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Increase awareness of DEI practices in the fashion and beauty industry

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Gain brand awareness and high levels of readership through influencer endorsements

Influencer partnerships allows for easily accessible metrics

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Create a magazine as a pratical guide, introducing the readers to inclusive practices

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Align all content with the goal of promoting DEI in the fashion & beauty industries

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Presentation deadline: 2nd August

Magazine deadline: 2nd August

Report deadline: 27th August

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Interviews to explain the importance of DEI and how to implement inclusive brand practices

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Quantitative research - Survey: Understanding consumer views and opinions on DEI and the impact it has on purchasing behaviors

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From Labrum to Telfar.

Back in 2020, when the fashion world was shaken by an industry-wide reckoning prompted by the protests for Black Lives Matter, Zerina Akers, the super-stylist responsible for all the beyond-fantastical looks in Beyoncé's Black Is King, founded a feed called 'Black Owned Everything', with the express purpose of supporting and promoting Black talent, 'For When The Trend Is Over'. It's a brilliant place to start this Black Friday. Curated by Akers - who has also worked with Michaela Coel, Megan Thee Stallion and Chloe x Halle - you can shop the edit via its website, blackownedeverything.co. Keep scrolling to discover - and shop - more Black-owned brands, big, small, and all across the world.

Built on the back of its Founder and Creative Director, Foday Dumbuya's formative years learning and growing in Sierra Leone, Cyprus and London, LABRUM was founded in 2014. The modern-day menswear brand tells the untold stories of West Africa to help bridge the gap between western and West African culture. The word LABRUM is a latin term for 'having an edge', and this sits at the heart of the brand's mission - to make honest, practical clothing rooted in simplicity, fit and a passion for detail.

You can't mention streetwear in the UK without mentioning Corteiz. Founded in 2017, by Clint, Corteiz has quickly risen to be one of he biggest brands in popular culture. Known for its die-hard fan base, the brand has been worn by the likes of Jorja Smith, Dave, Stormzy, and Central Cee and has gone on to have collaborations with Nike-selling it out in seconds. It undeniably 'rules the world'.
Brandon Blackwood

After making bags for years Brandon Blackwood rose to fame in 2020, when his 'End Systematic Racism Mini Tote Mini Totes' quickly became a viral sensation. Celebs such as Kim Kardashian, Ciara and Meg Thee Stallion all love the brand.

Tolu Coker, a British-Nigerian designer and versatile artist, channels her passion for social change through clothing, viewing it as a medium to celebrate community and foster inclusion. With endorsements from notable figures like Rihanna and Thandiwe Newton, the brand meticulously crafts its pieces in London, utilizing a blend of deadstock fabrics and upcycled materials through innovative techniques. Her journey began in 2018 when she established the brand after earning a degree in fashion design and textile print from Central Saint Martins.
Bianca Saunders

Drawing from her British and Jamaican roots, Bianca Saunders embraces design with a versatile approach, integrating cross-cultural references for a fresh and revitalised transformation of menswear. The brand was founded in 2017, and has been growing ever since, after being selected by the British Fashion Council as 'One To Watch' in 2018 and then later winning The 32nd Andam Grand Prix Fashion Award in 2021.
Magnifiq'ue

Magnifiq'ue came into existence in 2020 during the lockdown period, birthed by the creative mind of Victor. The initial motivation behind creating distinctive pieces was a personal desire to sway from conventional fashion norms. Victor experimented with his style for about a month until a friend suggested transforming this personal endeavour into a brand, anticipating widespread appreciation on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. 'The most popular product is definitely the black tracksuit we dropped last year September, I still restock that tracksuit to date simply because the logo on the hoodie has a massive meaning.'

After observing a prevalent lack of representation for minorities within the fashion industry, the founder, Yemio, embarked on a journey to address this imbalance. Loublac was made as a means to broaden access and opportunities for underrepresented individuals within the creative and fashion space. The journey of Loublac began on December 2nd 2019, and the brand has since been popularised by its iconic beanies, worn by the likes of Eva Apio.

Captivating front-row luminaries Skepta and Kim Jones with her debut of sex-charged, gender-fluid designs, Mowalola swiftly made her mark on the British fashion scene. Given her heritage as the child of two Nigerian designers, Mowalola's ascent seemed almost predestined. The eponymous brand, born in 2018, is recognized for its adept use of diverse textiles and slogans to craft non-traditional silhouettes that draw inspiration from the vibrant youth cultures of Nigeria and London.
Kwame Adusei

With a rich background spanning over a decade in luxury fashion, Kwame Adusei emerges as a fusion of Ghana West African heritage, presented to a global audience through a lens of 'practicality', 'modernity', 'sophistication' and 'maturity'. Established in 2021, the Kwame Adusei brand delves into the exploration and creation of concepts bridging cultures, prioritising quality, narrative, and ethical practices. The brand's creations have found favour among celebrities, adding an extra layer of allure to its captivating clothing.
Joélle London

Joélle London has carved its niche by embracing values of longevity, timelessness, and accessibility. Joélle places a strong emphasis on creating pieces that are not only fashionable but also multiversal, encouraging people to explore various ways of wearing and styling their garments. The brand is dedicated to offering a collection that stands the test of time, aligning with the principles of longevity and classic appeal. Popular items include the brands glam Vega SS23 low waisted leather skirt!
Farai London

Founded in July 2020 by the British-Zimbabwean creative mind Mary-Ann Msengi, Farai has carved a niche with its distinctive dresses. These garments are characterized by lively, psychedelic patterns, snug fabrics that accentuate the form and intricate cutouts.The brand has been seen on celebrities like, Kylie Jenner, and Lori Harvey. Farai also gained further prominence when the dresses made an appearance on ITV's Love Island.
Parallel X Studio

Established in 2021, Parallel X Studio, a London-based unisex accessories label, has quickly gained recognition, even catching the eye of celebrities like Julia Fox. This innovative studio, led by designer Tiffanie Alice, distinguishes itself by crafting wearable art. Each collection reflects Tiffanie's personal experiences and inspirations. At Parallel X Studio, the focus is on the "extra stuff" - accessories that not only complement your outfit but enrich your life, making us truly unique.

Self-taught designer Reece Yeboah rose to fame in 2013 with a popular debut project, which become a sell-out favourite among the likes of Future, Lewis Hamilton and Gucci Mane, but had to pause due to unforeseen circumstances. He found solace and reinvented his creative goals through fashion. 'Never give up. When you manage to keep going and turn things around, even though you're at rock bottom, that's everything', says Reece. His latest project, YEBOAH, celebrates his Ghanaian heritage and West London roots, particularly Notting Hill, making it an exciting emerging London brand.
Essentials Fear Of God

Founded in 2013, Essentials Fear of God was born at a time Jerry Lorenzo was taking time to focus on his life and faith. Since then, the brand has garnered support from celebrities like Kayne West and has become a go-to brand for timeless staples.

Hailing from South London, the concept of Aiyekan took root in 2018 and saw its official launch in 2021. What initially began as a private endeavour for its founders Samuel, Esther, and Wunmi has since blossomed into a thriving community. At its essence, Aiyekan draws inspiration from the Yoruba term 'Aiyekan,' translating to 'one life.' This brand transcends mere fashion; it serves as a poignant reminder to seize our passion every day, to prioritise the relationships that truly matter, and to contribute meaningfully to the world. Aiyekan encapsulates the essence of living life to the fullest, urging us to embrace each day as a unique opportunity.
Daily Paper

What started out as a music, art, fashion and culture blog run by friends Jefferson Osei, Hussein Suleiman and Abderrahmane Trabsini has turned into a fashion and lifestyle brand Daily Paper. Based in Amsterdam, but rooted in a rich African heritage, its clothes are unmistakably cool. The brand also recently designed team uniforms for a football team, Netherlands' AFC Ajax, as part of a collab with Adidas Football.

He's a prodigy of Virgil Abloh's, and one of the coolest names in the world of menswear. With his label, A-Cold-Wall*, Samuel Ross utilises recycled materials, collaborates with fellow artists, like Pa Salieu, and creates smash-hit partnerships with brands (Converse, Dr Martens and Mackintosh). His clothes are highly wearable, impressively futuristic and entirely deserving of the hype surrounding them.
Kemi Telford

Nigerian-born, London-based Yvonne Telford studied law and worked as a credit risk analyst before starting a blog and then a brand, Kemi Telford. Her 100% brushed cotton dresses feature joyfully colourful wax prints.
Maximilian Davis

Maximilian Davis was a break-out star of Fashion East - amassing a fan club including Dua Lipa, Kim Kardashian and Rihanna - and is now the creative director of Salvatore Ferragamo. For his eponymous brand's most recent collection, AW22, Davis drew inspiration from his grandmother, who emigrated from Trinidad to England in 1965, and the space-age futurism that defined that decade. 'That time was so incredible for fashion, and particularly in showcasing strong and powerful women. It's not fair to exclude Blackness from that story - so I wanted to rewrite the narrative.'

Established in London 2020, BY LUWA is a slow womenswear brand. Collections include limited premium pieces which celebrate the female form. Each piece effortlessly makes a statement and can live in your closet for a lifetime. 'We often struggled to find attainable quality pieces for our events and often ended up settling for pieces we could only wear once. BY LUWA was created to provide timeless options for your next occasion that can stand the test of tim', Toluwa told Grazia.

Growing up in Ghana, Cole's childhood was spent digging through flowerbeds and poring over the Encyclopædia Britannica. Her initial choice of career was forensic science and, while it wasn't one she eventually pursued - instead founding her eponymous brand in 2012 - she's still intrigued by what lies beneath the surface. 'I had a real fascination with people finding precious things in dirt.' Her pieces take the shape of the natural processes she finds so enthralling: stud earrings resemble a rock that's been eroded by rushing water; a cuff looks like molten magma. As part of her university course's business module to make a five-year plan, Cole included a desire to learn the art of lost-wax casting in the Ashanti region of Ghana. She was granted permission by the King, Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II, allowing her to work with his goldsmith, Nana Poku Amponsah Dwumfour. Earlier this year in August, Cole was announced as the inaugural curator of jewellery (diaspora) at the V&A. 'This is an opportunity to add to the existing collection through my lens as a maker, for which I'm honoured. The impact of this role on my own practice will be invaluable,' she said.
Thebe Magugu

This South African designer, based in Johannesburg but born in Kimberley, scooped 2019's LVMH Prize. Inspired by the everyday, such as his aunt's corrugated roof, and made using materials that hold intrinsic value (like red clay mud from a Lesotho healer that was used to hand-print cloth), Magugu's world is very much alive and well in his clothes. He's also - like some of the biggest brands out there - recently collaborated with Adidas, with statement activewear that celebrates kinship, culture and inclusivity.

Kerby Jean-Raymond has dressed the likes of Taraji P. Henson, Zendaya, Tessa Thompson and Laura Harrier. He's also the master of using the platform a fashion show provides to tell stories, whether they're about the Black pop culture icons that history has forgotten, like Sister Rosetta Tharpe, or about Black inventions, which was the focus of his first show as part of Paris Couture Week.
Brother Vellies

Who could forget Jodie Turner-Smith's snakeskin boots on the film poster for Queen & Slim? They were made by Brother Vellies's Aurora James, who collaborated specially with costume designer, Shiona Turini, on the project, and who founded her sustainable brand in 2013 to celebrate and sustain artisanal practices in Africa. 'I want to keep traditional African designer practices and techniques alive,' James told Grazia. In 2020, she founded 15 Percent Pledge, an organisation that lobbies major retailers to pledge 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned brands, and this year she was nominated for Accessory Designer of the Year at the CFDA Awards.

