Ulta Beauty Outlines 2022 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commitments

Ulta Beauty has announced its latest diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) commitments. This year’s efforts span four categories totaling a planned investment of $50 million, doubling 2021’s commitments. The beauty retailer says it will focus on brand amplification, assortment growth and equitable guest and associate experiences. 

“As a values-driven company, we believe we have a responsibility to drive diversity, equity and inclusion in our company, industry and world,” said Dave Kimbell, chief executive officer, Ulta Beauty. “Looking back at 2021, I’m proud of the work we did to meaningfully grow our assortment, elevate and celebrate underrepresented voices, invest in our associates and create equitable experiences. Our forward-looking 2022 DE&I commitments ensure that we remain energized, creative and extremely dedicated to leading in this critical space.”

The 2022 commitments build upon the holistic, tangible efforts established in 2021 to ensure guests, associates, partners and communities feel connected to and reflected at Ulta Beauty, the company said.

“After formally working together for a year, I’m hopeful that Ulta Beauty’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion has been a catalyst for other organizations to examine how they plan for and create foundational change,” said Tracee Ellis Ross, Ulta Beauty’s DE&I advisor and founder of Pattern Beauty. “Ensuring employees can thrive and that customers are seen, heard and celebrated remains a clear business objective. The Ulta Beauty team brings passion and accountability to this necessary work and I am proudly committed to supporting this team.”

This year, the company will:

• Dedicate approximately $25 million in media investments with multicultural platforms to nurture personal connections with Latine, Black and other multicultural beauty enthusiasts. Notably, 10% of this investment will be directly spent with Black and Latine owned media outlets, outpacing media industry benchmarks.

• Build upon its newly established and widely proclaimed Muse platform with programming to magnify, uplift, support and empower Black voices in beauty.

• Invest $8.5 million to brand marketing support for Black-owned, Black-founded and Black-led brands within the company’s assortment, more than doubling last year’s investment to reflect the retailers’ expanded Black-owned assortment.

In 2021, Ulta Beauty joined the Fifteen Percent Pledge and more than doubled the number of Black-owned brands in its assortment. This year, the company said it will continue building upon that work to help “diverse leaders, founders and entrepreneurs thrive in the beauty industry”

Ulta said it will launch a brand partner accelerator program focused on early-stage BIPOC beauty brands, and will provide time, resources and mentorship to educate, inspire and support accelerator participants with brand development for retail readiness.

To offer founders of color greater access, capital and expertise, Ulta will invest $5 million in New Voices, a venture capital firm that partners with and invests in entrepreneurs of color to drive scalable, sustainable businesses and create generational wealth. As the VC’s beauty retail partner, Ulta Beauty will provide priority access to shelf space, merchandising and marketing support.

Ulta will also allocate $3.5 million to in-store merchandising support so guests can more readily find the Black-owned, Black-founded and Black-led brands within the Ulta Beauty assortment

New this year, the Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation will donate $2 million to BIPOC and LGBTQ+-focused non-profits with volunteering and education opportunities for associates.

“Inclusion in Action”—its quarterly, in-store training launched in 2021 to reinforce inclusivity and address unconscious bias—will now be mandatory for distribution center and corporate associates in addition to a second year of curriculum for salon and store associates.

In addition, Ulta said textured hair and shade matching education trainings will be further enriched across every Ulta Beauty salon.