As the human body’s largest organ, the skin is one of our most precious features. Caring for such a delicate attribute should be nothing less than a thoughtful process full of deeply rich, nourishing ingredients that enhance our melanin, not take away from it. Being conscious of what we put on our bodies is only one step to healthy skin. With the range of products on the market, it’s beneficial to know about Black-owned skincare companies that create products specifically for people of color, addressing issues that were previously overlooked by traditional brands in the past.

Making up about half of the beauty industry, the range of skincare brands on the market can be overwhelming. With such an oversaturated market, it’s hard to believe that not too many years ago, Black individuals were left out of the equation when searching for products such as white-cast free sunscreen or simple ingredients like shea butter that deeply moisturize deeper skin tones. Within the last 10 years, there's been an explosion of Black-owned beauty brands founded by entrepreneurs that birthed companies out of frustration, lack, and the necessity for what was missing in their everyday lives. Choosing the proper products can be an expensive and time-consuming process but supporting smaller brands that prioritize naturally clean ingredients as well as uplifting their community is a great start in the right direction.

In honor of Black History Month, keep scrolling for a comprehensive guide to Black-owned skin brands, their stories, and how they aim to benefit people of color.

Topicals

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TOPICALS on Instagram: "Black Friday started a little early for us, so It’s the perfect time to get Faded. Shop our holiday deals online now. 🍒 - 25% off Bundles, excluding the Faded Starter Kit - 20% off all full size products, excluding Faded Eye Mask - Free Faded Eye Deluxe Sample on orders $100+"

Growing up, founder Olamide Olowe always wanted flawless skin. She knew her skin was different from what she saw on her favorite television shows, commercials, and fashion magazines but with time she learned the key to achieving great skin was making it look good, not the other way around. Developing Topicals with board-certified dermatologist and stem cell scientist, Olamide created a line of skincare products along with experts using ingredients, developing formulas that are efficient and gentle, free from harmful dyes, and scientifically proven to ensure effectiveness for all skin types.

Best Seller:Topicals' Faded, $38

Hanahana Beauty

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hanahana beauty on Instagram: "if you are looking for an energizing, morning scent to wake you up ☀️, we got you! our lemongrass shea body butter has quickly turned into a fan favorite! ⁠ ⁠ the goodness doesn't stop at the smell, though. our hero ingredients:⁠ ⁠ 💚shea butter⁠ 💚cocoa butter⁠ 💚mango butter ⁠ ⁠ all work together to moisturize, tone, + rejuvenate the skin. link in our bio to grab this goodness!"

In 2017, Hanahana Beauty began out of Chicago-based entrepreneur Abena Boamah-Acheampong’s longing to feel beautiful and confident in her own skin. Frustrated with the lack of transparency within the skincare industry, Abena decided to take it back to her family’s tried and true method of achieving moisturized, radiant skin with shea butter. Hanahana sources its shea butter-based products from the Katariga Women's Shea Cooperative in Tamale, Ghana while producing clean, homemade products with natural ingredients to uplift women of color.

Best Seller:Hanahana Beauty's The Best Sellers Set, $75

Buttah.

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Buttah Skin on Instagram: "We've got the secret to the best self-care routine ever...⁣ ⁣ ➡️ The Buttah Vibe Brush.⁣ ⁣ Our sonic pulsating Buttah Vibe Brush delicately massages your skin, stimulating and energizing skin on a deeper level.⁣ ⁣ Bringing some fun into your routine with our Buttah Vibe brush today 🙌"

It’s all in the name. Founded in 2018 by Dorion Renaud, Buttah’s products were created for melanin-rich skin to feel as smooth and soft as butter. Discovering the transformational properties of raw, organic, natural shea, this single ingredient inspired Dorion to create Buttah.

Best Seller: Buttah's Customizable Skin Kit, $60

KNC Beauty

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KNC BEAUTY® on Instagram: "💋Beauty Trend Forecast 2023💋 Brush up on your beauty skills and add an all-natural lip scrub to your daily routine! Get ahead of the curve with our exfoliating Supa Scrub duo that will help prep & prime your lips for morning lipstick or midnight kisses! KNC’s plant based Supa Scrub is made with: 🌱 Sunflower Oil: Essential fatty acids + Omega-6 help to reduce redness & inflammation 🌱 Shea Butter: Deeply moisturizes the lips with undeniable hydration, leaving them soft & kissable 🌱 Moringa Oil: Full of nutrients & antioxidants that help to protect your lips from external damage This gentle & easy to use set will help you get a headstart on better skincare habits for the new year 💁🏽‍♀️ Make sure to check out kncbeauty.com for global shipping on our entire lip care collection! x Product shot c/o @getluminous 💗"

The first all-natural, collagen-infused lip mask was inspired by KNC Beauty founder Kristen Noel Crawley after a trip through Don Quijote in Tokyo. After stumbling upon a whole world of lip masks overseas and realizing there were no options available here in the U.S., she decided to create her own. KNC Beauty was created for women to achieve injection-free, perfectly plump kissable lips in 5-10 minutes.

