Naps are amazing, imo. They're the perfect way to rest, refresh, and come up with new ideas. Which is exactly what happened to Natalie King - she's one of the innovative BIPOC business women making headlines this week.
Speaking of business ... if you're a business owner (or know one), be sure to check out this week's 'special shoutouts' section. There's some exciting offers in there for you
I'm also really excited for this week's community feature: Fyra and Sarah from Skinfuel Beauty. They've shared their tips and insights from launching their own business, and their plans for introducing M-Beauty to the world. And on that note …
Let's get glowing!
-Shilpa
P.S. Check out my first ever podcast interview with the Coconut Chats where I talk about why I started Glowreel and some of the awesome women we've featured so far.
News To Know
Let's Get Down To (Changing The Face Of) Business, Baby!
It's been a massive week for BIPOC women in business. Buckle up, you're in for an exciting ride. But first, some context!
This McKinsey report found that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated economic inequality for women and magnified barriers to business ideation and growth. Women-led startups only receive only 2-3 per cent of Venture Capital funding.
So this week's business wins are a pretty big deal ... and will hopefully help break down the barriers for women in business:
Glowreel favourite, Live Tinted by Deepica Mutyala, has raised more that $3 million through its seed round. In the spirit of women supporting women, Fearless Fund is one of the investors.
See also: this Byrdie article on the Black women funding the future of beauty and wellness, and the Ulta Beauty Muse 100: A celebration of 100 inspirational Black voices making beauty in our world possible - from founders to story tellers to artists and everything in between.
April Koh is officially the youngest woman to lead a multi-billion dollar startup. Her company, Spring Health, uses data to provide tailored mental health care. Spring Health just raised $190 million in Series C funding, raising its valuation to $2 billion. Koh plans to establish Spring Health as a "long-lasting company of consequence that has the biggest impact on mental health."
Natalie King shares how powerful a nap can be! King's power nap led to her creating Dunamis Charge, the first black-woman owned manufacturer of electric vehicle recharging stations. Of course, there's more to the story than just a nap - King developed a passion for clean energy after she started a solar energy firm back in 2007. But we're not mad about the angle - who doesn't love a good power nap?!
Special Shoutout
Must Know Offers For Business Owners
If you're a business owner, we've got two exciting offers that you need to know about:
- Doone at the Female Startup Club is giving away $1000! Yep, $1000 to help your business - because Female Startup Club is your hype girl! Enter here - giveaway closes 4 October.
- Mish at Commsgrad is diversifying the media and communications industry in Australia by providing grads with access to unbiased, equitable work experience. If you're an Aussie business interested in hosting some awesome grads to help out with your media and comms, you can use the code 'GLOWREEL' to register your business for free! The discount code expires on 31 October.
Glowreel Reco Of The Week
You need to: add some movement to you week c/o Healthy With Kelsey.
There's something for everyone from a gentle stretch through to full body HIIT workouts.
Kelsey is a Vancouver based Body Positive Health and Wellness Coach who's "on a mission to help folx take the shame out of their wellness game through joyful movement."
This week's reco is brought to you by Mel Tan - self-professed fitness junkie and Team Glowreel's research and strategy queen.
Bites
- We have lift-off! Sian Proctor just became the first Black woman to pilot a spacecraft. her favourite part? Looking back and seeing Earth! Meanwhile, there's some strong speculation that Wang Yaping will be the first woman astronaut to visit China's new space station.
- Florence Pan just hit a massive career milestone, and a first for Asian American women. Pan is the first Asian American woman to serve as a federal district court judge in Washington, D.C. Her appointment "will help build a federal bench that reflects full diversity."
- Latin Music Week and the women on the rise. These five emerging artists share their biggest inspirations, challenges and what they hope to achieve in the Latin music industry.
- Pull up a comfy chair and tune into the Chicago South Asian Film Festival. The Festival aims to promote South Asian culture, talent and perspectives through films, art and discussions - and they have virtual screenings so you can watch from anywhere in the world. Speaking of South Asians and films ....
- "... a win for one of us is a win for all." Sanjana Nagesh (aka, the founder of BrownGirlGang) reflects on the increasing representation of South Asian women on the big screen.
