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Cosmopolitan
a day ago
- Cosmopolitan
Ami Colé is closing: It's time to wake up before another Black-owned beauty brand disappears
I'm exhausted. Tired in a bone-deep, soul-sapped, can't-believe-we're-here-again kind of way. I almost didn't write this letter because it feels like déjà vu wrapped in heartbreak. The news that Ami Colé, one of the most beloved Black-owned beauty brands, is shuttering after a wildly successful four-year run is as devastating as it is familiar. We know the stats. They're damning. Less than 0.1 percent of venture capital funding goes to Black women entrepreneurs. That's not just a missed opportunity — it's an intentional failure of imagination, investment, and equity. I've dedicated my career to celebrating, uplifting, and advocating for diversity and inclusion in beauty. And yet, most days, it feels like I'm preaching to the choir or screaming into the void. I've used every platform I've been blessed to hold — my voice, my bylines, my seat at the proverbial (and sometimes literal) table — to spotlight the undeniable brilliance of Black-owned brands. And still, I watch them disappear one by one. So now, I'm talking to you: the billion-dollar conglomerates and investors with deep pockets. The legacy houses and corporate giants with the power and purse strings to change the narrative. Yes, I'm talking to you, L'Oréal Groupe, Estée Lauder Companies Inc., Unilever Global, Proctor & Gamble, Coty Inc., Shiseido Company, e.l.f. Beauty Inc., and all the rest. You with the billion-dollar budgets who know how to write the checks that shift culture and make us all feel oh-so-beautiful. You who made room for rhode, Drunk Elephant, OUAI, and Hourglass Cosmetics, to name a few (and no shade — those were solid plays). So, let's not pretend the bank accounts are suddenly empty when it comes to funding Black-owned brilliance. There is money. There is infrastructure. There is a proven formula. So, where's the disconnect when it comes to investing in brands that speak deeply, authentically, and powerfully to communities of colour? Ami Colé did that—and then some. This wasn't an underdog story waiting to be fixed. This was a brand that had already done the damn thing. Over $3 million raised. On shelves in 600+ Sephora stores. Media acclaim. Award-winning products. Loved by the likes of Oprah and Martha Stewart. A founder (Diarrha N'Diaye-Mbaye) who formally worked at L'Oreal and in product development at Glossier. Viral moments. Cult-status glosses. A community that showed up, showed out, and bought in. The consumers did their part. So, why wasn't that enough? I'm devastated not just for the brand but for what this signals to Black founders everywhere: That even when you build something with intention, revenue, and community, survival is not guaranteed, at least not without deep-pocketed allies who understand both the moral imperative and the market opportunity in protecting this space. Let me say this louder: Black-owned beauty brands aren't just for Black folks. And even when melanin-rich skin or textured hair is centred, there is still undeniable magic. The potential to scale is not a liability—it's an untapped goldmine. I'm not just calling for charitable donations or feel-good optics. I'm calling for strategic investments. And maybe even for seats on your boards for people like me—those of us who've built careers testing your products (and all your competitors), telling your stories, and turning casual browsers into lifelong consumers. We may not have actual MBAs, but we have MBAs in beauty. We are your brand whisperers, your trend forecasters, your cultural compasses. The question is, will you listen? I fully understand there are countless layers and valid nuances that make my DEI dreams harder than ever to realise. But right now, I'm writing to you as a devoted beauty storyteller whose professional purpose — and passion — is to help move this industry in the right direction. So, I will continue to dream of a world where I have the capital to be the one writing ginormous checks. But since I don't (yet), I will continue to use my voice to push those who do. Because Black and brown beauty deserves more than a moment. It deserves momentum— real and everlasting. This isn't about calling you out — I'm lovingly calling you in. Let this not be another eulogy. Let this be a turning point. With urgency, hope, and light, Julee Wilson Julee Wilson is Beauty Editor at Large at Cosmopolitan. Previously, Julee was Beauty Director at Cosmo and Global Beauty Director at Essence and has held various editorial positions at Huffington Post and Real Simple. She counts herself lucky AF that she gets to play with beauty products for a living and tell dope stories. And if you're as obsessed with beauty as she is, make sure to follow her on Instagram for plenty of product recs, natural hair inspo, skincare testing, and Black girl magic shenanigans.