Best Seller: KNC Beauty's All-Natural Collagen Infused Lip Mask 5-Pack, $25

Flora and Noor

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FLORA & NOOR on Instagram: "Orange you obsessed with our Vitamin C Resurfacing Toner? It's packed with Vitamin C, pomegranate, aloe, and niacinamide to hydrate and brighten your skin. This powerhouse toner targets dark spots, wrinkles, and fine lines to visibly dazzle your skin. 🍊 Head over to our website to get yours today👏 #VitaminCtoner #resurfacingtoner #brighterskin #hydration #byedarkspots #byewrinkles #byefinelines #agelessskin"

The first Halal brand to launch at Ulta Beauty, Flora and Noor provides inclusive luxury skincare with organic and natural ingredients for those who appreciate clean beauty and the benefits of superfoods being “food for the skin.” Being Halal means products are permissible for Muslims which include benefits and advantages for skin's health and for the environment. In such a diverse world, all products are vegan, Halal, and cruelty-free, created for everyone to shop all-natural luxury skincare.

Best Seller:Flora and Noor's Boost & Brighten Vitamin C Cleanser, $28

Black Girl Sunscreen

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Black Girl Sunscreen on Instagram: "Every Black Girl Sunscreen SPF serves a unique purpose. Which one is perfect for your skin type? Comment below ⬇️"

Black girls need sunscreen too and thus Black Girl Sunscreen was born. As women of color we were often overlooked when it came to protective products from UV rays, years of blotchy white residue was enough for founder Shontay Lundy. Founded in 2016, BGS launched with an SPF 30 made with melanated skin in mind, drying completely clear. Since then the company has expanded into a range of sunscreen options as well as SPF lip gloss.

Best Seller:Black Girl Sunscreen's Make it Glow, $19

Unsun

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Unsun Cosmetics on Instagram: "Have you met our EVERYDAY AFTER SUN? Please do. Healing dry and thirsty skin has never been easier! With the healing powers of baobab oil and prickly pear extract, this cold weather has nothing on this gem! Find it at your local @cvs stores today!"

Due to the lack of clean sunscreen options for women of color, Katonya Breaux founded Unsun Cosmetics in 2016. Banning over 1,700 ingredients she created clean, inclusive, no-residue options that are mindful of those using Unsun products as well as the environment they are being used in. A favorite among many, the mineral-tinted sunscreen has been a game changer for protecting darker skin tones from harmful UV rays while enhancing flawless skin.

Best Seller:Unsun Cosmetics' Hand Cream SPF15, $27

Eve Milan

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EVE MILAN New York on Instagram: "Our Even Tone Enhancer Serum is the perfect serum to layer on top of our new Ultra Lightweight Hydrating Gel. Vitamin C Vitamin E Antioxidant Rich Oils Head over to the website and snag this amazing skincare product and give it to someone you love. Even if that person is yourself. • • • • #evemilan #serum #vitaminC #skincare"

Eden Gilliam’s 11 years of experience in the skincare industry became the driving force behind Eve Milan New York 5-free skincare line. After years of hearing her clients complain about skin issues and masking insecurities with makeup, she was motivated to get clients to be comfortable in their own skin. Studying skin from within, Eden traveled abroad to learn about nutrition and how internal issues and diet affect skin health.

Understanding the importance of what goes into our bodies led her to pay attention to harmful ingredients within products she used which became the catalyst behind the birth of the products made free of sulfates, parabens, phthalates, artificial color, and fragrance to limit exposure to toxins.

Best Seller: Eve Milan's Brightening Vitamin C + CoQ10 Sheet Mask, $10

Pholk

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Pholk on Instagram: "No beauty secrets here! It’s hydration hydration hydration. Founder Niambi shows you how she layers the Honeysuckle Rose Face Mist, Supermallow Mylk, PerkUp EyeNectar and Featherlight SkinNectar to keep her skin hydrated and healthy in winter. Watch till the end for her go-to beauty hack for a glowy complexion. 🌟"

Created out of both necessity and frustration, Pholk was founded by Georgia-born skincare expert Niambi Cacchioli who found it challenging to match these countless skincare options available with her personal skin challenges. In a world full of inclusivity, Niambi still couldn't find the right products that directly treated her needs for combination skin so she created them. Pholk Beauty is a vegan-based, melanin-safe, cruelty-free range of products created for women of color targeting the root of dark marks and hyperpigmentation with holistic care.

Best Seller:Pholk's Aloe Lemon Balm Face Mist, $20

'JENTL

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‘JENTL LLC on Instagram: "Texture >"

Kiana Baldon is the founder of ‘JENTL, a vegan body butter brand that puts quality ingredients and self-care above all else. Created to nurture vulnerability and transparency through compassion, community, and self-discovery ‘Jentl was put forth with the intention to produce ethically sourced ingredients to soothe, energize and provide joy. Pronounced “gentle,” the base of all the products includes shea, cocoa, and mango butter.