Seeing a gap in the market for clothes that cater to taller women, London-based fashion stylist Irene Agbontaen (who stands at 5'11" herself) created TTYA - Taller Than Your Average - for women who are 5'9" or over. Its tagline? 'An inclusive space for the excluded girl.' It also previously launched a shoe collection, available in sizes 4-13 on ASOS.
Sika Designs

In 2005, Phyllis Taylor founded Sika Designs, where the clothes are designed in London and handmade in Ghana, to prove that a fashion business can be both successful and ethical. She's previously collaborated with Afua Hirsch, the British-Ghanian journalist and author of Brit(ish), on a collection of printed puffer jackets, waist-cinched skirts, dresses and skirt suits, and also launched Little Miss Sika. As Taylor reminds us on Instagram, 'Remember to be bold in all things you do.'
Christopher John Rogers

Christopher John Rogers famously stitched his bold, beautiful and, often, larger-than-life designs from his Bushwick apartment until acquiring a Soho studio. With fans including Jodie Turner-Smith, Rihanna, Tracee Ellis Ross, Zendaya, Regina King, Lizzo and Tessa Thompson - as well as Vice President Kamala Harris - expect to see his name in lights for a long time.

For the finale of her show at NYFW SS23, Felisha 'Fe' Noel wanted to make a statement about retirement equality. Collaborating with TIAA, an organisation that helps people retire with confidence, Noel sent a couture gown down the runway that was made out of dollar bills. ''The Dre$$' represents the staggering potential $1.6 million dollars women miss out on in retirement savings,' Noel posted on Instagram.
Mateo New York

Matthew Harris, the self-taught fine jeweller behind Mateo New York, grew up in Montego Bay, Jamaica, as the son of a seamstress. Consider the pieces - from the 14-karat gold, quartz and diamond pendant necklace to the lapis lazuli ring - as future heirlooms.

Telfar's Shopping Bag, or the 'Bushwick Birkin' as it's called in social media circles, is an 'It' bag with a difference. Its fan club includes Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Solange and, instead of a one thousand dollar price tag, its mission statement is simple: 'Not for you, for everyone.' Its founder, Telfar Clemens, told The Guardian: 'Just looking at everyone with their paper shopping bags, I realised that this is a completely unisex silhouette. We measured a Bloomingdale's bag to make the first sample. When it came to the price, I based it on what a DJ might make in a night; that's what felt right for me.'

KIMEZE, the London-born eyewear brand launched in 2022, and values statement style, everyday versatility and holds exceptional quality at its core. Inspired by the founders' African heritage, the brand was birthed out of a desire to showcase diversity. The brand merges both London & Africa, and is meticulously handcrafted in Italy. These sunnies are perfect for everyday wear or if you just want to spice up a simple outfit. They're loved by Lewis Hamilton too!

Valérie Blaise's leather accessories brand, Vavvoune, specialises in accessories that are, 'Made to cue emotion'. Translation? The coolest selection of shoulder and top-handle bags that are designed in Brooklyn and made in New York's Garment District.
Wales Bonner

A recipient of LVMH's Young Designer Prize and the Fashion Awards' Emerging Menswear Designer Prize, both within two years of launching her brand, Grace Wales Bonner is a force to be reckoned with. Drawing on her dual heritage (her father is Jamaican, her mother English), and her love for 'history and research' as she told the The Guardian, a Wales Bonner collection isn't just something to wear, it's a story.
Casely-Hayford

The Casely-Hayford brand spans two generations of design talent, Joe Casely-Hayford OBE, who passed away in 2019, and his son, Charlie, who spent his childhood in his dad's studio. Joe's second hat was as creative director of Gieves & Hawkes so it's no surprise that Casely-Hayford has carved out a niche of its own in bespoke tailoring for men and women with a slow-fashion approach.

Akosua Afriyie-Kumi started her handbag label, AAKS, to showcase Ghanaian craftsmanship and create employment opportunities in Africa. Her vibrant raffia creations - some with ruffled fringes, others with pom-poms, and all with bags of personality - are all handwoven in Ghana.
Martine Rose

Martine Rose started out as a menswear shirting brand, making the shortlist for 2018's LVMH Prize, and draws inspiration from her Jamaican-British heritage and her city, that's London's, fascinating melting pot culture and music.
Nubian Skin

Nubian Skin, founded by London-based Ade Hassan MBE, is a skin-tone lingerie and hosiery brand for women and men of colour, hence its tagline, 'A different kind of nude.' With a comprehensive range of basics (from cotton briefs to bodysuits and slips) - as well as some beautifully embellished lace pieces - it's a game-changer in the market.
Janet's List

If you want to shop from as many businesses founded and run by women of colour as possible in the UK, look no further than Janet's List. It's a curated edit of jewellery and beauty brands, such as LB Beads, Ahima Jewellery and Sofia Latif, brought together by former barrister Janet Oganah. 'Janet's List is at the intersection of all the things I love: empowering women, diversity, business and digital technology,' she says. The website also offers online courses for would-be business owners.

This London-based footwear brand, founded by Shola Asante and Agnès Cushnie, saw a gap in the market for handcrafted footwear that caters to longer and wider sizes (37-46, available in standard and wide fit). Designed in the UK, and handmade in Portugal, you won't look back once you've slipped your feet into its snake-print, chain-link loafers.

Asantii's CEO, Maryse Mbonyumutwa, has ambitions to become the first global contemporary fashion brand to come out of Africa. Through Asantii's parent company, Pink Mango, she opened three factories in Rwanda, creating 4,000 jobs and committing to the upskilling of workers. Using fabrics sourced in Africa - organic cotton from Madagascar, Faso Dan Fani woven textiles from Burkina Faso, to name just two - the factory-to-consumer business model means that prices are good, while the designs (produced by 14 design consultants from 12 countries in Africa) are directional yet wearable.
Sabirah by Deborah Latouche

Deborah Latouche's demi-couture brand is all about modest clothes for all women. Specialising in the most exquisite occasionwear - think balloon-sleeved blouses, full skirts that swish against the ankle and dramatic capes - Latouche is on a mission to prove that, for the modern modest dresser, covering up can still be a statement.

Ronan Mckenzie's Selasi is designed, 'To command yet be so gentle on the tongue. Giving attention to what it is that caresses my body every day.' You can shop the multidisciplinary creative's long-sleeved bodysuits, layered crop tops, knitted leggings and high-necked, body-caressing midi dresses as part of the brand's collaboration with Browns Focus.

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The Best Black-Owned Fashion Brands And Businesses To Support

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From Christoper John Rogers to Telfar, these are the Black-owned fashion businesses to support now. Read more on Grazia.

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Black-Owned British Fashion and Beauty Brands to Support Now and Forever

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Support the Black-owned fashion and beauty brands we know and love by reading our guide to the UK’s up-and-coming and beloved designers and names.

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Twenty-one per cent of Black-owned businesses believed that they would not survive the Covid-19 pandemic. Only five per cent of white-owned businesses said the same. As Black Lives Matter protests flooded cities across the world after the unjust death of 46-year-old African-American George Floyd, the fashion industry committed to playing its part in combating systemic racism. "We can't make any more excuses: this is 2020," British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful said in an essay published in June 2020, speaking of the "rage and sadness and fear" he felt following the senseless loss of Floyd's life. "There is a new generation rising through the ranks, and they deserve better. The time to act is now."

Fast-forward to 2023, and while steps have been made to address the historic imbalances, the fashion industry still has a long way to go when it comes to true equality and equity. However, what is unequivocal, is the ever-growing list of Black-founded fashion brands that continue to impress with their innovative and boundary-breaking designs.

From tailoring talents of Casely-Hayford and the sportswear-inspired style of Saul Nash, to Tolu Coker's corseted elegance and Christopher John Rogers's retina-searing brights, there's a whole new generation of Black talent rising through the ranks.

Scroll down to see and shop the 27 Black-founded brands to celebrate this Black History Month, and forever.

Tolu Coker

British-Nigerian designer, Tolu Coker, launched her eponymous label in 2018 and has gone from strength to strength with her elegantly tailored designs that are made in London from a mix of deadstock fabrics and upcycled materials. Inspired to use fashion as a vehicle for social change, her creations are rooted in community, however that hasn't stopped global stars, including Rihanna and Thandiwe Newton, from paying attention.

Feben

A graduate of Central Saint Martins where she completed her MA as an Isabella Blow scholar, Feben's (who goes by first name only) eponymous brand is all about dramatic silhouettes, texture, and surrealist references. In her most recent show emblazoned lycra dresses with collages of Salvador Dali's Gradiva - the ultimate meeting of art and design.

Saul Nash

Inspired by choreography, a desire to create technical garments for movement sits at the core of Saul Nash's collections. Raised in North East London, the Central Saint Martins alumnus established his eponymous brand in 2018 and in the space of just five years he became an LVMH semi-finalist and awarded the prestigious International Woolmark Prize 2022 and the Queen Elizabeth II award for British Design in the same month.

Mowalola

Since graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2017, Lagos-born, London-based designer, Mowalola Ogunlesi, has dressed the likes of Naomi Campbell, Solange, Skepta and Barbie. Her work is a full-throttle, skin-clinging homage to subcultures from Lagos to London, infused with music, sex and politics. Just don't brand her "the African designer". "The conversations that I want people to be having in Nigeria are the same conversations that people are having here in London," she says. "At the end of the day, I'm just a designer making shit that I want to make."

Christopher John Rogers

Christopher John Rogers has dressed a galaxy of stars - including Tracee Ellis Ross, Michelle Obama and Cardi B - who love the Louisiana-born designer's joyful bursts of colour and old-school salon sensibilities. "For me, it's about truly taking up space, not feeling like you have to shrink yourself down," Rogers has previously told British Vogue. "Whether they make you feel more grandiose or confident, or they lift you when you're feeling subdued, I always want to make clothes that feel like a smile or a hug."

Wales Bonner

Aymer Maria

Inspired by ancient Greco-Roman Classical architecture and religious structures found in West Africa, Aymer Maria's lust-worthy jewellery is made in the UK using recycled metals and ethically-sourced gemstones. "Ruth's West African heritage is continually referenced, reinterpreting jewellery as treasured adornment and regalia", the brand states. "Our collections pay homage to ancient civilisations, reimagining historical architecture and relics that stand the test of time."

Kai Collective

Kai Collective is a London-based womenswear brand that was founded by content creator, Fisayo Longe, and was inspired by her hobby for collecting fabrics on her travels. It was the swirl-print Gaia dress that thrust the brand into the social media spotlight back in 2020, after Longe wore it to an event, and the interest hasn't slowed down since. A must-see for cute two-pieces and second-skin tops.

Labrum

Founded in 2014, Labrum London is a menswear brand that combines British tailoring with West African design. Inspired by founder and creative director, Foday Dumbuya's, formative years growing in Sierra Leone, Cyprus and London, the brand has become of the buzziest names on the fashion week calendar, and in May, he won the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design, a prize presented to him by King Charles III.

Martine Rose

LemLem

Model-turned-designer Liya Kebede founded LemLem after a trip to her native Ethiopia introduced her to a group of traditional weavers who no longer had a market for their work. The fear of watching "Made in Africa" tags become extinct drove her to create a sustainable platform to showcase their centuries-old techniques using locally-sourced cotton. LemLem's breezy resortwear is nothing short of divine.

Brother Vellies

In the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, Brother Vellies founder Aurora James published a manifesto urging major retailers to commit to buying 15 per cent of their products from Black-owned businesses. An essential petition, 15percentpledge.org, which calls on the industry to #buyblack and aims to generate one million signatures, followed. "The fashion industry is my family, it's my community," she told British Vogue. "Some members are like my rogue uncles, who are just missing the script a little bit. They need to turn up to the barbecue with the facts straight."

