The Makeup of Racism: The Problem With Limited Shade Ranges

Despite the evolution of racial representation throughout popular culture, some make-up brands are having a tough time concealing their lack of progress.

Since the beginning of time, makeup has been used as a form of expression. Some of the biggest modern trends revolve around cosmetics, and as a young Black person who consumed lots of makeup-related media growing up, I have begun to notice discrepancies in the accessibility of makeup between different groups. Years of Youtube-based beauty influencers gave me makeup tips and tricks, but when I go to try them out, the results are never what I see online. My shades are often harder to find, and certain products, like blush or lipsticks, are formulated to fit only paler skin tones. I didn’t realize until I was much older that this was a product of racism — prompting me to analyze the past and present messages being portrayed by some of the biggest makeup brands.

Inclusivity in the beauty industry hasn’t existed historically, and many companies still struggle with providing products suitable for all races and ethnicities. In the past 10 years, Americans have spent $500 billion on beauty products. In 2021, the industry was worth $60 billion, with $6.6 billion being spent by Black consumers. Black people make up about 12.4% of the US population, yet they contributed about 11% of yearly revenue. This wouldn’t be a problem if Black people were adequately represented in the beauty industry, but, unfortunately, they are not.

According to Mckinskey.com, “Black brands make up only 2.5 percent of revenue in the beauty industry.” This isn’t to say that black brands don’t exist, or that they wouldn’t be successful, in fact, the majority of Black consumers report that they prefer Black-owned brands, instead, Black-owned products are simply inaccessible to most. Popular retailers, such as drugstores, tend to lock up products made specifically for minority women, whereas products for white women are readily available on shelves. This is not only inconvenient, but implies that the people buying these products are more likely to steal, which is racism in its own right. Black consumers clearly want to purchase the products made for them, but that is nearly impossible when only 4-7% of beauty brands carried by specialty beauty, drug, grocery, and department stores are Black brands. The lack of representation in the beauty industry is not only racist, it’s economically unsound. Adding Black-owned brands to the mainstream of the industry would bring its value up by $2.6 billion, not to mention the impact that could be had if other minorities, such as Latine and Asian-owned brands were popularized in the same way.

This brings us to the shade range problem. Historically, makeup brands have not prioritized shade diversity in their products. Before September 8, 2017, and the launch of Fenty Beauty, most brands sported foundation lines of about 12-15 non-inclusive shades. The “Fenty Effect ” is widely recognized as the turning point in makeup inclusivity, forever changing the way that brands release and market their products. After Fenty, many brands scrambled to achieve the success of Rihanna, who began her empire with 40 shades of the best-selling Pro Filt’r Foundation. Despite this new standard, Tarte Cosmetics released a foundation that caused uproar in the makeup community.

In 2018, Youtube personality Jeffree Star created a video that changed the makeup world forever. Star is known for his unapologetically honest makeup reviews, and when Tarte Cosmetics released the foundation version of their iconic Shape Tape concealer, he had lots to say. Upon the time of its much-anticipated release, the product included only 15 shades, 11 of which were suitable for only the palest of consumers, leading to dark-skinned or even medium-skinned individuals having just four shades. Looking at the original line, there is not one shade that I think would’ve been a decent match for me.

Star’s video was a turning point for me as a young consumer. It was the first time I realized how little I was represented within the industry, which was confusing and disheartening as a 12-year-old girl who was beginning to love makeup. Looking at all of the shades, it is clear that this product is not meant for minorities. This can also lead to feelings of self-doubt and insecurity for minorities, who are literally unable to participate in the biggest trends, which can be isolating, especially when you are surrounded by white people who easily fit into the standards of beauty.

Star wasn’t the only one to publicly slander Tarte: influencers Jackie Aina and Alissa Ashley also gave in-depth reviews of the foundation. “Enough is enough and you guys (Tarte) need to be more inclusive,” Ashley said in her own video. Tarte did issue an apology via Instagram Stories, saying that they were working on the release of darker shades, although many people felt that the brand was not worthy of forgiveness. This past-due apology sent the message that people of color were an afterthought to Tarte — just another confirmation of the racism present in the industry.

(Image reprinted from https://www.youtube.com/user/jeffreestar)

Preview of Jeffree Star’s tell all video on Tarte Cosmetics.

Tarte’s foundation was released after the founding of Fenty Beauty, whose entire message was to exemplify inclusivity within the beauty industry. The fact that Tarte Cosmetics failed to catch up to this new standard and then made excuses to cover their grave mistakes is very telling of what the brand stands for.

To put the shade range problem into practice, I decided to take a variety of shade-match quizzes on brand websites and test their accuracy. I’ve always had a difficult time finding my shade in stores, let alone online, due to my unique and non-white complexion. I have only ever purchased one perfectly matched foundation: the MAC Studio Radiance Face and Body Sheer Foundation in shade C4. I used this product as a reference shade as I took the quizzes. I then took a trip to my local Sephora to test the results.

