Youthforia, which is a makeup brand that can be found at Ulta, is facing backlash for its darker shade of foundation that some users on social media compare to black face paint.
Youthforia Date Night Skin Tint Serum Foundation comes in 25 shades, and its darkest shade, “600,” is described as a “deep neutral.”
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Beauty influencer Golloria George took to TikTok to review foundation in a viral video which has so far accumulated more than 18 million views. In the video, she shows off black face paint and Youthforia's new foundation on her face, stating that the latter looks like “tar in a bottle.”
“Which side of my face is the black paint or the Youthforia foundation?” Golloria said in the video. “Tea, you can't tell.”
She also points out in the video how Youthforia's second darkest foundation shade compares to its darkest shade, and stated that the company could have made about 10 more shades between the two colors, especially since there are only about five shades made for darker skin tones in the collection.
““When we say we want shadows done, we don’t mean going to the lab and asking for a black minstrel show,” Golloria said in the video. “What we mean is take the browns you've created, create shades and do whatever you need to do in the lab. So it’s a darker shade of brown.”
Overall, Golloria claims that Youthforia's new foundation shade is “disgusting” and “disrespectful” and should be “taken off the shelves.”
@golloria the darkest shade of the Youthforia evening makeup base.
Many TikTok users in the comments section below her video are divided over the new shade, with some users claiming the foundation shade is “ridiculous” and others claiming there are people who can actually wear it.
“So not only is the darker shade ridiculous, but the face paint has better coverage,” one TikTok user wrote.
“I agree there should be more shades in between, but I'm pretty sure the darkest shade would look perfect on someone,” another user wrote.
Youthforia did not immediately respond to TheStreet's request for comment.
Makeup brands overlooking darker skin tones in their foundation collections has been a long-standing problem in the makeup industry. For example, in 2018, when Tarte for the first time debuted its Shape Tape Foundation, had only 15 shades, four of them dedicated to tanned and darker skin tones, which sparked a backlash.
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In 2020, IT Cosmetics was also affected Hot water after she launched her Bye Bye Foundation line, which features 12 shades, only three of which are for people with darker skin tones.
Demand for diversity is increasing among beauty consumers. A 2022 report from market research company Mintel revealed that 47% of beauty consumers say they buy makeup brands that have diversity or inclusion.
“The push for inclusion will impact the future of the beauty landscape in two ways: price and diversity,” Claire Hennigan, senior beauty and personal care analyst, said in the report. “More than a quarter (27%) of beauty users agree that a brand is inclusive if it offers affordable products that most people can afford.”
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