A-Cold-Wall

Virgil Abloh's former protégé Samuel Ross once donated the entirety of his NEWGEN bursary to a former employee (emerging designer Eastwood Danso), to help the next generation of creatives. During the Justice For George Floyd protests, Ross pledged £25,000 to support Black-owned businesses spread across 10 individual grants, along with a £10,000 donation in financial aid to Black Lives Matter. The fashion wunderkind - known for turning utilitarian staples into his luxury menswear proposition, A-Cold-Wall - is a positive force for change.

Bianca Saunders

Royal College of Art graduate and NEWGEN recipient Bianca Saunders creates menswear that explores gender and draws on her Black-Caribbean roots. She has a unique way of cutting clothes that captures the wearer's movement, and twists everyday essentials, like shirts and suiting, into interesting propositions.

Kenneth Ize

Nigeria-born, Vienna-raised Kenneth Ize routinely designs some of his bold tailored separates via WhatsApp chats, because of the remote location of some of his hand-weavers in Nigerian villages. The sustainable aso oke technique, developed by the Yoruba people to create traditional cloth for celebrations, has amassed fans including Beyoncé, Naomi Campbell and Donald Glover.

Telfar

Casely-Hayford

Heron Preston

San Francisco-born Heron Preston helped run streetwear collective, Been Trill, before launching his eponymous brand in 2017. The Hadid and Jenner sisters are fans of the multi-hyphenate's particular brand of street-cool, which has an environmentally-conscious core.

Duro Olowu

Off-White

Stella Jean

Stella Jean shines a light on multiculturalism and diversity through her designs, which are remarkably joyful and decorative considering the subject matter they represent. Jean's autumn/winter 2020 lookbook, for example, featured Italians who had been subjected to racial prejudice. Every flounce and burst of colour they wear is intended as a force for change.

Cushnie

Carly Cushnie's sleek silky separates are effortlessly flattering because the designer and CEO of her brand understands what women really want to wear. Testament to this are the individuals who model in Cushnie lookbooks - actor La La Anthony, jewellery designer Jennifer Fisher, activist and lawyer Meena Harris, stylist Kate Young and model Veronica Webb have joined Cushnie's mother on previous shoots. Hers is a confidence-boosting label.

Hanifa

Thebe Magugu

Thebe Magugu is a South African fashion designer who has plenty of accolades to his name, including the 2019 LVMH Young Fashion Designer Prize and a finalist position in the 2021 International Woolmark Prize. Having launched his namesake label in 2017, he has also already collaborated with a number of other big names in the industry, including Dior, Adidas, and AZ Factory, and counts Rihanna as a fan.

Connor McKnight

Drawing inspiration from both American history and his personal heritage, Connor McKnight created workwear-inspired designs with a polished twist. "A lot of the times my collections follow these themes of the Black mundane," McKnight told Vogue at a preview of his spring/summer 2024 collection. "In the past they've been more concrete, things like family or the home, but this season I wanted to tackle something more emotional."

Daily Paper

Daily Paper is an Amsterdam-based menswear and womenswear brand that was founded in 2012 by three childhood friends, Hussein Suleiman, Jefferson Osei, and Abderrahmane Trabsini. Originally launched as a blog in 2008, the brand's designs encapsulate the founders' shared love of music, art, fashion, culture and interest in African culture and history. Expect contemporary streetwear fused with traditional prints and patterns.

Ciriaco

Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Ashley Ciriaco created the blueprint for Ciriaco at college and in 2020 launched her first bag. Inspired by the Noughties styling of shows such as Sex And The City, Ciriaco's baguette-shaped designs are a must-see for Y2K-lovers. At the top of our list? The Ashley denim buckle bag.

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27 Brilliant Black-Founded Fashion Brands To Fall In Love With Now

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From Labrum to Tolu Coker, these are 27 brilliant, Black-founded fashion labels to fall in love with now.

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Credit: Photo credit: Noam Galai/Getty Images

These up-and-coming fashion brands have yet to be platformed but they have carved out their own lane in fashion, so 21Ninety rounded them up.

It's been proven before that the space of fashion hasn't always been welcoming to Black designers. There have been some great strides in recent years like Black in Fashion Council and Black Fashion Fair. These have aided in the visibility of uplifting Black-owned fashion brands. Still, there are some up-and-coming brands that have yet to gain widespread recognition. These brands have carved out their own lane in fashion with unorthodox and new innovations that deserve acknowledgement.

How to Seek out Up-and Coming Black Owned Brands?

One of the most effective methods for discovering up-and-coming Black-owned brands is through social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Utilizing hashtags such as #BlackOwnedBusiness, #SupportBlackOwned, and #BuyBlack can lead you to a surplus of new brands. Following influencers and accounts dedicated to promoting Black-owned businesses can also provide recommendations and introduce you to brands that may resonate with your style. Additionally, online marketplaces such as Etsy, Amazon, and Shopify often feature sections or tags specifically for Black-owned businesses, simplifying the process of finding curated lists or specific categories highlighting these brands.

Under the leadership of Chioma Nnadi at Vogue, there has been a notable spotlight on Black-owned and up-and-coming young brands on Vogue.com or Vogue Runway, offering increased visibility and introductions to Black-owned brands who deserve the spotlight, so much so, they curated a list of 89 Black-owned brands to shop.

21Ninety has rounded up some of our favorite up-and-coming Black-owned Gen Z and Millennial brands.

Tia Adeola

Tia Adeola is known for her intricate ruffles, exaggerated silhouettes, and and a soft color palette that challenge traditional notions of femininity and glamour. She draws inspiration from diverse and "divine" sources, including art history and her Nigerian heritage. Doing so results in collections that are both visually striking and culturally rich. If you're looking for going out tops and dresses that surpass the standard body con, then the Ruffle dresses and tops are for you.

Diotima

Photo Courtesy of Photo credit: Bergdof Goodman

Diotima's collections are a celebration of unorthodox designs and individuality. They embrace a range of styles, silhouettes, and textures to that take on an islander or Caribbean inspired style in a knit wear form. The knits are intricately designed to take on new shapes and forms. These manifest into effortlessly chic ready-to-wear pieces to statement-making couture pieces.

Head of State

You may have seen Evan Mock's Gilded Glamour 2022 Met Gala look. Yes, that was Head of State. Head of State's collections are a bold fusion of heretical prints, unexpected textures, and avant-garde silhouettes. They reflect the brand's commitment to pushing boundaries and challenging conventions of luxury in Black spaces. From casual jeans and statement outerwear to tailored suits and luxe loungewear, each piece exudes a sense of masculine sophistication.

Mowalola

Photo Courtesy of Photo Credit: Mowalola

For punk lovers who have long sought after Vivienne Westwood's 90s Archive punk pieces, Mowalola offers a modern interpretation. As a creative mastermind for brands like Gap and Yeezy, Mowalola's designs celebrate sensuality, self-expression, and a punk-centered ethos. Drawing inspiration from her Nigerian heritage, British punk upbringing, and global pop culture, her pieces fuse the best aspects of each cultural experience. Mowalola's signature aesthetic combines provocative graphics, diverse silhouettes, and striking prints, resulting in pieces that command attention and have sparked controversy in the past.

House of Aama

Photo Courtesy of Photo Credit: Shopbop

Resort wear all the time? Yes please! Telling pan-African diasporic stories through clothes is what this mother-daughter duo does best. From the antebellum South to the Great Migration and beyond, House of Aama explores the complexities of Black identity and resilience. They pay homage to the ancestors who paved the way for future generations.

Meticulous attention to detail characterizes House of Aama's designs. They are known for luxurious fabrics and thoughtful design. From heirloom-quality dresses and blouses to statement outerwear and accessories, each piece is a work of art. The work reflects the brand's commitment to authenticity, and cultural pride.

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The Best Gen Z and Millennial Black-Owned Fashion Brands - 21Ninety

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These up-and-coming fashion brands have yet to be platformed but they have carved out their own lane in fashion, so 21Ninety rounded them up.

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Qualitative data

Personal accounts

Individual experiences

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Quantitative data for survey response analysis

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Observation: The fashion & beauty industries do not do enough to promote DEI yet DEI awareness leads to more inclusive industry practices

Qualitative primary research methods (interviews with people in the industry)

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In-depth research into how the fashion & beauty industries and society as a whole will benefit from brands implementing more inclusive practices

Research into how DEI shapes consumer behaviour

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Mixed Method: Quantitative and Qualitative data

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Conduct primary research at the beginning of the project to inform conclusions and best practices for recommendations

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• Primary research
• Secondary research
• Qualitative research
• Quantitative research
• Interviews
• Questionnaires
• Observations
• Surveys
• Ethical consent forms

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Substitute traditional narratives in fashion & beauty with stories centred on marginalizsd voices and DEI practices

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Combine fashion & beauty content with actionable DEI strategies to create a hybrid magazine that offers inspiration and practical advice and aspirational high fashion content

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Adapt the content to appeal to influencers as they will be promoting the magazine on their social media so it would be useful to provide practical advice that speaks directly to them on how to incorporate DEI strategies into their social media strategies

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Modify the magazine's brand identity to reflect a more inclusive and diverse aesthetic, better representing the communities it aims to serve

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The magazine could be used as educational material for workshops, seminars, and DEI training sessions in corporate environments

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Eliminate any content not aligning with the magazine's DEI mission

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Include the promotion of on smaller, indepedent lesser-known brands as opposed to well-established industry players to shift the focus from the mainstream to the underrepresented

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Celebrating History's Black Iconcs in Fashion and Beauty

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Celebrating History's Black Iconcs in Fashion and Beauty

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You’re Gonna Fall in Love With All 109 (!) of These Black-Owned Clothing Brands

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Prepare yourself for all the prettiness.

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Today, diversity and inclusion in PR matter more than ever before as consumers, especially from younger generations, are becoming more socially conscious about the brands they support. According to a Deloitte survey over half, 57% of consumers say they are more loyal to brands that are committed to addressing inequities in their actions. Even more significantly, a staggering 94% of Gen Z now expect brands to take a stand on social issues. This growing awareness is driving a desire amongst young consumers to purchase from ethical brands that prioritise sustainability, diversity, and inclusion.

To fully grasp the benefits of embracing diversity and inclusion in PR and content, we need to understand exactly what those terms entail. Diversity encompasses the representation of people from various ethnicities, religions, genders, socioeconomic groups, ages, sexual orientations, and physical abilities. Inclusion, on the other hand, refers to creating a culture or environment that is respectful and supportive of all individuals. To eliminate prejudice, brands should strive to avoid negative stereotypes or misrepresentations of any group, while sharing the stories and perspectives of underrepresented groups.

It is important to note that diversity and inclusion should not be confined to a company's workforce alone; it should also extend to their public relations campaigns and content marketing. For instance, in addition to actively hiring a diverse team of employees, companies could partner with diverse influencers or content creators, use inclusive language in their messaging, share stories from a broad range of communities, and evaluate the inclusivity and effectiveness of their campaigns by gathering feedback from people with various backgrounds.

Advantages of incorporating diversity and inclusion in PR and content creation

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content help build authenticity

PR campaigns and content marketing should accurately reflect the real, diverse world we live in. Brands can come across as more genuine when they feature voices, stories, and perspectives of people from different backgrounds, particularly those often underrepresented in media. This authenticity fosters trust with the audience, a crucial factor in building a positive reputation, boosting sales, and ensuring the long-term success of the company.

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content improve brand image

When embracing diversity and inclusion, consumers see that a brand is committed to fairness and equality. This, in turn, leads to a better reputation for the brand and higher consumer loyalty. In the event of any crisis or controversy, a history of commitment to diversity and inclusion can also protect the brand's reputation.

