Makeup’s latest disruptor is Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty
NEW YORK — One of the most anticipated makeup launches this year is coming from an upstart whose namesake people already know. In partnership with LVMH’s Kendo Brands, Rihanna (full name Robyn Rihanna Fenty) launched Fenty Beauty Friday, bringing it to 1,600 Sephora stores in 17 countries.
Like Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics, Fenty Beauty has the benefit of its creator’s already large audience, with Rihanna pulling double duty as its main influencer. In the lead-up to the launch, the “Wild Thoughts” singer teased the collection to her 56.3 million Instagram followers and 77.2 million Twitter followers. Fenty Beauty and its creator also were featured on the October cover of Elle.
The singer said that she designed 91-SKU product line after trying to find beauty products that worked for many skin types and tones. As a result, the products have a focus on difficult-to-match skin tones, as well as universal shades and formulas that work on different skin types. Fenty Beauty’s Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear foundation features 40 shades, and the Match Stix Skinsticks have 30 shades in matte and shimmer finishes for contouring, correcting, concealing, highlighting and blush. It also includes blotting powder and paper, six highlighters, a universal lip gloss and various application tools.
“In every product, I was like, ‘there needs to be something for a dark-skinned girl, there needs to be something for a really pale girl and someone in between,’” Rihanna told reporters at the brand’s launch party. “You want people to appreciate the product and not feel like, ‘Oh, that’s cute, but it only looks good on her.’”
All the products are designed to help users create the look that Rihanna calls “the Fenty Face.” It includes a first step of a soft matte filter, a strategically placed highlight, and a focus on a shine-free look by blotting on the go.
“The Fenty Face was created for women of all skin tones, of all personalities," she said. “These steps are key to starting your makeup, no matter the look you're going for. This is where the fun begins.”