Munroe Bergdorf: The beauty industry is more inclusive than ever, but there’s still so much we need to change

At the 16th GLAMOUR Women of the Year Awards, in partnership with Samsung, we’re honouring those women who aren’t afraid to challenge the status quo and reshape the world. From activism to acting, our winners are working across a variety of industries to make the world a better, more equal place.

Taking home the UOMA Beauty award for ‘Beauty Changemaker’ is Munroe Bergdorf, a model and activist who consistently uses her platform to champion diversity in the beauty industry.

I’ve always gravitated towards beauty that oozes bold, strong femininity. I didn’t have many friends in high school growing up, so I turned to outlets like fashion magazines and music videos; places where I could escape into a world that looked like the one in my imagination. I would lose myself in the work of people who forged their own paths: Madonna’s sexual braveness and refusal to conform to society’s respectability politics; Beyoncé who was one of the few Black women in pop music; and Christina Aguilera who wasn’t afraid to push the boundaries of makeup and fashion.

I knew that I wanted to do that, too. But I felt like the industry wasn’t set up for me. There was a distinct lack of access to the same level of makeup products as people with lighter skin tones than me, which came in the form of minuscule shade ranges and beauty products that didn’t help me or other Black women to achieve our desired look.

Not only were shades non-inclusive, but imagery featuring Black, queer and trans people was rare. I always felt disheartened, a lack of darker shade ranges was one thing but also not seeing yourself reflected in the industry (while trying not to conform to society’s standards) was hard. Feeling unrepresented in the industry I wanted to pursue a career in felt like standing at the bottom of a mountain. But it made me all the more determined to be the change I wanted to see.

I found this time in my life to be a confusing parallel to navigate, not only was I and other unrepresented people not being provided with products to accentuate our beautiful features, but we were actively encouraged to buy products that lightened our skin and straightened our hair: I wore the wrong shade of foundation because I had to mix what was available on the market, and it was never truly a match… It was ashy, really ashy. 

Chemically straightening my hair with hair relaxers and then bleaching it did me no favours either, my hair turned into a consistency that resembled chewing gum and dropped out in clumps.

“I know what it feels like not to see yourself reflected in the beauty standards of the day – to feel hopeless within an industry that you are inspired by.”

This is why I was so inspired by people who trod their own paths and created avant-garde looks that I now love and appreciate. While certain aspects of beauty seemed so boundless in magazines in my younger years, the industry still felt unavailable to me. How could I possibly join in when there wasn’t even a foundation that matched my skin tone? 

If I could give my younger self any advice, it would be to stay away from hair relaxers, have fun playing with wigs but also learn to appreciate my beautiful curl pattern and look into getting braids (I’ll grow up to really love them). The beauty industry has come far since then, but there’s still lots more to do. Many more communities are lacking the representation that they deserve – as well as public understanding and support.