Meet our Fellows

Breaking Down Barriers in the Beauty Industry 

When Simone Jenkins took her first steps toward creating a line of lipstick, she had no idea how far it would take her or what it would come to mean.

As a person of color and a person with a hidden disability, Jenkins is breaking barriers as a Black entrepreneur in the beauty industry. Diagnosed with a rare form of inflammatory arthritis, Jenkins has begun speaking up and out to share her experiences in the world of work. In creating Lipstick Cult, she has become not only a role model but also stepped up to become an advocate for better health access and education in Black communities.

Jenkins grew up in the Lakeside neighborhood of South Bend, Indiana, a historically Black neighborhood, surrounded by three brothers, a sister and a bevy of cousins. “I'm from a family of storytellers. We love to tell great stories about life.” Even though Jenkins played sports at school, she found what she really loved were the arts.

After graduating from high school, Jenkins headed to Columbia University in Chicago to study fashion design. She got her first job in the art world while an undergrad at Columbia. Unable to afford the art supplies required for her classes, she noticed a ‘now hiring’ sign in a nearby Utrecht art supply store and filled out an application that day. ‘I thought ‘I need to work here so I can get a discount,” laughed Jenkins. Quickly hired, she was eventually quickly promoted to manager and then moved on to manage another art store inside the Art Institute of Chicago, all while continuing her education.

 “I always say “Chicago taught me my hustle” and showed me my passion. I ended up transferring to The International Academy of Design Technology to finish my degree, because it was more affordable.”

 In 2006, however, Jenkins found herself knocked off her feet with a diagnosis of adult Still’s disease, a form of juvenile arthritis that “pops up into your adult life.” Jenkins left Chicago and returned home to South Bend to recover and rebuild her life.

After a long period of recovery, Jenkins landed a position as a makeup artist for MAC Cosmetics. “2008 was my comeback year. That’s where I got my feet wet in the beauty industry.” After completing extensive product training, she moved back to Chicago and continued to work for MAC.  “I spent a lot of time absorbing the industry. I was the product knowledge girl. And I just start falling in love with lip products. Because lipstick will always be a thing.”

Jenkins enjoyed helping people from all backgrounds find a lipstick that looked good on them. “I was the go-to person for lipstick.”  After listening to customers talk about the popularity and influence of lipstick blogs, a co-worker joked that lipstick was a cult and Jenkins knew she had found the name for her business. “Then it was grind time to really study culture, what beauty in each culture meant. That’s how I started creating the names of lipsticks and connecting them to culture.”

Jenkins dove into research on ingredients, manufacturing, and packaging. She researched different cultures and themes in the beauty world. In 2013, she created her first formula and partnered with a Chicago company to customize and manufacture the lipstick and in 2014, she and co-CEO, Mary Jo Flint, officially launched Lipstick Cult to pop-up success.  Flint, a beauty and fashion blogger and photographer, continues to be a “partner in grind” with Jenkins.

 Currently, Jenkins and Flint are working on a rebrand for Lipstick Cult. “We are a Black-owned brand. We started off like a fun, kind of youthful brand and now we’re trying to make it a more sophisticated, luxe brand connected to culture. Experiencing culture is a luxury. Traveling and experiencing cultures is a great luxury.”

 In truth, Jenkins sees her brand as more than just a lipstick. “When I created the brand, I didn’t really think about the impact it would have on my community. I was just chasing entrepreneurship and I’m pretty proud of where I’ve come so far. But I didn’t realize what it meant. I get encouraging messages from people, local people saying you guys are so cool. We love lipstick. We love that you are from South Bend – and you’re living out a dream. It’s creating a path for future business owners in my community that look like me and come from where I come from without a lot of money.”

 “I just had to stop and shift my brand, shift my mind, to be more than just the lipstick. It’s about creating a platform and an opportunity for people like me. In my neighborhood, the biggest thing is opportunity.”

Jenkins also found herself a role model for those with hidden disabilities. “My disability was something that I kept under wraps for a long time. I didn't hear the term ‘hidden disability’ until I started working for an airline.” While attending inclusivity training during a three year stint as a flight attendant at United, Jenkins learned about “not making assumptions about people because they could have a hidden disability. And I thought – that’s me.”

“But now I have a business. I get up every day. I put my best foot forward physically. I'm pretty much always the same every day, but really strong. Yeah, sometimes I may not be feeling my best. Nobody knows I used to be really self-conscious about it because my wrists look kind of weird sometimes. They swell up a bit.  I used to wear a lot of bracelets to cover it.

Jenkins’ commitment to her community is reflected in her advocacy work through her Pink Door Project.  After the death of a close friend whose cancer treatment was delayed due to a misdiagnosis, Jenkins became an advocate for breast cancer awareness and education within the Black Community and raises money for survivor support through her “Think Pink” lipstick. 

“We’re fundraising stories. We’re collecting stories from women of color with breast cancer. Education about mammograms and programs for survivor support are not really available in my community. The Pink Door Project is going to be a resource for people of color to learn about getting mammograms and to get information on breast cancer.

 Jenkins has selected five women from her community to tell their stories about their experience with breast cancer. “Our stories are forgotten a lot of times. We want to give a voice to their battle. My Pink Door project can be a safe place to share that story.”

 Lipstick Cult’s “Think Pink” lipstick will be available annually and proceeds will be donated to the Pink Door project’s Survivor Support fund.

Jenkins feels the weight of her choices, but her long term vision sustains her. “I’ve got a lot of people standing on my shoulders and I don’t even know that they are standing on my shoulders. I put my best foot forward to become a full-time entrepreneur and to continue to advocate and to create opportunities for people that look like me, for my nieces and nephews and my family. To break generational curses and go through doors that weren’t designed for me. That’s what motivates me… to create a path.”

“Ten years from now, I want to be a global brand known not just for pretty lip products, but also for culture, community, and connecting with people. I want to be able to create jobs and to create a family legacy that provides for the community. Connecting my brand to the impact of community is my most prized accomplishment. I want my brand to open doors for women with disabilities and to give them a comfort level to say they have a disability and let the world know. I want to make sure other people can follow their dreams too.”