Tracee Ellis Ross talks Pattern Beauty, advocacy, and joy with Samira Nasr
Nov 21, 2024
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Tracee Ellis Ross, an award-winning actress and founder of Pattern Beauty, joins her longtime friend Samira Nasr, editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar. They discuss the importance of representation in the beauty industry and how Tracee built her hair care brand to celebrate Black beauty. Their conversation highlights entrepreneurial lessons, the joy of friendship, and overcoming challenges in leadership roles. They emphasize self-acceptance, cultural change for young girls, and the vital role of community and support in achieving success.
Tracee Ellis Ross founded Pattern Beauty to address the lack of representation and effective products for textured hair in the beauty industry.
The podcast emphasizes the significance of joy and supportive friendships in entrepreneurship, showcasing how collaboration fosters resilience and personal growth.
Deep dives
The Vision Behind Pattern Beauty
Tracee Ellis Ross founded Pattern Beauty with a mission that extends beyond mere hair care; it aims to address the unique needs of curly, coily, and tightly textured hair. This journey emerged from her personal experiences as a consumer who struggled to find products that worked for her specific hair type, leading to her realization that the beauty industry often overlooks these textures. Instead of seeing hair care as a problem, she identified a larger market gap, motivating her to create a brand that celebrates the beauty of textured hair while providing effective solutions. Ultimately, Ross emphasizes that building a business rooted in authenticity and cultural representation is fundamental to her brand's identity.
Joy as a Core Value
Joy plays a crucial role in the ethos of Pattern Beauty, with Tracee linking her understanding of joy to her personal identity and mission as a brand founder. Her belief is that marketing should celebrate individuals rather than emphasize problems that need fixing, thus shifting the narrative from negativity to empowerment. This commitment to joy not only reflects in her product design but also permeates the company culture, where the focus is on fostering a supportive space for all individuals. By redesigning the consumer experience around positivity, Ross aims to promote self-acceptance and confidence within the textured hair community.
The Impact of Supportive Relationships
The podcast highlights the profound influence of supportive friendships on personal and professional growth, particularly through Tracee's bond with Samira Nassar. Their friendship, cultivated over decades, serves as a foundation for resilience, providing a safe space to share challenges and aspirations. Tracee attributes her ability to navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship to the encouragement and faith Samira holds for her, illustrating the power of collaboration and emotional support in achieving success. Both women underscore the importance of having reliable allies who can offer perspective and motivation, particularly in high-stakes environments.
Award-winning actress and founder of Pattern Beauty Tracee Ellis Ross didn’t see Black beauty being represented well in the market – so she built a company from scratch to fix that. In this episode, she shares entrepreneurial lessons with her longtime friend Samira Nasr, who is editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar. Their conversation was recorded live on stage at the 2024 Masters of Scale Summit.