Colourpop
ColourPop is an American cosmetics brand based in Los Angeles, California. It was developed by Seed Beauty and launched in 2014. The company sells its products exclusively online and is known for fashionable shades at budget prices. ColourPop products are sold through their website or at Ulta Beauty. They predominately make products for the eyes, lips, and face.
Their brand is known for their affordable pricing (many of their products range in price from $5-$20) and collaborations based on current trends in social media. Their makeup is also cruelty-free.[1]
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Racist Product names
On September 2016, ColourPop is is under scrutiny for their Sculpting Stix set, which features several questionable product names for the set’s darker shades. Names like “Typo,” “Dume” and “Yikes” are associated with the darker shade sticks, prompting outrage among buyers and the general Twitterverse. In short: many are outwardly calling the company racist.[2]
ColourPop's Sculpting Stix were released in June and are available in 12 different shades. But the brand has come under fire because the darkest shades in the range have names like "Typo", "Dume", and "Yikes", which some people feel have negative connotations.[3] The names were particularly criticised for their contrast to the lighter shades, called names such as “Gummy Bear” and “Castle”.[4]
ColourPop issued a swift response to the backlash. In a statement to BuzzFeed News, a spokesperson said: "On behalf of ColourPop, we are sorry and are extremely grateful for our customers’ feedback. We have taken immediate action to change the shade names and review our naming process to ensure this does not happen again."[3]
ColourPop renamed the three shades and issued a response saying that it would review its naming process. The offending shades have now been renamed: “Point Dume”, “Bloom” and “Platonic”.[4]
#ColourpopMeBLACK movement
Before the Black Lives Matter mass movement, Colourpop has been called out by makeup bloggers NeonMUA and Killer_Kinggg for not featuring enough POC and Black creators on their feed. They even started the hashtag #ColourPopMeBlack to try and influence the brand to take action.
Afrer that, Colourpop responding to NeonMUA and Killer King on instagram post. The brand acknowledged that the post was overdue, and committed publicly to working with more Black creatives to assure a more diverse feed.[5]
Supports to Black Lives Matter
"We stand with the Black community to fight against systemic racism, violence, oppression, and inequality," Colourpop wrote on Instagram. "As a brand, we are listening, learning, and finding ways we can best support the Black community during this horrific time, and we encourage our followers to do the same."
"On Friday, we committed to donating $25,000 to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, and $25,000 to the ACLU," the statement continued. "After the events we witnessed this weekend, we pledge an additional $250,000 in support of Black communities through other organizations. We are open to hearing your feedback and welcome you to share the orgs that you want to support!"
At the end of its statement, Colourpop also promised to use its platform to "create positive change" within the beauty community "through representation and inclusivity."[6]
References
- ↑ ColourPop Cosmetics. Wikipedia. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
- ↑ Lyons, Alexa. Twitter Calls Out ColourPop Over Racist Product Names. Sep 21, 2016. collegecandy.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Smyth, Cassie. ColourPop Apologises Over Its Product Names For Dark Skin. Sep 21, 2016. buzzfeed.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 ColourPop renames contouring shades after controversy. Sep 28, 2016. cosmeticsbusiness.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
- ↑ Louzado, Joel. Here Are the Beauty Brands Answering the Call to #PullUpOrShutUp, June 9, 2020. flare.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
- ↑ Krause, Amanda. 22 beauty brands that are taking action against racial injustice. June 4, 2020. insider.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.