The number of makeup brands and foundation variations is growing rapidly, which made narrowing the scope of this experiment very difficult. After much deliberation, I settled on Tarte Cosmetics, Fenty Beauty by Rihanna, and Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez. Tarte and Fenty are obvious choices, as they have been compared historically for their differing messages. Rare Beauty was launched in 2020, and Gomez says that her goal with the brand is to “have open conversations around beauty and mental health,” which would “change the industry by breaking down unrealistic standards of beauty together.” Her perspective is admirable, and with her rebranding from Disney socialite to a mental health advocate, coupled with her increasing presence in the media, her brand fits well into this experiment.

First, I took a quiz with Fenty Beauty. This quiz, available to take on mobile devices, is the only one that scanned my face prior to picking my shades. Because of this, I expected the match to be the most accurate, however, it was actually the least accurate of all three brands. Online, I was matched with shades #240 and #255 in their Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Powder and Longwear Liquid Foundations. My local Sephora only carried shades #240 and #250, both of which were way too light for me. I decided to be re-matched by a Sephora employee, who recommended shade #280, which was almost perfect. I was also recommended shade #7 in their Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint, although after browsing in-store, I settled on shade #11.

(Image reprinted from https://fentybeauty.com)

Shade Finder quiz available on Fenty Beauty’s Website.

Despite its historically problematic past, Tarte’s shade match quiz is very accurate. I was recommended the Babassu Founcealer Skincare Foundation in shade 38S (medium-tan sand). While Sephora doesn’t carry the foundation or Tarte’s infamous Face Tape, they do have the Maracuja Juicy Glow Tint. I ended up finding this product in the same shade I was recommended online, and it was the closest match to any of the Tarte products I looked at. Despite this, I was discouraged by the quiz itself, which featured a limited number of skin-tone ranges, going only from “light-medium” to “tan-deep.” This was shocking to me, as the lack of growth within the brand became even more clear. Even though the Face Tape Foundation now includes 40 shades, five years later, the quiz does not reflect that diversity.

(Image reprinted from https://tartecosmetics.com)

Shade finder quiz available on Tarte Cosmetics’ website.

Rare Beauty was easily the most impressive product, although the shade match was a bit inaccurate. Turns out I’m not the only person who has experienced these flawed results. Upon arriving at Sephora, I was greeted by a Rare Beauty representative, who told me that the quiz rarely gives a perfect match, and she offered to help me find my shade. The website recommended the classic Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation in shade #380W as my primary shade, as well as shades #370N and #400W as alternates. The representative and I settled on shade #390C, and although this doesn’t seem like a huge difference, the contrast between warm and cool tones has a significant impact. While I was almost fooled by the money-sucking allure of Sephora, I restrained myself from buying the Rare Beauty tinted moisturizer…though I can’t promise that I won’t be placing an order soon.

(Marlee Turner/The Jaguardian)

Sephora’s Rare Beauty shade display.

Despite some positive results, I have mixed feelings about these quizzes and their validity. While it was helpful to have a guide when shopping for new products, I can’t say that I would’ve been happy if I had ordered these shades online. For this reason, I would recommend taking the trip to Sephora and either getting a consultation from an employee or simply using your best judgment. More often than not, you will be more successful this way.

The shade range problem is obvious, and after thinking about my own experiences, I was curious to know how it affected members of the New Roads community. My pool of responses included a majority of female seniors, many of which identified as a part of a minoritized group. The overwhelming majority of participants were Black women, who all say that they have struggled with finding their shade. Senior Camille Willis says that the lack of representation in the beauty industry and influencer culture leads her to be misinformed about products and whether certain products would work for her. She says that even after shopping for foundation and getting shade matched from Sephora employees, the match still “wasn’t exact,” leaving her dissatisfied.

Similar experiences were had by Senior Loryn Murell when she got shade matched by a white MAC employee, stating that “white people don’t really know [Black] skin tones and how to match it properly.” Although she doesn’t typically wear a lot of makeup, Murell recognizes the shade range problem and Rihanna’s impact. She says that Fenty is her favorite brand because “Rihanna is a Black woman and [she] love[s] her. And her products are awesome.”

Adversely, white-passing students don’t often have issues with finding their shade. “Darker-skinned people have a really difficult time finding makeup that matches their skin tone. Oftentimes the darkest shade in terms of foundation is not even close to what the actual human skin tone shade range looks like realistically,” says senior Bella Witt, reinforcing the absurdity of many shade ranges.

So where does this leave us? Obviously, there is a huge problem within the industry that needs to be addressed. Most shade match software is inaccurate, and many brands have yet to catch up to the shade diversity standard set by Rihanna and Fenty Beauty. With the growing presence of influencers and social media trends, inclusive products are increasingly important. Not being able to participate in these trends simply due to a lack of availability is incredibly problematic and possibly detrimental to young makeup wearers. The responsibility of solving this discrepancy falls directly to big brands, who must reframe the way they approach beauty and diversity. Makeup should include all people, not just those with lighter skin.