This Black-Owned Beauty Brand Is Creating An Inclusive Line By Working With Actual Customers

The makers of setting powder that comes packaged like flour and nude lipsticks that smell like Nutella recently launched a caffeine-inspired spot corrector, the Cake Face Concealer. In hopes of making Cake Face suitable for all skin tones, Beauty Bakerie is enlisting help from ordinary beauty lovers to create an all-inclusive concealer line .

Expecting brands to create complexion products that actually work for varying skin tones isn't too much to ask for. Yet, the beauty industry still experiences instances of shade exclusion with product launches that consumers feel leaves certain skin tones out of the equation. Here to curb frustrations with the lack of diverse lines, Beauty Bakerie has major plans to give customers a front row seat to the production process of their star complexion product.

Kicking their Cake Face Concealer line off with only eight shades, Beauty Bakerie still had a ways to go to make their collection truly inclusive. But it turns out, releasing a limited range was a part of a master plan. To uncover what makeup lovers really needed in the new concealer, the black-owned indie brand created a survey that asks consumers about their complexion and what they think brands are lacking.

"Frustrated with inclusion and diversity? Us, too," read a statement from the brand on the survey's landing page. "Yes, there are only eight shades in our current collection, but we wanted you to have a seat at the table as we grow it."

Rather than keep their shade range as is, the dessert-themed company is inviting all customers, brand owners, and their own employees to help improve their current collection. The survey first asks for an email address, followed by three important questions regarding skin tone (dark, medium, deep, or light), what brands miss with concealer, and what foundation shade the consumer wears (MAC, NARS, and Fenty Beauty are the shade references).

The brand plans to take feedback from the survey to properly extend their shade range according to what customers want. Coming at a time when beauty lovers have been taking to social media to express disappointment with brands leaving many skin tones out of their lines, the concept behind the survey is commendable.

Even with very few shades in the current collection, it's worth noting that the Beauty Bakerie concealers still span a wide range of skin tones. There are two shades in each major category: light, medium, dark, and deep.

Limited shades or not, the brand always planned to consider the tones of all beauty lovers. "The #NoShadeLeftBehindAct was enacted when @cakeandcashmere began Beauty Bakerie," read an Instagram post from the brand on the concealers. The process “wasn’t hard to do, just costly”, the post adds, quoting brand founder Cashmere Nicole in reference to creating Cake Face to address both pale and deep tones.

It's worth applauding the brand for taking the funds and research to make a more comprehensive line. Given that Beauty Bakerie is a small, indie brand, it's probably not as easy to take on such a large project as it would be for a larger brand to do the same.

Beauty Bakerie definitely isn't the first to aim for diversity with complexion essentials. Kylie Cosmetics recently launched concealers with a diverse range and Marc Jacobs has a skin tone-flexing foundation in varying shades on the way. But Beauty Bakerie is taking a unique approach to the production process by getting those beyond their boardrooms and beauty labs involved.

If you're ready to give your two cents on the lack of shade diversity in the industry, here's your chance to really have an influence on the products a brand creates. The survey is only a click away.