Case study: Diversity and inclusion in PR leading to a better brand image
Grab, a ride-hailing, deliveries, and financial services app based in Singapore, has made efforts to incorporate diversity and inclusion in its PR campaigns and content. They have a month dedicated to inclusion called "Inclusion at Grab Month" in which they integrate the use of inclusive language in their messaging platforms, learn how to manage biases, celebrate the diversity of Grab users and workers, and run learning programmes for managers to create safer and respectful workplaces. Furthermore, Grab has taken steps to enable hearing-impaired drivers and riders to use the platform. They partnered with the Singapore Association for the Deaf (SADeaf) to allow its beneficiaries to become drivers or delivery riders and provide skills upgrading access for hearing-impaired Grab workers.

Such initiatives have boosted the brand's reputation as a socially responsible company and increased customer loyalty contributing to sustained growth. It has also enabled the company to attract diverse talent to work in the company. By making its ride-hailing service inclusive and accessible, for instance, for hearing-impaired passengers, Grab has also been able to expand its customer base and market reach.

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content enable brands to connect with more diverse audiences

PR and content marketing campaigns aim to reach as many people as possible to enhance brand awareness and image. Inclusive and relatable content enables a wider range of people from different backgrounds, socioeconomic groups, and cultures to connect with the content increasing brand awareness more widely.

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content help in expanding market reach

When more people can relate to diverse and inclusive content, it can reach a wider demographic of consumers including those from different cultures and age groups. This not only promotes brand awareness but can potentially expand market reach. An Amazon Ads and Environics study revealed that 46% of consumers go out of their way to choose brands that commit to diversity and inclusion, and 45% are even willing to pay more for products from such brands.
Case study: Diversity and inclusion in PR leading to larger market reach
Nike, a global sportswear and athletic apparel company, has made extensive efforts to incorporate inclusion and diversity into its marketing and PR. In their 2019 'Dream Crazier' campaign, they featured Colin Kaepernick, an athlete known for kneeling during the national anthem in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, addressing racial injustice against African Americans. The campaign also included tennis star Serena Williams narrating the achievements of female athletes - an often underrepresented group in sports - and shed light on the sexism they encounter in the sports industry.

Notably, this diverse and inclusive campaign, which showcased the stories of African Americans and female athletes boosted the company's value by $6 billion within just one week of the Kaepernick ad airing. This example clearly shows how embracing diversity and inclusion leads to higher market reach and sales for a company.

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content help promote social change

In addition to creating a positive brand reputation and potentially expanding market reach, campaigns that challenge stereotypes, lift marginalised groups, and encourage diversity can contribute to a more inclusive and tolerant society for all. Therefore, there are benefits for the communities that are represented as well as the brand.

Diversity and inclusion in PR and content matter

In conclusion, efforts to incorporate diversity and inclusion in PR campaigns and content can have several benefits for companies including building authenticity, improving brand image, connecting with more diverse audiences, expanding market reach, and promoting social change.

Ready to embrace diversity and inclusion in PR and content creation to take your brands to the next level? Reach out to us athello(a)syncpr.co to kickstart your PR or content marketing strategy today.

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Why diversity and inclusion in PR and content matter

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In this article, we explore, why diversity and inclusion in PR and content matter.

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Embracing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Public Relations - Playbook Public Relations

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Embracing DEI principles aligns with ethical standards and enhances PR efforts’ effectiveness and impact. Learn more in this Playbook PR blog.

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But having a goal and taking action toward it are two very different things.

That's why it's absolutely crucial that PR practitioners and communication specialists begin strategizing steps they can take to produce inclusive campaigns.

If you're a PR professional ready to play your role in promoting DE&I, we've got a special guide in store for you.

Today, we're sharing practical and simple ways you can incorporate DE&I into your PR strategy.

Create inclusive campaigns

Planning and producing inclusive campaigns is where it all starts. In this section, we'll explore several ways you can implement DE&I into your campaign production process.

Use an inclusive communication style

Using inclusive language practices is one of the simplest, most important ways to infuse DE&I into your PR campaigns. Here are a few quick tips you can implement to do just that:

1. Refer to people correctly / use inclusive language

2. If you serve a global audience, create your campaign in multiple languages

Since it serves French, American, German, and Dutch customers, Remote chose to create versions of its site in those specific languages.

3. Pay attention to pronoun usage

Always look up a person's pronoun preferences before referencing them in quotes or attributions. Many people have them written in their social media bios or in their LinkedIn profiles.

When in doubt:

Stick to "they"

Use their name only

Or find a creative, inclusive way to reference the individual without mentioning a pronoun.

4. Don't discriminate

Don't base representation in your campaigns on factors like sexual orientation, gender, race, age, marital status, or socioeconomic background, for your campaigns, regardless of your personal opinions or beliefs. Include everyone.

5. Don't give in to social stigmas

Never allow unfair stigmas to influence your communication style.

For instance, if you sell sensitive products, it may be tempting to plan discreet ways to promote them to avoid social backlash.

But a truly inclusive campaign cares about the betterment of all. In other words, whether you're promoting Viagra online , hair regrowth products , or anti-wrinkle creams , showcase your products and the people they help, loud and proud.

This practice helps create a safe space for customers to engage with your brand and product offerings.

TL;DR: For sensitive product brands, incorporating DE&I can help alleviate stigma and foster open conversations.

6. Focus on your brand's commitment to delivering custom solutions

Use language that helps your target audience feel like you've designed a service or product just for them. A simple way to do this is by giving them the option to take advantage of custom solutions.

For example, DentalInsurance.com offers dental insurance across the US. If you choose "get a quote" from its drop-down menu, it takes you to a page that says "Find the plan that's right for YOU". Then, you have options like "plans by state."

Needless to say, this can help employers and individuals searching for dental plans feel confident that DentalInsurance.com cares about their specific needs before recommending a plan. In other words, goodbye random, hello custom.

Include images, examples, and stories that feature under-represented groups

Celebrate racial diversity, people of color, and cultural differences among minority groups by featuring them in your campaign images, examples, and stories.

For instance, in its guide on how to become a flight attendant, Jobcase referenced an infographic featuring people of color:

Work with subject matter experts and PR professionals from diverse backgrounds

From informing your campaigns to producing aligned content, working with subject matter experts and PR professionals from diverse backgrounds can help you refine your DE&I approach on a granular level.

Consider the fleet management brand Samsara, for example.

Taking a DE&I approach from the backend like this, not only helps companies like Samsara put their money where their mouths are, but it also helps them plan and create inclusive PR campaigns, practically effortlessly.

7. Sponsor DE&I initiatives

Go the extra mile by sponsoring events, fundraisers, and initiatives that align with your brand values and promote DE&I. Take lots of professional photographs during in-person events and don't forget to utilize social media to stir up a buzz.

If you're sponsoring an online DE&I initiative, pull out all of your digital marketing tools. For instance, start a user-generated content (UGC) campaign, frequently post in social media Stories, and set up automated, segmented email campaigns. You might also consider running PPC ads and social media ads, and locking arms with influencers if you have the budget for them.

8. Talk about the inclusion initiatives you're committed to

Your target audience wants to know that you take DE&I seriously, but it's important not to let them dig for the details.

Show off your commitment loud and proud by crafting a DE&I mission statement and posting it on your site's About Page, Home Page, on social media, and in campaigns when natural.

Not only does SoFi talk about its commitment to hiring a DE&I team, but it also highlights how this diverse approach helps the organization innovate faster, for the betterment of its customers and employees.

Pro tip: You can also include a shorter version of your statement as a footer in your DE&I-focused content.

Wrap up

Incorporating DE&I into your PR strategy is key to promoting fair PR and marketing practices. It's also one of the best ways to humanize your PR initiatives and play your role in making the world a more supportive environment.

If you're ready to embrace DE&I, save this article for reference. Then, meet with your team to start strategizing and planning. By incorporating the tips we shared today, your organization can get one step closer to promoting and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion - for all.

To your success!

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8 ways to incorporate DEI into your PR strategy that highlight your brand's commitment

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Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion has become a key goal for all organizations that are committed to fair representation. But having a goal and taking action toward it are two very different things. Here are 8 ways to walk the walk.

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Diversity, equity, and inclusion (also known as DEI) has become a nationwide conversation over the past few years as society grows more and more weary of the pre-existing systems of power which serve to maintain those in the majority in power. While work is being done in many different spheres in order to promote better diversity, the fact of the matter is that a lot of this work is still in preliminary stages. As of 2019, 78% of the U.S. workforce is made up of white people according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor.

This problem largely affects the corporate landscape of the United States as a whole, and also the public relations field in particular. It is crucial for PR practitioners and communication specialists to promote DEI in order to create a more inclusive work environment and to allow for better and more effective work to be done. Creating diverse and more inclusive spaces in PR will allow for greater client selection and satisfaction, as well as better work being done by professionals with different backgrounds, ideas, and mindsets to produce quality work as a team.

In order to promote DEI in our industry, there are many different tactics we can take in order to create a more inclusive workplace.
Involve the entire team
Make sure everyone is involved in the DEI work being done at your workplace and that their voices are heard. This will help everyone feel like a valuable part of the team and that their opinions matter.
Ensure a fair hiring process
Everyone should have a fair opportunity at employment, which often involves recruiting candidates from underrepresented groups in order to diversify your hiring pool.
Set Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
Similar to how we use KPIs to measure the success of our PR campaigns, we can use KPIs to measure how successful our work has been in achieving our goals surrounding DEI. KPIs can include talent acquisition, diversity, retention, etc.
Open Discussions
Allow for plenty of meetings, seminars, educational opportunities, and other ways to get your team discussing the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion to make sure everyone has an understanding of the work at hand and so everyone can offer their insight into ways the team can further its goals of DEI.

Not every approach will work the same for every team, but the important thing is for PR professionals and teams to be working towards achieving greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in their workplaces to ensure that everyone feels welcome and valued in order to provide the best quality work possible.

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DEI in PR: Its Importance and How to Create a More Inclusive Workspace

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Diversity, equity, and inclusion (also known as DEI) has become a nationwide conversation over the past few years as society grows more and more weary of the pre-existing systems of power which serve to maintain those in the majority in power.

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Marie O'Riordan is the Global Director of Public Relations at EML Payments.
As a gay woman with autism, I have acknowledged the profound significance of diversity and inclusion in professional environments and public relations (PR) campaigns. I recently participated in a comprehensive workshop on diversity, equity and cultural competency with my colleagues, customized for our organization's expansive global reach. The training emphasized the world's urgent need to close gaps in diversity, cultural comprehension and communication to nurture inclusive spaces. This experience was a powerful reminder of the immense benefits of incorporating diverse PR communications viewpoints.

Throughout my career as a public relations professional, I have observed the profound influence campaigns have on diverse audiences, underlining the need for inclusivity and effectiveness. Championing diversity and nurturing inclusion in the workplace is essential for creating a supportive and welcoming atmosphere for employees from all walks of life. As a gay and autistic individual, I am intimately aware of the challenges these minority groups face and the importance of feeling valued and respected in a professional context. Employers can create a more inclusive atmosphere by proactively seeking and hiring candidates from diverse backgrounds, promoting a culture of mutual respect and inclusiveness and providing necessary support and accommodations for employees with disabilities.

Diversity and inclusion should extend beyond the workplace, becoming critical components of all PR campaigns. To design compelling and impactful campaigns, it is crucial to consider the experiences and perspectives of diverse audiences, including those from the LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent communities. Here are some strategies for promoting inclusivity:

* Actively recruit and hire individuals from diverse backgrounds to cultivate a more inclusive workplace.

