Beauty & Fashion
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How Parsons’s New Dean of Fashion Dr. Ben Barry Is Working to Bring Systemic Change to Fashion Education

William Black
Ben barry

In our long-running series “How I’m Making It,” we talk to people making a living in the fashion and beauty industries about how they broke in and found success.

Dr. Ben Barry has always questioned fashion’s status quo, and sought to challenge it. When he was only 14, he inadvertently started his own modeling agency because his size-16 friend had been told she needed to lose weight in order to become a model. Confused by this suggestion, he simply mailed her photos to a local magazine with a note and ended up getting her the job. The Ben Barry Agency went on to become one of the first-ever inclusive modeling agencies, booking jobs for over 150 models who didn’t fit into mainstream beauty ideals, throughout its 15-year run.

As the agency made waves through the industry, Barry continued to educate himself;

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Beauty & Fashion
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What’s It Like to Start a New Fashion or Beauty Job Remotely in a Global Pandemic?

William Black

“We’re in the middle of a pandemic, we’re in the middle of a racial justice movement, it’s a period of turmoil — I wasn’t necessarily thinking, ‘Oh, now’s a good time to start a new job remotely.'”

That was Nikki Ogunnaike’s mindset when she began talking to Hearst about taking on the digital director role at Harper’s Bazaar under newly-instated Editor-in-Chief Samira Nasr. Ogunnaike officially joined the fashion title in November of 2020, leaving behind GQ, where she had most recently been deputy fashion director.

Layoffs, hiring freezes and salary reductions were a big part of the pandemic story early on, but that doesn’t mean people didn’t also get hired. It did, however, mean that the process of getting and starting a new job might have felt a little strange for those involved: You may not meet the person hiring you — or your coworkers — IRL; you may not

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Beauty & Fashion
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A Brief History of Black-owned Beauty Brands

William Black

The beauty industry has a long history of Black entrepreneurship that stems largely from women.

Before the days of direct-to-consumer, Annie Turnbo Malone, Madam C.J. Walker and Sara Spencer Washington sold their homemade beauty products door-to-door, scaling their businesses beyond their humble beginnings and amassing extraordinary wealth.

Here, WWD takes a look back at Black-owned beauty businesses from decades past.

Annie Turnbo Malone

Annie Turnbo Malone was one of the first Black women to achieve millionaire status in America. The niece of an herbalist and daughter of formerly enslaved parents, Malone created a chemical hair straightener called Wonderful Hair Grower and developed and patented the pressing comb. Her net worth was once thought to be as high as $14 million, according to the University of Illinois’ Historical Archaeology and Public Engagement website.

After moving to St. Louis from Illinois, Malone opened a retail outlet at the 1904 World Fair, where

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Beauty & Fashion
Read Time : 1 Minutes

40 Incredible Fashion, Beauty, and Home Deals to Shop During Amazon’s Big Winter Sale

William Black

If you’ve spent the past week trudging through mounds of snow, you’re probably ready for winter to be over. But there is one good thing to come out of the cold-weather season: Amazon’s Big Winter Sale. And we scoured the site to find the 40 best fashion, beauty, home, and tech deals. 



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© Provided by Instyle
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In the clothing section, you’ll find cozy sweaters, loungewear sets, leggings, and even faux-shearling jackets for affordable prices. We’re fans of this unique marled-yarn Goodthreads Crewneck Sweater that’s on sale for $39 paired with these Hue Faux-Leather High-Waisted Leggings for $45. You can finish off the look with this Ugg Faux-Fur Jacket that’s 40 percent off, coming in at $149. 

RELATED: Everyone Always Asks Me If This Bag Is Designer but It’s Just $36 on Amazon

The shoe sale section is stacked with popular brands, such as Adidas, Vince Camuto, and

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