research, like I will be moving forward. And don't directly support brands that are opposing the brands created for us, by us. I understand capitalism and all, but not at the cost of cultural responsibility.

Ultimately, there is room for all of these brands. Black Opal and the like can still share their products and amplify Black Women as tastemakers and trendsetters while BLK+GRN, knowing the balance of health AND beauty, like Black Owned Beauty brands can promote smaller, healthier and more sustainable skin care products. There is room for us all.