* Foster a culture of respect and inclusivity within the organization.

* Provide support and accommodations for employees with disabilities.

* Conduct research and gather insights from varied sources to improve campaign effectiveness and resonance.

* Partner with influencers or content creators from diverse communities to help add authenticity to campaigns.

* Employ individuals with diverse backgrounds to contribute to campaign development.

* Evaluate the inclusivity and effectiveness of campaigns by soliciting feedback from a broad range of audiences.

* Analyze campaign metrics to understand the responses of different demographic groups.

* Conduct post-campaign surveys to collect valuable insights for future initiatives.

* Continually assess and refine your approach, ensuring your PR campaigns remain as inclusive and effective as possible.

However, more than simply including diverse perspectives in campaigns is required; evaluating their effectiveness and inclusivity is equally vital. This assessment process may involve gathering feedback from a diverse range of audiences, examining campaign metrics to understand the responses of various demographic groups or conducting post-campaign surveys to gather valuable insights for future projects. By consistently evaluating and refining your approach, you can help ensure that your PR campaigns achieve high inclusivity and effectiveness.

As an LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent PR professional, I have personally experienced the indispensable significance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and PR campaigns. By actively seeking diverse perspectives, collaborating with individuals from various backgrounds, fostering open communication, embracing creativity and continuously assessing and enhancing your approach, you can create more meaningful, authentic and inclusive campaigns that resonate with a broader, diverse audience.

Forbes Communications Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?

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Council Post: Boosting Inclusivity: Harnessing Diverse Perspectives For PR Communications

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Diversity and inclusion should extend beyond the workplace, becoming critical components of all PR campaigns.

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1) Gather insights and perspectives on the current state of diversity, equity, and inclusivity (DEI) within the fashion and beauty and PR industry to inform the development of a DEI-centred magazine and PR package

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2) Ensure that the magazine effectively addresses industry gaps and meets the needs and expectations of its target audience

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2) Conduct extensive primary research

Interviews

Surveys

Observations

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2) Gather credible sources for secondary research

Books

Journals

Articles

Websites

Blogs

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3) Identify opportunities to further promote DEI and educate industry professionals.

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4) Gain a comprehensive understanding of how DEI is currently perceived and implemented in fashion and beauty PR

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7) Identify the main challenges in promoting DEI

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5) Assess how social media users respond to DEI-focused content and recommendations from diverse influencers

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1) Create a magazine and PR package that showcases products from diverse and minority-owned brands and serves as an educational tool for the fashion and beauty

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6) Foster a more inclusive and equitable industry benefiting both professionals and consumers alike, serving as a meaningful contribution to the ongoing efforts to promote DEI

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ADVERTISEMENT BRANDS

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MINORITY-OWNED BRANDS

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Primary and secondary research aimed at understanding DEI within the fashion and beauty industries.

Primary research: Interviews with DEI experts, brand owners, and PR professionals

Secondary research: Books, news articles, websites, and industry reports

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Generate some new concept with existing key themes: Fashion & Beauty magazine with DEI themes

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Fashion & beauty magazine and PR package

Meet the needs of consumers by producing an educational informative guide to DEI-focused practices

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Analyse primary research

Develop ways to apply primary research findings into informative articles

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Develop brand identity

Research the format, layout and content of magazine articles

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Create a production timeline

Finish magazine before presentation deadline

Meet deadlines for presentation and report

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Create SWOT analysis

Create PESTLE analysis

Create Business Model Canvas

Explain Value Propositions

Explain Marketing Mix

Apply Brand Equity Model

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LO8 - Evaluation and Critical Engagement

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LO8 - Evaluation and Critical Engagement

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Get peer feedback

Write reflection

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1) Educate readers on DEI-focused practices in personal and professional contexts

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2) Inspire meaningful engagement and spark conversations for industry-wide change​

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3) Feature underrepresented brands and communities to spotlight their contributions to fashion & beauty and elevate their voices

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3) Engage the Gen Z and Millennial target audience of Infleuncers, PR professions and Brands owners who value DEI, social justice, fashion and beauty

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The difficulties of finding and promoting truly DEI-focused and high-quality products

The lack of comprehensive resources on DEI strategies within fashion & beauty

Insufficient representation of diverse minority voices and brands in the mainstream media

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Influencers should promote DEI due to their large platforms and consumer trust

There should be long-term and continuous commitments to DEI

There should be a genuine and authentic engagement with marginalised communities and they should be compensated for their contributions

There should be diversity across all-levels of the industry

Introduce new minority-owned brands to consumers

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The magazine is entering a saturated market where many publications already address fashion and beauty and cater to similar demographics

INFLUENCED differentiates from its competitors by appealing to consumers who are interested in integrating DEI initiatives into their work

INFLUENCED covers a niche topic (DEI) so INFLUENCED is competing for a share of a market with limited new demand, however, the demand for DEI-focused content and brand practices is growing

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Explaining how DEI initiatives lead to specific outcomes in the industry

Explaining the importance of DEI-focused business practices

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Using primary and secondary research findings to forecast future trends in DEI and how evolving social values influence the fashion and beauty industries

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HIGH

Readers have a variety of alternative options to print media available. The niche focus on DEI in fashion and beauty is a strong differentiator but the magazine must continuously innovate, providing valuable content in order to avoid losing readers

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MODERATE-HIGH

As a print magazine, INFLUENCED heavily relies on printers and physical distribution but there are vast options for printers and distributors in the UK if something goes wrong with its current printers and distributors

INFLUENCED relies on the contributions of interview participants and photographers for its content

If INFLUENCD switched from print to digital, it could lower the power of suppliers by avoiding the need for printers and distributors

INFLUENCED heavily relies on brand advertisements for revenue so without the backing of established brands, INFLUENCED may loose credibility and significant chunks of funding

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HIGH

Readers have access to a wide variety of free digital content which covers topics related to fashion, beauty, and DEI

Social media offers readers instant and interactive access to diverse voices and DEI-related content which may be more engaging than a print magazine however, INFLUENCED will leverage the power and reach of influencers for its marketing strategy

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MODERATE

Creating a magazine is fairly straight-forward and accessible but establishing a strong brand identity and gaining loyal readers takes significant effort and resources

Established magazines often benefit from economies of scale by reducing their production and distribution costs so there is high pressure on INFLUENCED to innovate and diversify revenue streams in order to keep costs under control and maintain high-quality production standards

The price of INFLUENCED is very accessible so readers can easily switch o another if they find that better suits their interests elsewhere so INFLUENCED needs to remain relevant but this is achievable as DEI is a socially relevant topic

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HIGH

INFLUENCED has competition from dominant fashion & beauty magazines that have bigger larger budgets, more extensive distribution networks, and stronger brand recognition although there is no direct competition due to its niche blend of fashion, beauty and DEI content

Building a strong community around the magazine will help reduce the impact of rivalry so INFLUENCED will host and feature community events and will engage with its readers through social media and the use of influencers

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Sundiatu Dixon-Fyle and Kevin Dolan and Dame Vivian Hunt and Sara Prince

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Although the business case for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) is stronger than ever, many companies’ progress has stalled. A systematic approach and bold action can help.

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Variety, as they say, is the spice of life. If diversity is another word for variety, how can it enhance or flavor the world?

Diversity-through the lenses of race, ethnicity, ability, gender, sexual orientation, neurodiversity, and beyond-can help to strengthen organizations, as studies have shown time and again. Quite simply, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is used to describe three values that many organizations today strive to embody to help meet the needs of people from all walks of life. While concepts such as biodiversity are important offshoots of the core idea of diversity, this article focuses on diversity, equity, and inclusion in business and society rather than in other contexts.

Companies that are diverse, equitable, and inclusive are better able to respond to challenges, win top talent, and meet the needs of different customer bases. With DEI in mind, companies are considering how to better support employees. Over the past few years, many organizations have taken strides to build diversity, equity, and inclusion into their policies and hiring practices.

What are the differences between diversity, equity, and inclusion?

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are often grouped together because they are interconnected and it is only in combination that their true impact emerges. Some organizations include related concepts, such as belonging, in their DEI strategies. But all of these terms are also easily misunderstood. It's important to grasp the individual meanings and implications of each of these terms:

Diversity refers to who is represented in the workforce. Some examples of diversity in workplaces include:

Gender diversity: What makes up the composition of men, women, and nonbinary people in a given population?

Age diversity: Are people in a group from mostly one generation, or is there a mix of ages?

Ethnic diversity: Do people in a group share common national or cultural traditions, or do they represent different backgrounds?

Physical ability and neurodiversity: Are the perspectives of people with disabilities, whether apparent or not, accounted for?

These are a few of the most common examples, but what is considered diverse can range widely. Nobel Prize winner Richard Thaler touches on this in an interview with McKinsey on debiasing the corporation. "There's lots of talk about diversity these days," says Thaler. "We tend to think about that in terms of things like racial diversity and gender diversity and ethnic diversity. Those things are all important. But it's also important to have diversity in how people think."

Equity refers to fair treatment for all people, so that the norms, practices, and policies in place ensure identity is not predictive of opportunities or workplace outcomes. Equity differs from equality in a subtle but important way. While equality assumes that all people should be treated the same, equity takes into consideration a person's unique circumstances, adjusting treatment accordingly so that the end result is equal. In an episode of the McKinsey Talks Talent podcast on the inclusive workplace, McKinsey senior partner and talent expert Bill Schaninger offers a view on the implications of equity when sourcing talent: "There's a real difference between equal and equitable. Suppose we said, 'All interns are created equal. We pay them nothing.' The people who can afford an entire summer without getting paid are likely already coming from a position of privilege."

refers to how the workforce experiences the workplace and the degree to which organizations embrace all employees and enable them to make meaningful contributions. Companies that are intent on recruiting a diverse workforce must also strive to develop a sufficiently inclusive culture, such that all employees feel their voices will be heard-critical if organizations want to retain their talent and unlock the power of their diverse workforce. In an episode of the podcast on the inclusive workplace, McKinsey partner and DEI expert Diana Ellsworth shared an example of how a lack of inclusion can manifest in workplace culture: "The LGBTQ+ community is underrepresented in the workplace, especially at more senior levels. As a result, many feel like an "only" at work and are more likely to experience microaggressions; they might feel unable to talk openly and comfortably about themselves, for example, or need constantly to correct assumptions about their personal lives."

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Why is diversity in the workplace important?

A series of three McKinsey reports shows the impact of diverse workplaces: Why diversity matters (2015), Delivering through diversity (2018), and Diversity wins: How inclusion matters (2020). The latest findings draw from a data set that encompasses 15 countries and more than 1,000 large companies, as well as research on employee sentiment, and the results show a correlative relationship between business performance and diversity. It's worth noting that greater access to talent and increased employee engagement contribute to this performance effect. The business case for diversity is robust, and the relationship between diversity on executive teams and the likelihood of financial outperformance has gotten stronger over time. And the results have been replicated in further research, for instance, in Latin America and Central Europe.

Some of the key findings from the latest Diversity wins report include the following:

Most employees support diversity, with overall sentiment on diversity 52 percent positive and 31 percent negative.

There are clear correlations between diversity and business performance. Analysis of 2019 data shows that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity within executive teams were 25 percent more likely than companies in the fourth quartile to have above-average profitability (up from 21 percent in 2017 and 15 percent in 2014).

The greater the representation of gender diversity, the higher the likelihood of outperformance. For instance, companies where more than 30 percent of the executives are women were more likely to outperform companies where this percentage ranged from only 10 to 30. The most gender-diverse companies see a substantial differential likelihood of outperformance-48 percent-over the least gender-diverse companies.

