In the company of sisters: KeziahConnections inaugural gathering

Keziah Connects

Yesterday I attended the first KeziahConnections event which was organised by the unstoppable beautypulselondon aka Natalie.

It was held at the amazing Becca boutique, in South Kensington, an oasis of beauty, with an inclusive philosophy.   There I was surrounded by foundation, tinted moisturiser, concealer, eyeshadows, lipglosses, brushes…. you get the gist. Usually I would have been distracted by these goodies but I was surrounded by so many lovely women  that I was too busy chatting.

The event was  fun, informative and inspirational – seriously, I do not use that word lightly.  There were women in that room who are working hard, paving the way for me as a black consumer to access a full range of skincare, hair and beauty products that meet my needs.  There is not enough space in a post to do the event justice and a picture paints a thousand words…

Flowers, nibbles and drinks gave us a chance to cool down from the heat before the evening began

Natalie welcomed us to the event, and inspired us to be proactive, reminding us that women of colour spend SIX times more on products then Caucasian women.  Our demographic is not only getting wealthier we are also increasing in number – and fast.  The Brown Pound is here to stay and who better than us to help the industry understand our needs.  Women of colour  are consumers,  marketers, wholesalers and distributors, make up artists, facialists and entrepreneurs  and collectively we will help the industry to change.

Award winning Muslimabeauty whose confidence drive and ambition belies her years talked about the importance of being true to yourself, knowing who your readers are, the benefit of being based internationally.  ‘…when people look at me they see black and they see Muslim…’  when they read her blog they soon learn that she is much more.

Lara  from Becca was interviewed by Natalie and talked about her route into the beauty industry via make up artistry and a marketing degree, how the days of interning when you have nothing to bring to the table are long gone and how lucky she feels to work for a brand that represents her.  She then gave a demonstration of the products.

The lovely Kelly from Becca found me a concealer that covers  the black scars I get from spots,(yes at my age!)  that is not too red, not too light, not too heavy on the skin AND works under my eyes.  Perfect. Can you believe it – even at a networking event I am buying products (I am shaking my own head in dismay!)  anyway….

Lukwesa from Gidore.com with the traffic stopping dimples and amazing energy spoke passionately about her journey into natural hair, the challenge of finding appropriate products for curly and mixed heritage hair, cutting to the quick with American business associates and the importance of understanding EU compliance, as a consumer, as a brand developer and a distributor.

Congratulations to Natalie.  Amazing woman, amazing evening – well done you!

Big hugs to everyone that attended

When beautiful, professional, intelligent, savvy, strong women of colour come together,  remarkable things happen.  Watch this space…

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