San Francisco Chronicle
a day ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘Just plain horrible': Prolonged Caltrans construction in California resort town has locals fuming
Last winter, Jennifer Gilbert drove into Guerneville, but the bohemian town she'd loved since childhood seemed to be gone. Barricades choked block after block of Main Street. Construction vehicles and equipment were strewn about. Instead of stopping, she kept driving. 'I thought, 'Oh no what happened?'' the Woodside resident said. Fast-forward to June, and Caltrans construction barricades still lined Main Street, with seemingly no place for pedestrians to walk. Rivertime Restaurant and Bar owner Leslie 'Jo' Crane said she routinely found orange-and-white striped barricades blocking the door of her business without warning, but she couldn't afford to close so she would push them aside. 'It was ridiculous — people didn't realize we were open,' Crane said. The $6.6 million project to redo four blocks of sidewalks, launched last September, was supposed to wrap up before the crucial summer season when businesses earn most of their income. But the project has dragged into July. Though most sidewalks have reopened in the past several weeks, allowing tourists to park and walk freely again, construction isn't fully done. A Caltrans spokesperson said the project is expected to be complete sometime this fall. 'It's been a mess,' said Nick Schwanz, Russian River Chamber of Commerce president and owner of Solar Punk Farms, a queer-run regenerative farm and event space. 'Welcome to Caltrans,' Sonoma County Supervisor Lynda Hopkins said. Caltrans spokesperson Jeffrey Weiss said the project to upgrade Guerneville's sidewalks to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act was originally slated to begin last summer. Caltrans delayed the project start 'to minimize construction impacts on merchants during the town's busy summer season,' he said in an email. Once underway, the project hit multiple delays, such as when 'the contractor encountered unexpected underground utility wires that were inactive and not previously documented,' he said. Philip Tymon, a longtime Guerneville resident and chair of volunteer-run nonprofit River Arts, said he and others were initially excited that the sidewalk project might create opportunities to spiff up the gritty, bohemian outpost and make it look and feel like a gateway to the towns and beaches dotting the lower Russian River. But workers poured concrete in an area slated for native plant gardens. Schwanz and Hopkins said the chamber received Caltrans' blessing to paint a rainbow crosswalk where westbound River Road enters town — an apt symbol for the LGBTQ oasis. But Hopkins said they were informed this week the rainbow project was on hold because Caltrans would now require the county to seek a permit and easement to add color to pavement. 'We've had plans for rainbow crosswalks, we've had plans for a mural, we've had plans for plantings. And honestly Caltrans keeps changing its mind or making mistakes,' Hopkins said. Hopkins and business owners said it seemed that Caltrans was operating as if it was repaving a highway — as opposed to doing construction in the middle of a town where local businesses need to stay afloat. Ryan Leong, another Caltrans spokesperson, acknowledged that crews had mistakenly paved an area where the community had planned a garden and said it was working with the contractor 'to make that correction.' He said the agency was looking into the rainbow crosswalk issue but couldn't provide comment in time for publication. 'The current plans do not include any landscaping components,' he said in a statement. 'However, Caltrans will coordinate with local officials on any future efforts to add landscaping throughout the Downtown Guerneville area.' Leong didn't respond to the overall complaints from Guerneville about how the agency managed the project. Douglas DeVivo, owner of Blue Door Gallery, said he'd grown so despondent over the financial loss that he had begun planning to close his business for good. Many business owners reported their revenue had plummeted 30% to 50% so far this year, compared with last year. 'It was horrible, just plain horrible,' DeVivo said. Across the street at Piknik Town Market, owner Mags van der Veen said the impact 'was pretty severe.' 'People driving home from the coast — they wouldn't stop for lunch. They'd just keep on driving,' van der Veen said. Like many small towns across California, a state highway also serves as Main Street in Guerneville. That has left Guerneville residents few avenues to weigh in on how revamping their town — from business disruptions to aesthetics — might unfold. Guerneville is unincorporated and has no city council. The town's tax revenue flows into general county coffers. Hopkins represents the area in a sprawling district from Sebastopol to Fort Ross on the coast. 'It certainly should not take this long and be this painful and have this much economic impact,' said Hopkins, who for a time had to duck under yellow caution tape to get to her Guerneville district office. 'And yet we have zero authority over Caltrans.' The Russian River Chamber of Commerce held a fundraiser in May. Schwanz said the group distributed $18,000 among 26 businesses based on need — not enough, but something, he said. The project included widening sidewalks, installing 23 curb ramps to accommodate wheelchairs, adding traffic signals and sidewalk bulb-outs at corners crossings as well as two pedestrian beacons. It is also adding railings to the Fife Creek Bridge on the western end of town. The construction has dampened what is otherwise unfolding as a renaissance for the Russian River destination after a historic 2019 flood and pandemic-sparked business closures. New businesses such as the River Eclectic resort and swim club are drawing locals and visitors alike. Others are anticipated to open, including the Guerneville Social Club on Fourth Street. Hopkins said that some delays have been understandable, and she was told the contractor had no documentation for the pipes or old growth redwood stumps under the sidewalk's surface. Weiss also said that during the sidewalk excavation, crews 'noticed that the roadway drainage was in poor condition and extensive repairs were made.' 'To give them a small amount of grace, oftentimes old towns built a long time ago have unexpected challenges,' Hopkins said. 'And, yet, you should be prepared for that.' Today, there are signs the project is wrapping up. Rows and rows of barriers that blocked off Main Street sidewalks are mostly down. Bright white sidewalks have replaced the gritty and gray old concrete. Caltrans said the remaining work involves bump outs of the sidewalk at corners and signal lights to make pedestrian crossings safer. On a recent warm Saturday afternoon, people clinked glasses at sidewalk tables along the northern side of Main Street. Tan in Tevas and crop tops, a group of tourists stopped to look at a sun hat display outside a shop. Children skipped holding ice cream cones from Nimble and Finn's. U.S. flags flapped outside business doors — originally hung for the town's Fourth of July parade. Gilbert, who didn't stop last winter, was back on a recent July weekend and sat sipping sangria at a sidewalk table outside Trillium Winebar & Taproom, named for the flowers that thrive in the shade of redwood trees. Many business owners said they believed they would eventually rebound, but they want to help the next Main Street town on a state highway avoid a similar headache. 'If I had advice for the next community — get a lawyer,' DeVivo said.