The business case for ethnic and cultural diversity is also strong: in 2019, companies in the top quartile bested those in the fourth quartile by 36 percent in profitability. Notably, the likelihood of outperformance continues to be higher for diversity in ethnicity than in gender.

Progress in building diverse workforces remains stubbornly slow.

Despite employees' support of diversity, there are high levels of negative sentiment on inclusion-namely, equality, openness, and belonging-particularly around equality and fairness of opportunity.

Even during a crisis, when leaders might be tempted to shelve DEI efforts to ensure the company's financial survival, there is value to prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion. In the words of McKinsey's Bryan Hancock from McKinsey Talks Talent: "D&I is good business. It doesn't have to be at the expense of financial outcomes. . . . This isn't an issue where leaders can say, 'We can't do diversity right now, because we're under a lot of pressure.' Diversity is one of the things you've got to be mindful of in every context."

What other benefits can organizations realize from inclusion and diversity?

In addition to profitability, there are five key domains in which inclusion and diversity can significantly affect an organization's overall performance:

1. Winning talent: Organizations that monitor the demographic profile of their workforces are better able to retain top performers while making sure that diverse talent isn't lost.

2. Improving the quality of decision making: Diversity brings multiple perspectives to the table during times when enhanced problem-solving skills and vision are needed.

3. Increasing customer insight and innovation: Diverse teams are typically more innovative and better at anticipating shifts.

4. Driving employee motivation and satisfaction: Research in Latin America showed that companies that are committed to diversity are 75 percent more likely to report a pro-teamwork culture.

5. Improving a company's global image and license to operate: Companies that can maintain or increase their focus on inclusion and diversity during crises are poised to avoid consequences such as struggling to attract talent or losing customers and government support.

How can organizations foster an inclusive workplace?

For companies looking to bolster inclusion and step up their DEI efforts more broadly, five areas of action stand out:

Ensure that diverse talent is well represented.

Strengthen leadership accountability and capabilities.

Be fair and transparent, enabling equality of opportunity.

Promote openness and tackle microaggressions, bias, and discrimination.

Foster belonging through unequivocal support for all the ways diversity manifests.

A McKinsey survey about inclusion at work and how to address organizational barriers to it offers unique insight at a more granular level. The research finds that respondents of all backgrounds encounter barriers to feeling included-and that women, respondents who are ethnic and racial minorities, and those who identify as LGBTQ+ encounter additional challenges.

A few key data points from the survey add nuance about the lived experiences of employees in workplaces, inclusive and otherwise:

Employee engagement is strongly linked with a sense of inclusion. Those who feel very included are more likely than others to say they feel excited by and committed to their organizations.

Nearly 40 percent of respondents say they have turned down or chosen not to pursue a job because of a perceived lack of inclusion at the organization.

Over a third of respondents say their organizations don't put enough effort into creating a diverse, inclusive environment (while only 6 percent say too much is being done).

A resounding 84 percent of respondents say they have experienced microaggressions at work. More than one in four say they have needed to correct others' assumptions about their personal lives, for example. High levels of respondents have experienced everyday slights rooted in bias, such as not receiving credit for their ideas, being asked to speak as a representative for a group of people like themselves, or being coached to communicate in a way that feels inauthentic.

Looking only at LGBTQ+ respondents, 37 percent say they have had an uncomfortable experience coming out to colleagues in the preceding month.

Among respondents who identified as racial or ethnic minorities, 40 percent of those who indicated they have discussed identity-related issues at work in the preceding month say they have felt at least slightly uncomfortable in those situations.

To serve these workers better, organizations can pay attention to four main factors associated with employees' inclusion:

1. Diverse, inclusive leadership: The presence of diverse leaders at an organization, as well as an organization's focus on inclusive leadership, are correlated with individuals feeling more included.

2. Meritocracy and initiatives to increase fairness in performance evaluations: A meritocratic company culture is strongly associated with a sense of inclusion.

3. Sponsorship: Respondents who say colleagues at their organization have gone out of their way to create professional-advancement opportunities for them are also more likely than others to feel a strong sense of inclusion.

4. Substantive access to senior leaders: More than half of all respondents say that meaningful interactions with senior leaders have aided their career advancement.

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What is intersectionality?

Intersectionality, a term coined by Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, refers to the ways different parts of one's identity intersect or overlap with one another. For instance, gender is one aspect of a person's identity, but so are sexual orientation and race. A Black woman who is queer, or a White woman who has a disability, may take a perspective that acknowledges how those different aspects of their identity overlap or intersect. McKinsey's Women in the Workplace 2021 report, for instance, found that LGBTQ+ women, as well as women with disabilities, are much more likely than women overall to experience microaggressions on the job.

Acknowledging intersectional identities can strengthen companies and communities more broadly. "Everyone deserves to feel empowered across all aspects of who they are," says McKinsey senior partner Guangyu Li. "It shouldn't be left to any individual community to defend itself. It's in our collective interest to show up for each other with concrete action and to come together in solidarity."

Allyship is a concept that is closely related to intersectionality. An ally aligns with people in the minority to help foster equitable and inclusive opportunities for all. In corporate America, White women, for instance, may take allyship actions such as mentoring women of color, advocating for new opportunities for them, and actively confronting any discrimination they might face. However, there is a notable disconnect between the allyship actions that women of color say are most meaningful and the actions that White employees prioritize-suggesting opportunities for recentering efforts around the experience of women of color and other marginalized groups.

What issues are important to women in the workplace?

Women's representation in the corporate world has largely increased in recent years, but the pandemic has affected their participation in the workforce. It is worth noting that dynamics of gender in the workplace may be regionally specific. While much of McKinsey's work offers insight into women in corporate America, you can explore additional material on global gender equality, as well as gender diversity in Africa, Canada, Central Europe, France, Japan, the Middle East, and other regions.

The largest study of women in corporate America is Women in the Workplace, conducted by McKinsey in partnership with LeanIn.Org. The latest research, now in its seventh year, reflects information from 423 organizations that employ 12 million people, and includes responses from more than 65,000 people surveyed on their workplace experience, as well as in-depth interviews with women of diverse identities.

Findings from the Women in the Workplace 2021 report include the following:

Women's representation in the corporate pipeline (that is, the journey an employee might take from starting as an entry-level worker to advancing to a spot in the C-suite) has increased since 2016. But women-and women of color in particular-remain significantly underrepresented in leadership.

At every step in the career ladder, women of color lose ground to White women and men of color.

The "broken rung" problem remains a challenge for women, particularly those seeking their first step up from entry level to manager. For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 86 women are promoted.

Burnout, stress, and exhaustion continue to affect women more than men. In the past year, one in three women considered leaving the workforce or downshifting their career, a notable increase from levels seen early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Women leaders are doing considerable work to support DEI efforts and employee well-being more broadly, but they're not necessarily being recognized for it. For instance, employees with women managers are more likely than others to say that their manager has supported and helped them in the past year; women leaders also spend more time than men on DEI work that's outside their formal job responsibilities. Less than a quarter of companies, though, recognize this work in performance reviews, for example.

To support women in the workplace, companies need to invest deeply in all aspects of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Although there are no quick fixes, there are some steps companies should take to empower women at work:

Companies should put more practices in place to ensure that promotions are equitable. Beyond reducing potential bias in the hiring process, companies need to extend similar rigor to performance reviews.

Organizations need to track representation and hiring and promotion outcomes more fully. A company may track representation for women overall, but does it break those numbers down to look at representation for women on color in particular?

Companies need to double their efforts when it comes to accountability. Only two-thirds of companies hold senior leaders accountable for progress on diversity goals, and less than half consider progress on diversity metrics in performance reviews.

To create a culture that embraces and leverages diversity, companies need to promote senior-level sponsorship, with top leaders fully and publicly supporting DEI efforts, modeling inclusive leadership, and actively participating in training and events.

Spurring high employee engagement will also be crucial. Raising awareness of the barriers that many women face can help, and further training (on bias, antiracism, and allyship) can take employees from awareness to action.

Burnout is on the rise, and investing in solutions to help address this problem will remain a crucial issue for many organizations. In addition to expanding on successful established policies and trying new approaches, companies can track symptoms and establish new norms to improve the everyday experience of employees.

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What do we know about advancing racial equity for Black Americans in the US private sector and across society?

Black Americans in the workforce are at a disadvantage; the median annual wage for Black workers is approximately 30 percent, or $10,000, lower than that of White workers, with serious implications for economic security, consumption, and the ability to build generational wealth. They are underrepresented in higher-wage industries and executive roles, and they face lower odds for advancement. Clear racial patterns exist across the US labor force, with nearly half of Black workers concentrated in low-paying healthcare, retail, food services, and accommodations roles.

There are many benefits to righting historical wrongs and realizing the full potential of Black American talent: addressing wage disparities alone, for instance, could propel two million Black Americans into the middle class for the first time.

Doing so will take effort on many levels. Research from the McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility suggests some jumping-off points:

The stories of Black leaders' journeys can offer inspiration and hope for personal and professional development. Get insight from Jason Wright (president of the National Football League's Washington Commanders), Stephanie Hill (an executive vice president at Lockheed Martin), and Barry Lawson Williams (the founder of Williams Pacific Ventures).

What issues are important to Latinos in the workplace?

In the United States, Latinos make up 18.4 percent of the population and 17.3 percent of the labor force, and that share is projected to rise to more than 30 percent by 2060. This community faces challenges, and US- and foreign-born Latinos alike remain far from equal with non-Latino White Americans, with Latino Americans earning just 73 cents for every dollar earned by White Americans. They face discrimination in securing financing to start and scale businesses, and they face challenges accessing food, housing, and other essentials.

McKinsey research on the economic state of Latinos in America finds that they are underpaid, collectively, by $288 billion a year. At full parity, though, Latinos could spend an extra $660 billion annually, and Latino businesses could generate trillions in revenue and support millions of new jobs, while also creating new flows of generational wealth. Addressing barriers faced by Latinos in America could make the economy more robust for all.

How can we empower Asian Americans at work?

Asian Americans have contributed to the US economy since the 1800s, yet they have historically been overlooked. This group as a whole is often perceived as the "model minority," a term that diminishes the unique issues faced by their diverse community. Recently, given the rise in racially motivated attacks on Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic, historically unaddressed challenges faced by this group are coming to light, offering a fresh reminder of the need to support and include Asian Americans at work.

In corporate America, Asian Americans are underrepresented in senior leadership roles (as are Black, Hispanic, and Latino Americans). What might help? Recognizing where in the corporate pipeline Asian Americans are underrepresented, mitigating implicit and unconscious bias during promotion and performance evaluations, fostering sponsorship for Asian American employees, and expanding workplace flexibility and support such as paid sick leave.
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What does research show about the experiences of LGBTQ+ employees in the workplace?

For LGBTQ+ employees, many workplaces today fall short of full inclusion, even if there is visible corporate support for LGBTQ+ communities. For example, LGBTQ+ women are more underrepresented than women generally in America's largest corporations. Just four LGBTQ+ CEOs head these corporations-only one woman, and none identifies as transgender. An episode of the McKinsey Talks Talent podcast considers the latest research on the LGBTQ+ experience in the workplace and highlights practical steps for all employees to signal support and boost progress for this community.

Transgender employees face a unique set of challenges. They earn 32 percent less money than cisgender employees ( cisgender refers to people whose gender identity aligns with the sex assigned to them at birth). More than half of transgender employees say they are not comfortable at work, and they report feeling less supported by managers. These strong feelings of exclusion have significant economic implications: greater transgender inclusion in the workforce through wage equity and increased employment could boost annual consumer spending by $12 billion a year. To help address the issues, companies can be intentional in recruiting (for example, by asking applicants what pronouns or names they prefer to use) or offer trans-affirming benefits, among other actions.

