The Fenty Effect: Redesigning Beauty for Everyone
- Kayley Williams
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
In 2017, Fenty Beauty launched with a foundation range most brands had avoided for years. It entered the market with shades that covered a far wider spectrum of skin tones than was typical at the time. That did more than fill a gap in one product category; it exposed a quiet design choice in beauty retail. Up to that point, many brands had simply decided that darker complexions were not worth the investment.
Most celebrity beauty brands entered the market with the same playbook: a recognisable face, a narrow product line, and heavy promotion. Fenty, founded by Rihanna, still had the celebrity pull, but the disruption came from something else. The brand designed its core product around inclusion from the start, rather than adding it later as a fix.
What set Fenty apart was not only range of shades; It was the attention to undertones, formulation, and the fact that inclusion was built into the structure of the brand, not bolted on after pressure.
The Old Beauty Marketing Formula
For years, many beauty brands centred white consumers with little pressure to change. Foundation ranges often stopped at mid-tones, leaving darker-skinned consumers to mix shades, accept poor matches, or leave empty-handed. Plenty of people walked into stores already expecting their shade would not exist.
This pattern was not accidental. It reflected a long-standing commercial approach: define beauty around one dominant look, then treat everyone else as a secondary market. Brands prioritised the consumers they assumed had the most purchasing power. Expanding shade ranges requires research, reformulation, testing, and investment. Without clear competition proving that broader inclusion was commercially worth it, exclusion remained the easiest (and cheapest) option.
Before social media amplified consumer experience at scale, public accountability was limited. Brands could ignore a whole demographic with far less reputational risk. Exclusion wasn't stated outright. It showed up in what was (and wasn’t) on the shelves.
The Fenty Effect
The launch triggered what many called “The Fenty Effect”. Suddenly, 40-shade ranges became the benchmark. Brands rushed to expand their product shades, but for most, expansion alone didn’t fix the deeper issue. Quick launches with weak undertones and poor formulas signalled box-ticking, not product care, and consumers noticed. A shade count can look impressive while still failing the people it claims to include.
Fenty positioned inclusive product design as the baseline, not the add-on. Its foundation range of 40 shades immediately signalled a shift in priorities, making it clear that darker skin tones were part of the core design. Representation ran through the brand choices too, including campaign casting that showed a level of racial diversity and gender inclusion that was still rare in mainstream beauty marketing at the time.
What set Fenty apart was not only range of shades; It was the attention to undertones, formulation, and the fact that inclusion was built into the structure of the brand, not bolted on after pressure.
The commercial impact was immediate. Fenty's early revenue figures demonstrated that inclusive design was not niche- it was unmet demand. The darker shades sold out the fastest. The industry's long-standing excuse that foundation in deeper tones lacked commercial viability crumpled to the ground. The barrier was not lack of interest. It was lack of product, and often poor formulation.
What set Fenty apart was not only range of shades; It was the attention to undertones, formulation, and the fact that inclusion was built into the structure of the brand, not bolted on after pressure.
For shoppers who had been forced to adapt to limited shade ranges, Fenty signalled something different: their needs were being treated as part of the core design, not as an edge case. That shift matters because it changes what customers expect from the category, and what brands can no longer justify.
Success (With Impact) That Lasts
Fenty has continued to expand its range: it now has 50 foundation shades and has scaled into skincare, fragrance, and haircare. Fenty Beauty's continued growth has shown the rest of the industry that inclusivity by design is not a charitable extra. It is good product work. It builds trust, earns customer loyalty, and, in Fenty's case, forces a whole category to update its default settings.
At Index:MH, we pay attention to what brands do, not what they say. When inclusion shows up in product design, retail experience, and marketing choices, it is visible. It is measurable. It raises the bar for everyone else. Help us push brands to create products that work for everyone.
If there are other “Fenty Effect” moments you think reshaped beauty for the better, share them with the Index:MH team: hello@indexmh.org