CNBC
2 days ago
- CNBC
Coffee giant Nescafe targets Gen Z as consumption habits shift
ORBE, Switzerland — For almost a century, a nondescript factory in an unsuspecting town beneath the Swiss mountains has played host to some of the most widely consumed coffee trends brewed up by caffeine giant Nescafe. From the 1938 launch of its flagship soluble powdered coffee to freeze-dried granules and later coffee capsules, the Nestle-owned household brand is now targeting its latest iteration for the next generation of coffee drinkers. "We have to develop solutions specifically to bring young people into the Nescafe brand," Don Howat, global category lead for Nescafe at Nestle, told CNBC. For Nescafe, that means targeting the ballooning cold coffee market. Today, one-third (32%) of coffee consumed out-of-home is iced, according to company compiled estimates. For many younger consumers, namely Gen Z, it's often their first introduction to the ubiquitous drink. "Nescafe's heartland is really in the morning, drunk hot," Howat continued. "We're trying to move into a space which is throughout the day — more in the afternoon, consumed cold, retargeting that younger generation." "That provides a super exciting growth opportunity for Nescafe." Coffee is a big bet for Nestle, with Nescafe and sister brand Nespresso accounting for two of the company's six key priorities for 2025. It represents a return to the core for the world's largest food and beverage company, whose main lines include coffee, pet care and food under popular brands such as Nespresso, Purina and KitKat. Nestle's stock has lagged major rivals such as Unilever and Danone over recent years amid weaker sales growth and revised guidance, even as the sector at large has come under pressure from higher commodity prices and increased private label competition. CEO Laurent Freixe, who took the helm in September, has vowed to refocus the business, saying a slew of acquisitions under his predecessor had "weakened the fabric" of the company. "We want fewer, bigger, better innovations. We want breakthrough and impact," Freixe told a media event earlier this month, citing coffee as one of the categories with the highest rate of "clear-cut" wins. The firm's latest gambit, Nescafe Espresso Concentrate, nevertheless marks a new approach to product development — one it plans to extend to other categories. The cold liquid concentrate, which can be used as a base for chilled caffeine drinks, was developed in a research and development (R&D) accelerator and trialed in U.S. Kroger stores before its ultimate sign off. It is one in a stream of cold coffee products to flood the market lately, however the majority have been in the pre-mixed, ready to drink (RTD) space. Nestle says its goal is customization, with the concentrate designed to let consumers "hack" their coffee at home according to their preferences, for instance by adding milk, water, lemonade or other beverages. "Most young people have grown up with coffee cold … their expectation is for cold coffee, lots of flavors, textures, additions," Howat said. Launched in Australia in late 2024, the product has since expanded to the U.S., U.K., Canada, Japan, China and Singapore with plans for further markets underway. Meanwhile a collaboration with influencer Zach King is seen marketing the product at social media users. "It's achieving what we set out to achieve," Howat said. "It just takes the brand into a different space." The coffee giant is now hoping that by targeting new consumers and consumption habits, it could pave the way for further expansion into adjacent categories. That includes penetrating traditional tea markets like India, China and Japan, building out customization and premiumization, and targeting new consumption occasions. "What's interesting about younger consumers is they're drinking a lot less alcohol," Howat said. Successive studies have pointed to lower alcohol consumption habits among Gen Z compared to previous generations, sparking a surge in non-alcoholic and health and wellness-oriented alternatives. July research from an ISWR survey sought to debunk that narrative, however, citing the cost-of-living crisis as a source of the perceived abstinence trend. Nescafe nevertheless said it sees new scope to position coffee as an all-day product and sophisticated alcohol alternative. "When they socialize in the evening with their friends, they'd like to drink something which is adult but perhaps doesn't have alcohol," he continued. "That provides an opportunity for Nescafe to get into that space, perhaps with decaffeinated products, with cold products, indulgent products," he said.