How do different industries approach diversity, equity, and inclusion?

Different industries may well need to take different approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion, depending on the composition of their workforces. Several articles offer insight into those industry-specific dynamics, especially with regard to gender diversity:
Learn more about our Technology, Media & Telecommunications, Financial Services, Travel, Logistics & Infrastructure, Education, Public & Social Sector, and Healthcare Systems & Services practices. For more in-depth exploration of these topics, see McKinsey's collection of insights on diversity and inclusion. Learn more about Diversity, Equity & Inclusion consulting at McKinsey-and check out DEI-related job opportunities if you're interested in working at McKinsey. Articles referenced include:

"Being transgender at work," November 10, 2021, David Baboolall, Sarah Greenberg, Maurice Obeid, and Jill Zucker

"Women in the Workplace 2021," September 27, 2021, Tiffany Burns, Jess Huang, Alexis Krivkovich, Ishanaa Rambachan, Tijana Trkulja, and Lareina Yee

"The economic state of Black America: What is and what could be," June 17, 2021, Shelley Stewart III, Michael Chui, James Manyika, JP Julien, Vivian Hunt, Bob Sternfels, Jonathan Woetzel, and Haiyang Zhang

"COVID-19's impact on Asian American workers: Six key insights," May 6, 2021, Grace Hua, Jess Huang, Samuel Huang, Lareina Yee

"The elusive inclusive workplace," March 23, 2021, Bryan Hancock and Bill Schaninger

"Diversity wins: how inclusion matters," May 19, 2020, Sundiatu Dixon-Fyle, Kevin Dolan, Vivian Hunt, and Sara Prince

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What is diversity, equity, and inclusion?

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In this McKinsey Explainer, we explore what diversity, equity, and inclusion is and why successful organizations are actively embracing DE&I.

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Diversity Matters Even More is the fourth report in a McKinsey series investigating the business case for diversity, following Why Diversity Matters (2015), Delivering Through Diversity (2018), and Diversity Wins (2020). For almost a decade through our Diversity Matters series of reports, McKinsey has delivered a comprehensive global perspective on the relationship between leadership diversity and company performance. This year, the business case is the strongest it has been since we've been tracking and, for the first time in some areas, equitable representation is in sight. Further, a striking new finding is that leadership diversity is also convincingly associated with holistic growth ambitions, greater social impact, and more satisfied workforces.

At a time when companies are under extraordinary pressure to maintain financial performance while navigating a rapidly changing business landscape, creating an internal culture of transparency and inclusion, and transforming operations to meet social-impact expectations, the good news is that these goals are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, our research suggests a strong, positive relationship between them. And in an increasingly complex and uncertain competitive landscape, diversity matters even more.

For this report, the fourth edition of Diversity Matters, we drew on our largest dataset yet-spanning 1,265 companies, 23 countries, and six global regions, and multiple company interviews. We also extended our research and interview focus beyond the relationship between diversity and financial performance, for the first time exploring the holistic impact of diversity on communities, workforces, and the environment.

There have been far-reaching changes in the business environment over the past few years, yet, companies with diverse leadership teams continue to be associated with higher financial returns. Our expanded dataset shows this is true across industries and regions, despite differing challenges, stakeholder expectations, and ambitions.

Both forms of diversity in executive teams appear to show an increased likelihood of above-average profitability. Companies in the top quartile for both gender and ethnic diversity in executive teams are on average 9 percent more likely to outperform their peers. (This gap has closed slightly since our previous report.) Meanwhile, those in the bottom quartile for both are 66 percent less likely to outperform financially on average, up from 27 percent in 2020, indicating that lack of diversity may be getting more expensive.

Our latest analysis shows that companies with greater diversity on their boards of directors are more likely to outperform financially. For the first time, this correlation is statistically significant for both gender and ethnicity. Companies in the top quartile for board-gender diversity are 27 percent more likely to outperform financially than those in the bottom quartile. Similarly, companies in the top quartile for ethnically diverse boards are 13 percent more likely to outperform than those in the bottom quartile. These findings support the hypothesis that diversity benefits extend across top corporate leadership to boards, where DEI policy decisions for the whole organization are often made. We also examined diversity in emerging and advanced economies, finding that while advanced economies see a much higher likelihood of outperformance for executive gender diversity, emerging economies have shown meaningful progress in recent years and may have the most to gain from increasing diversity.

Since McKinsey first started tracking data on representation in 2015, women have made substantial gains in the workplace and in leadership. The current global dataset shows that one-fifth of executive team members are women, a third higher than reported in 2020. Eight in ten surveyed companies now have at least one woman on their executive team (up from fewer than two-thirds), while seven in ten have more than 10 percent. Since 2020's Diversity Wins (and with an expanded dataset), we have now seen the highest increase in diversity in a decade and more representation at the highest levels than ever before (Exhibit 3).

Over the past eight years, we have tracked over 330 companies' progress on representation and diversity in leadership, and segmented these companies into five cohorts based on both 2015 levels of executive-team diversity and progress since then: Diversity Leaders, Fast Movers, Moderate Movers, Resting on Laurels, and Laggards (Exhibit 4).

It has been particularly inspiring to find that Diversity Leaders have attained gender parity and equitable ethnic representation, showing that equitable representation at the top is not just a lofty dream but a realistic goal. Further, our Fast Movers demonstrate that change can happen at speed and scale, with gender representation reaching 32 percent-the first time we've seen such a promising outcome in this cohort. These companies have raised the bar to keep pace with the changing landscape of diversity representation in leadership. Their strong performance prompted us to raise the improvement thresholds for companies from our 2020 Diversity Wins report to reflect the gains seen in top-performing quartiles (five percentage points for gender and ten percentage points for ethnicity).

Companies in our top cohorts have shown rapid, groundbreaking growth in representation, with some even attaining gender parity. In fact, diversity-leading companies in the United Kingdom have reached an ethnic-representation average, at 28 percent, that exceeds the region's general population. Diversity-leading US companies have reached 50 percent representation of women on executive teams. In addition, leading companies in the United States now have on average 39 percent of executives from historically underrepresented ethnicities.

Considering the dataset as a whole, however, there is still a substantial gap in ethnic representation at top levels. For companies included in both our 2020 and 2023 reports, only 16 percent of leaders on executive teams belong to historically underrepresented ethnicities. These gains have slowed since 2019. At the time of Diversity Wins, 61 percent of companies had at least one person in leadership from a historically underrepresented group; this figure has grown only slightly (68 percent).

While there is some good news on progress in the area of equitable representation, across most geographies, significantly more work is needed. Diversity Leaders are beacons for other companies, demonstrating that scaling and institutionalizing policies that promote multiple forms of diversity can move the needle on representation.

While year over year financial performance remains critical, businesses are increasingly aspiring to have positive, long-term impact on all stakeholders-the core tenet of stakeholder capitalism. This emphasizes the interests and needs of a wider set of stakeholders, including employees, customers, and investors, prioritizes social and environmental goals, and drives towards sustainable, inclusive growth-in short, what we refer to as holistic impact.

In many parts of the world there is a growing call for organizations to consider their holistic impact, not only within their own business environment, but on a wider scale, both locally and globally. Our research points to five main areas of holistic impact: financial and operational, capabilities, health and workforce, and environmental and social. In this report, we broaden the lens of our research, placing particular focus on environmental and social-impact elements.

Our findings are striking. Across all industries surveyed, more diversity in boards and executive teams is correlated to higher social and environmental impact scores.

We examined how leadership diversity could be linked to three components of holistic impact-community, workforce, and environment-which all have particularly close connections with employee and community well-being. The results were pronounced: across all three components, we found positive correlations with gender and ethnic leadership diversity (Exhibit 5).

We also found a link between greater diversity in leadership roles and diversity across the organization. For a 10 percent rise in women's executive representation in our 2019 dataset, we see on average a 2.1 increase in the percentage of both women employees and women managers in 2021. A similar, if somewhat smaller, effect holds with ethnic representation. When there is a path for women and ethnic minorities to step into the highest roles, it suggests that there are inclusive practices at play, making it possible for all to succeed.

Overall, there is a strong correlation between diversity in influential company leadership roles and multiple indicators of holistic impact across workforce, community, and environmental components. These relationships hold across sectors.

The last decade has been a period of notable progress on equitable representation in leadership. Yet representation alone is an insufficient and unsustainable outcome. Since Why Diversity Matters in 2015, our thinking has evolved with continued engagement in this field. From our initial focus on diverse representation in leadership, we added a perspective on the practical steps companies can take to increase leadership diversity. From there, we broadened our focus to highlight the importance of inclusion and equity.

Now, we are beginning to distill the essence of holistic impact, and the role that leaders play in cultivating visionary workplaces. By building inclusive and supportive workplace cultures where diverse leaders and allies are truly heard, companies can chart a path towards impact beyond financial performance.

Leveraging our company interviews as a valuable source of refreshed insight, our data shows that the more diverse the leadership team, the more likely they are to have made public, mature commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in their decision-making strategies. Transforming this commitment into bold action is the natural next step. To facilitate this transformation, we conducted interviews with diversity leaders who shared invaluable insights. These interviews surfaced five strategies to effectively turn words into action:

1. Commit to a systematic, purpose-led approach to benefit all stakeholders. Companies should frame and pursue their DEI aspirations-internally and publicly-as core to their mission and embedded into their strategic goals. Having diverse perspectives and backgrounds may be uniquely helpful, as suggested by the relationship between ethnic and gender diversity and companies' inclusive-growth performance.

2. Embed your strategy in company-wide business initiatives while tailoring to local context. While DEI strategy is typically shaped at the top, giving local teams license to tailor to local contexts is key to building ownership and local impact. Agilely launching test and learn cycles for DEI initiatives in specific localities before rolling them out corporate-wide can also support larger DEI goals. In crafting a "global-local" approach to establishing their DEI strategy and values, leaders should build open lines of communication to develop a deep understanding of their workforce, community, and customers. This ensures DEI moves from abstract ideals to concrete actions.

3. Prioritize belonging and inclusive practices to unlock performance. Diverse representation will have the most impact within a culture that fosters inclusion and belonging-which also facilitates retaining diverse talent, innovation, and customer centricity. This support should include making inclusive leadership the norm through management training and accountability, as well as providing high-impact support to affinity and Employee Resources Groups (ERGs) to boost employee satisfaction.

4. Embolden and activate champions and allies by providing adequate resources and support. DEI efforts of individual leaders, particularly women, are often less high-profile or officially rewarded, including their contributions to inclusive leadership, allyship, and employee well-being. Companies that recognize these efforts and provide a supportive environment can help these leaders thrive. This support could include mentorship and sponsorship, as well as encouraging and celebrating allyship. Leaders could be measured on their contributions to DEI and employee wellness in their performance evaluations.

5. Act on feedback, including dissenting voices. A culture of feedback on DEI strategy from the workforce and wider stakeholders can provide valuable insights, identifying both strengths and opportunities for change. Leaders can use routine company pulse surveys to collect feedback internally, and social listening externally. It is important for dissenting voices to also be heard to pinpoint root causes of any roadblocks and contribute towards optimizing impact of the DEI strategy.

Despite a challenging business environment, the business case for diverse leadership teams is clear and growing stronger. In this report, our findings also show a statistically significant link between diverse boards and executive teams and higher holistic-impact scores, including on environmental and social measures.

To achieve lasting impact along these dimensions, companies must move boldly beyond increasing diverse representation to integrating DEI in a purpose-driven approach, broadening the company's positive impact across stakeholders, employees, the external community, and the environment.