Best Seller: 'JENTL's Original Body Butter, $16

Shea Radiance

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Shea Radiance | Body + Hair on Instagram: "Winter has got nothing on your skin when you use the Whipped Body Butter. 24-Hour Moisture is guaranteed👌 with no ashiness or dryness. Order at www.shearadiance.com ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ #shearadiance #skincareproducts #skincareroutine #smoothskin #shearadianceproducts #sheabutter #whippedbodybutter"

Shea Radiance started in the kitchen to solve co-founders Funlayo and Shola Alabi family’s overly dry skin and eczema problems. Using unrefined shea butter as a form of healing, they created beauty products to help women achieve a healthy-looking natural glow at any age. Known as “women’s gold,” shea butter sourced from West Africa used in their products creates a pathway of economic progress for women and their community.

Best Seller:Shea Radiance's Sensitive Skin Moisture Bundle, $50

Siyah Organics

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SIYAH ORGANICS on Instagram: "THIS or THAT | Facial Cleansers Edition 🌿 • 🧡 Moringa & Ginger cleanser for its anti-aging and glowing effects. OR 💜 Bissap & Lavender cleanser for its calming and brightening proprieties. • Comment your favorite 💕 • 100% NATURAL • ETHICAL • VEGAN • HANDMADE #naturalhealing #naturalmedicine #facialcleansers #thisorthat"

Established in 2019, women-owned Siyah Organics is both an American and Senegalese company. All products are tested and are 100% organically pure to ensure the highest quality of plants keeping everything fresh to maintain their healing properties.

Best Seller: Siyah Organics' Moringa x Ginger Facial Cleanser, $24

Natural Radiant Life

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Natural Radiant Life on Instagram: "Our newest GLOW IN FIVE bundle has all the products you need to unlock your glow in 5 easy steps! 🤯 Get your GLOW on with 5 easy steps today! #linkinbio #naturalradiantlife #bundles #skincarebundles #cleanser #eyecream #naturalskin #naturalbeauty #naturalhealthyskin #naturalskincareremedies #naturalskincarethatworks #naturalglowingskin #hydratedskin #hydrateyourskin #hydratingmist #naturalglow #glowyskingoals"

Empowering their community to take better care of themselves in every area of their lives, Natural Radiant Life was created out of love for nature-based products that breathe life into the skin. Long-time friends and co-founders Rhonda Daniels, LaKesha Gage-Woodard, and Sherry D. Fields set out on a mission to bring clean, organic, and effective skincare products to the market that proudly show outer and inner radiance. Encouraged to use products daily, these co-founders are promoting positive and healthy practices through natural products for a radiant life.

Best Seller: Natural Radiant Life's AM Moisturizer, $35

OAM by Ciara

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OAMskin on Instagram: "Introducing our Radiance System: 🖤 Vitamin C Hydrating Cleanser 🖤 Vitamin C Brightening Pads 🖤 20% Vitamin C Brightening Serum 🖤 Vitamin C Eye Revitalizer 🖤 Vitamin C Radiance Moisturizer Powerful, clinical-level products get you glowing without missing a beat. Our products are formulated with our proprietary Tri-C Pro-Peptide Complex™ that makes it so uniquely effective, yet so gentle. This system was made for all skin tones and skin types. Clinical-level self care made simple, just for you. Tap the link in our profile to stay in the loop. #OAMskin"

Who knew leveling up our skincare would take us to a new product line by one of our favorite entertainers? OAM, or On a Mission Skin, was founded by singer Ciara in collaboration with clinical professionals, skincare experts, scientists, and dermatologists to create a simple day and night routine for all skin types. Concentrating on its main ingredient vitamin C to hydrate and brighten, the simple step solutions to clinical skincare are even more accessible for all.

Best Seller:OAM by Ciara's Vitamin C Brightening Pads, $28

Fenty Skin

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FENTY SKIN on Instagram: "Kiss ashy skin goodbye ✌🏿✌🏽✌🏻 with our #COCOACLEANSR Soothing All-Over Bar Soap 🧼 This beauty cleanses away dirt, oil and impurities for clarified skin + purified pores ✨ Unlock 🔓 all the tropical vibes as cocoa butter, shea butter + coconut oil create a rich lather that upgrades 📈 your in-shower experience with a beach-inspired scent 🚿 Cop #COCOACLEANSR + the #FENTYSKINSOAPDISH online at fentyskin.com 🛒"

From Fenty Beauty to Fenty Skin, Rihanna can do anything she puts her mind to and we will stan. Her latest project includes a line of products formulated for everyone to achieve beautiful skin. After years of experimenting with the best of the best products, Rihanna still felt there was something missing in the industry. In short, her aim was to create easy, hassle-free products for all to enjoy.

Best Seller: Fenty Skin's Instant Reset Brightening Overnight Recovery Gel Cream

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