Community Spotlight
Squeaky Clean Skin Fuel
Fyra (left) and Sarah (right); image via Skinfuel beauty.
Meet Fyra and Sarah: BFFs and skincare junkies turned business partners.
Fyra and Sarah launched Skinfuel Beauty in September 2020. Their proud Malaysian brand was founded out of a desire to encourage everyone to love the skin they're in, and also to streamline their skincare collection - because lugging 1000 bottles of skincare around is fun for no-one!
Why did you create Skinfuel Beauty?
... cue Fyra's dream, like Biggie said, "it was all a dream..." When she dreamt of a product that cleaned, cleansed, exfoliated and moisturized your face.
We would end up calling it Squeaky Clean. But when we were registering our brand name and really discussing what we wanted to do, we realised it went beyond this product and simplifying people's skincare routines. Skinfuel Beauty is our way of telling the world that no matter how you look or who you are, you are BEAUTIFUL!
Can you tell us about your hero product - the Squeaky Clean cleansing pad?
Squeaky Clean is a fragrance-free, all natural, 3-in-1 double cleansing pad! It's fortified with halal-certified and vegan ingredients, so anyone including our halal baes can use it.
In less than 5 minutes, it will clean, cleanse, mildly exfoliate and moisturize your face. It's a skincare hack that lets you wave goodbye to your toner, cleanser and makeup remover.
We honestly use it every day. Squeaky Clean's formula is made of primarily 5 ingredients - Marula oil, Almond oil, Olive oil, Vitamin E and Geranium essential oil. We use a non-petroleum based emollient, salacos, that safely emulsifies our formula into a cleanser once water hits your face.
Who is the Squeaky Clean cleansing pad for?
Squeaky Clean is for everyone - all skin types, all skin conditions, all ages, all sexualities, all genders! Yes, including those with Eczema and super-sensitive skin.
If you've got skin, we've got you!
What do you hope to achieve with Skinfuel Beauty?
So much haha.
If we are distilling it to the core, then it's two-pronged - we want to change the beauty narrative within Southeast Asia and for Southeast Asians AND we want to show the world what Malaysia can offer.
We want Southeast Asians to break free of the whitened, glass skin, instagram-edited, photoshopped, societal beauty rhetoric. We want Southeast Asian men to break free of toxic masculinity and embrace skincare because as we all know, men have skin too.
And we want to introduce - what we like to call - M Beauty to the rest of the world. M Beauty = Malaysian Beauty, it's products created and produced in Malaysia that use Malaysian herbs and recipes.
What's next for Skinfuel Beauty - are there any other products in the works?
Well, we are pivoting our star product a little bit. Stay tuned on our socials - Instagram, TikTok, or on our website for updates.
Any advice for other women who are wanting to launch their own business?
Honestly, just do it!
It's risky AF but as long as you're not attached to the outcome, the journey will teach you a lot. Our current list of tips:
- Do your research - really understand the problem you are trying to solve and your unique advantage in the market.
- Read the Mom Test so you know how to survey your test audience and then your target audience.
- Really get to know your buyers and ask the hard questions or else you'll never know if your positioning and content is actually right.
- Plan your launch carefully and have specific goals in mind.
- Find a mentor in the industry.
- Don't be afraid to reevaluate your goals and derive a walk-away date.
Good luck, we're cheering you on!
Historical Woman
In Memory Of Kamla Bhasin: Feminist Icon, Poet And Author
Image via Bhupendra Rana
Kamla Bhasin (24 April 1946 – 25 September 2021) was an Indian developmental feminist activist, poet, author and social scientist
Her incredible career spanned gender, education, human development and the media. She believed in advocacy that combines feminist theory and community action.
Bhasin was the founder of Sangat, a South Asian feminist network, and co-founder of Jagori, a women’s resource centre.
She was a fierce advocate of women's rights and was well known for improvising and popularising the slogan 'Azadi' ('freedom') in India. Bhasin also wrote more than 30 books on women’s rights and eight children’s books, along with several songs and poems.
She sadly passed away on 25 September 2021 at the age of 75, due to cancer. Her legacy will no doubt live on, and continue to inspire young women.
One Lioness To Another
"When you can’t find someone to follow, you have to find a way to lead by example."
-Roxanne Gay