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Diversity matters even more: The case for holistic impact

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Despite a rapidly changing business landscape, the business case for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) not only holds, but grows even stronger. In our research, we continue to explore the link between diversity and holistic impact.

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Awareness of the business case for inclusion and diversity is on the rise. While social justice typically is the initial impetus behind these efforts, companies have increasingly begun to regard inclusion and diversity as a source of competitive advantage, and specifically as a key enabler of growth. Yet progress on diversification initiatives has been slow. And companies are still uncertain about how they can most effectively use diversity and inclusion to support their growth and value-creation goals.

Our latest study of diversity in the workplace, Delivering through diversity, reaffirms the global relevance of the link between diversity-defined as a greater proportion of women and a more mixed ethnic and cultural composition in the leadership of large companies-and company financial outperformance. The new analysis expands on our 2015 report, Why diversity matters, by drawing on an enlarged data set of more than 1,000 companies covering 12 countries, measuring not only profitability (in terms of earnings before interest and taxes, or EBIT) but also longer-term value creation (or economic profit), exploring diversity at different levels of the organization, considering a broader understanding of diversity (beyond gender and ethnicity), and providing insight into best practices.

Diversity and financial performance in 2017

In the original research, using 2014 diversity data, we found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on their executive teams were 15 percent more likely to experience above-average profitability than companies in the fourth quartile. In our expanded 2017 data set this number rose to 21 percent and continued to be statistically significant. For ethnic and cultural diversity, the 2014 finding was a 35 percent likelihood of outperformance, comparable to the 2017 finding of a 33 percent likelihood of outperformance on EBIT margin; both were also statistically significant (Exhibit 1).

Several other findings on gender diversity, ethnic diversity, and diversity around the world are also interesting.

Gender diversity

Gender diversity is correlated with both profitability and value creation. In our 2017 data set, we found a positive correlation between gender diversity on executive teams and both our measures of financial performance: top-quartile companies on executive-level gender diversity worldwide had a 21 percent likelihood of outperforming their fourth-quartile industry peers on EBIT margin, and they also had a 27 percent likelihood of outperforming fourth-quartile peers on longer-term value creation, as measured using an economic-profit (EP) margin (Exhibit 2).

For gender, the executive team shows the strongest correlation. We found that having gender diversity on executive teams, specifically, to be consistently positively correlated with higher profitability across geographies in our data set, underpinning the role that executive teams-where the bulk of strategic and operational decisions are made-play in the financial performance of a company.

Executive teams of outperforming companies have more women in line roles versus staff roles. We tested the hypothesis that having more women executives in line roles (typically revenue generating) is more closely correlated with financial outperformance. We know from research, such as our Women in the Workplace 2017 report, that women are underrepresented in line roles. In our data set, this holds true even for top-quartile gender-diverse companies experiencing above-average financial performance. Yet these top-quartile companies also have a greater proportion of women in line roles than do their fourth-quartile peers: 10 percent versus 1 percent of total executives, respectively (Exhibit 3).

Ethnic and cultural diversity

Top-team ethnic and cultural diversity is correlated with profitability. In our 2017 data set, we looked at racial and cultural diversity in six countries where the definition of ethnic diversity was consistent and our data were reliable. As in 2014, we found that companies with the most ethnically diverse executive teams-not only with respect to absolute representation but also of variety or mix of ethnicities -are 33 percent more likely to outperform their peers on profitability. That's comparable to the 35 percent outperformance reported in 2014, with both figures being statistically significant (Exhibit 4).

The penalty for not being diverse on both measures persists. Now, as previously, companies in the fourth quartile on both gender and ethnic diversity are more likely to underperform their industry peers on profitability: 29 percent in our 2017 data set.

Ethnic and cultural diversity on executive teams is low. We focused on our US and UK data sets to examine ethnically and culturally diverse representation among US and UK companies, considering the pipeline starting with university graduates. Black Americans comprise 10 percent of US graduates but hold only 4 percent of senior-executive positions, Hispanics and Latinos comprise 8 percent of graduates versus 4 percent of executives, and for Asian Americans, the numbers are 7 percent of graduates versus 5 percent of executives. In the United Kingdom, the disparity is even greater: 22 percent of university students identify as black and minority ethnic, yet only 8 percent of UK executives in our sample do.

Black women executives are underrepresented in line roles and may face a harder path to CEO. As discussed, within our US and UK data sets, overall representation of women on executive teams shows an apparent bias toward staff roles. Among our US sample, not only do women hold a disproportionately small share of line roles on executive teams but also women of color (including Asian, black, and Latina women) hold an even smaller share.

Line roles versus staff roles on executive teams tend to differ in their ability to propel individuals to the CEO position, with line roles the more likely incubators of future CEOs. In our US sample, black female executives, specifically, are more than twice as likely to be in staff roles than in line roles, and our sample denotes an absence of black female CEOs. Other studies have found that black women suffer a double burden of bias that keeps them from the uppermost levels of corporate leadership. Underrepresentation on executive teams in general, and in line roles in particular, could be an important piece of this story.

Diversity around the world

The correlation between gender and ethnic diversity and financial performance generally hold true across geographies, though with some variations in certain regions. Our data yielded some noteworthy findings concerning the country-level differences in executive-team diversity:

Australian companies lead the way when it comes to the women's share of executive roles (21 percent). The share in the United States is 19 percent and in the United Kingdom is 15 percent. The same holds true for board positions, with Australian companies at 30 percent, US companies at 26 percent, and UK companies at 22 percent-and for women at the whole company level. The disparity among these countries is interesting, given that women's participation in the workforce is similar in all three and given that they dominate among top performers, representing 47 percent of the data set but more than 70 percent of the top-quartile companies.

The picture on ethnic and cultural diversity on executive teams is nuanced. Among our sample, South Africa has the highest levels of diverse representation on executive teams, with 16 percent of executive positions held by blacks. However, this must be understood in the context of local demographics: South Africa's population is 79 percent black, but among large corporations, the impact of South Africa's complicated social history means that the large majority of global and national corporate entities are led by white executives (69 percent in our sample). As our work considers the local context with respect to ethnicity, we therefore evaluated South Africa's diversity from this perspective, defining black South Africans as the minority. Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States follow South Africa with 11 to 12 percent of ethnically diverse executives.

When considering ethnic-minority representation in the broader population, British executive teams seem closer to achieving a "fair share." This, however, masks huge variations within the UK data set, in which a large proportion of companies have no ethnic minorities on their executive teams (or boards) and a handful of companies have particularly international executive teams. Ethnically diverse representation on UK and US executive teams increased by an average of six and five percentage points, respectively, since 2014. However, this was offset by declines in other geographies, leading to an overall lower increase of one percentage point across regions (Exhibit 5).

Delivering impact through diversity

Our research confirms that gender, ethnic, and cultural diversity, particularly within executive teams, continue to be correlated to financial performance across multiple countries worldwide. In our 2015 report, our hypotheses about what drives this correlation were that more diverse companies are better able to attract top talent; to improve their customer orientation, employee satisfaction, and decision making; and to secure their license to operate-all of which we believe continue to be relevant.

Companies report that materially improving the representation of diverse talent within their ranks, as well as effectively utilizing inclusion and diversity as an enabler of business impact, are particularly challenging goals. Despite this, multiple companies worldwide have succeeded in making sizable improvements to inclusion and diversity across their organizations, and they have been reaping tangible benefits for their efforts.

We found that these companies all developed inclusion and diversity (I&D) strategies that reflected their business ethos and priorities, ones that they were strongly committed to. Four imperatives emerged as being crucial:

Articulate and cascade CEO commitment to galvanize the organization. Companies increasingly recognize that commitment to inclusion and diversity starts at the top, with many companies publicly committing to an I&D agenda. Leading companies go further, cascading this commitment throughout their organizations, particularly to middle management. They promote ownership by their core businesses, encourage role modeling, hold their executives and managers to account, and ensure efforts are sufficiently resourced and supported centrally.

Define inclusion and diversity priorities that are based on the drivers of the business-growth strategy. Top-performing companies invest in internal research to understand which specific strategies best support their business-growth priorities. Such strategies include attracting and retaining the right talent and strengthening decision-making capabilities. Leading companies also identify the mix of inherent traits (such as ethnicity) and acquired traits (such as educational background and experience) that are most relevant for their organization, using advanced business and people analytics.

Craft a targeted portfolio of inclusion and diversity initiatives to transform the organization. Leading companies use targeted thinking to prioritize the I&D initiatives in which they invest, and they ensure there is alignment with the overall growth strategy. They recognize the necessity of building an inclusive organizational culture, and they use a combination of "hard" and "soft" wiring to create a coherent narrative and program that resonates with employees and stakeholders, helping to drive sustainable change.

Tailor the strategy to maximize local impact. Top and rapidly improving companies recognize the need to adapt their approach-to different parts of the business, to various geographies, and to sociocultural contexts.

Paying rigorous attention to all four imperatives (Exhibit 6) helps to ensure that inclusion and diversity will support a company's growth agenda. In our experience, companies tend to fall short on leadership accountability for meeting goals, on building the business case, and on the coherence and prioritization of the resulting action plan.

It is worth noting that while progress on representation can be brought about relatively rapidly with the right set of initiatives, embedding inclusion within the organization can take many years and often requires action outside the organization. Companies that do this well can create a strong corporate ethos that resonates across employee, customer, supplier, investor, and broader stakeholder groups.

This work sheds light on how companies can use inclusion and diversity as an enabler of business impact. It is important to note, however, that correlation does not demonstrate causality, which would be challenging to demonstrate. While not causal, we observe a real relationship between diversity and performance that has persisted over time and scale, and across geographies. There are clear and compelling hypotheses for why this relationship persists including improved access to talent, enhanced decision making and depth of consumer insight and strengthened employee engagement and license to operate. We encourage businesses to examine the case for inclusion and diversity at a more granular level to craft an approach that is tailored to their business, learning from leading diverse companies around the world as to ways to do this with high impact.

The business case for diversity continues to be compelling and to have global relevance. There's an opportunity for promoting diversity in senior decision-making roles, and specifically in line roles on executive teams. Although levels of diverse representation in top teams are still highly variable globally-with progress being slow overall-there are practical lessons from successful companies that have made inclusion and diversity work. Creating an effective inclusion and diversity strategy is no small effort and requires strong, sustained, and inclusive leadership. But we, and many of the companies we studied, believe the potential benefits of stronger business performance are well worth it.

Download Delivering through diversity, the full report on which this article is based (PDF-7 MB).

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Awareness of the business case for inclusion and diversity is on the rise. While social justice typically is the initial impetus behind these efforts, companies have increasingly begun to regard inclusion and diversity as a source of competitive advantage, and specifically as a key enabler of growth.

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Interview with a Woman of Colour in the industry

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Interview with a Woman of Colour in the industry

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Interview with a Woman of Colour in the industry

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Interview with a Brand owner from a Minority Background

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Interview with a Brand owner from a Minority Background

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Interview with a Brand owner from a Minority Background

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1. What is your age range?

2. What is your gender?

3. Which social media platform do you use the most?

4. Do you follow any fashion and/or beauty influencers on social media?

5. How often do you engage with content related to fashion and beauty on social media?

6. Do you ever make purchasing decisions based on recommendations from influencers?

7. Are you aware of the concept of Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity (DEI)?

8. How important is DEI to you when choosing beauty and fashion products?

9. Do you think fashion and beauty brands do enough to promote DEI?

10. Would you like to be more aware of, and support more, minority owned-brands?

11. Do the fashion and beauty influencers you engage with celebrate Black History Month on their social media platforms?

12. What factors most influence your decision to follow or engage with fashion or beauty brands?