SheaMoisture enlists Black creative professionals for It Comes Naturally brand campaign

13-Oct-2020 - Last updated on 13-Oct-2020 at 15:01 GMT

Illustration by Bisa Butler (Photo: Business Wire)

The Unilever brand announced the new campaign this week, featuring the work of 6 visual artists—Monica Ahanonu, Rachelle Baker, Bisa Butler, Alexis Eke, Linda Mawala, and Reyna Noriega—and publicizing a new SheaMoisture pledge to share product proceeds with Black women entrepreneurs.

Cara Sabin, CEO of the SheaMoisture since December of last year, tells the press: “SheaMoisture was founded as a response to needs in our community, not only for premium products celebrating our natural hair, but also institutional and cultural needs,”

“Since day one,” she says, “SheaMoisture’s mission has been to invest in, support and empower Black women. Today, we’re proud to introduce this campaign, a true labor of love and an uncompromised collaboration with other Black voices and storytellers, as we continue our mission of supporting our community through impact.”

SheaMoisture leverages creative collaboration for Black women’s empowerment campaign

Beyond the 6 visual artists that the brand commissioned work from, creatives from multiple agencies and disciplines collaborated to realize the It Comes Naturally campaign.

“This work is a manifestation of how we live our purpose out loud by investing in Black women to create something meaningful for Black women,” explains Tracey Jennings, SheaMoisture’s SVP, Marketing and Creative Excellence, in this week’s press release.

“We built a unique hybrid agency team by partnering with BBDO and polycultural marketing firm JOY Collective to realize our vision and lead a dynamic rockstar team of Black and multicultural writers, artists, editors, and music composers,” she says, adding that she believes the multiagency, collaborative model sets “a new best-in-class standard for representation in the beauty industry, and in the culture at large.”

And agency leaders involved in the new It Comes Naturally campaign were glad for the opportunity to bring Black experience, representation, and culture to a mainstream beauty brand.

“Partnering with SheaMoisture to create this visual story was a passion point for our team,” says Khari N. Mpagazehe, Senior Vice President and Senior Director of BBDO NY, in her remarks to the press.

“With that came the immense privilege of creating the kind of representation that Black women, like me, want to see in our media and in business leaders in our communities. We took our dreams and made them reality,” says Mpagazehe.

And Kelli Richardson Lawson, CEO of the JOY Collective, says that “as a Black and women-owned creative firm grounded in cultural understanding, we are honored to be a part of this purpose-led work to support one of our most cherished brands, SheaMoisture. We take pride in the opportunity to showcase the brilliance of our community through beautiful artistry of Black women, by Black women.”

The Unilever brand pledges to fund Black women entrepreneurs with product proceeds

As part of the new SheaMoisture It Comes Naturally Campaign, the brand has pledged to contribute product proceeds to support Black entrepreneurs and community leaders. It’s an expansion of the brand’s Community Commerce program, which as Simone Jordan, SheaMoisture’s Head of Community Commerce, Sundial Brands, explains “is rooted in the belief that commerce can bring true economic independence and empowerment to our communities. We are excited to begin a new chapter of our story and dedicate even more resources and support so that those in need can succeed and thrive.”

Find the work of the campaign’s featured artists online here:

And read up on the concerns surrounding the culturally toxic leadership of founding SheaMoisture Co-Founder and original CEO Richelieu Dennis in this Forbes item by Elana Lyn Gross.