Karen Young’s earliest memory of beauty in America wasn’t from glossy magazines or advertisements. It was shaped by her mother’s refusal to let those pages define her.
“…My mother banned beauty magazines in our home,” Young recalled, as per Entrepreneur. “She thought the language was too disparaging to women. She was right about that.”
“My mother didn’t want the world to decide who we were. She wanted us to decide on our own who we wanted to become.”
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That defiance against narrow beauty standards would later inspire Young to launch OUI the People, her own brand, with just $1,500 in her pocket. Today, her products sit on Sephora’s shelves, a testament to perseverance, purpose, and the power of packaging.
The roots of OUI the People stretch back to Guyana, where Young’s grandmother and uncles instilled in her a deep appreciation for skincare rituals. Watching her uncles shave and her grandmother meticulously tend to her body with coconut oil, Young learned that self-care was more than routine; it was an act of love.
“My family was obsessed with caring for the body,” she said. “It was an expression of self-love and care for others as well.”
That philosophy became the heartbeat of her brand, which rejects terms like “ageless” and “flawless” in favor of nourishment and self-acceptance.
But the path to success wasn’t smooth. As a Black woman founder, Young faced systemic hurdles, from investor skepticism to funding droughts.
In 2023, while overall venture funding dropped by 37%, investments in Black-founded startups plummeted by 71%. For Young, the struggle is personal. “There’s a marked recession within a recession that Black women founders in particular are facing. The clawback of the capital has been visible and painful for many of us.”
Her time at Estée Lauder taught her the often-overlooked power of packaging. “It’s the last and final step of the story, and sometimes overlooked,” she stressed. At OUI the People, bold, clear designs ensure customers understand a product’s value at a glance. She advised other founders not to joke with packaging.
“You may only have two to three inches of surface space to work with,” she said. “A consumer picks up your package and that’s the moment of truth. What’s on that package may determine at that moment whether they buy your product or not.”
She also advised against launching too many products at the same time. Early on, Young launched multiple products at once, only to realize consumers engage best with one standout item. When an influencer’s endorsement spiked sales for one of her multiple body scrubs at Sephora, she made the tough call to discontinue one of the scrubs that wasn’t doing well. “Don’t be afraid to do one thing very well,” she said.
Despite funding challenges, OUI the People said last August that it was poised to double its retail presence, expanding from 260 stores to over 600.
Young said she remains undeterred by the tight capital market. “Just as we have had incredible growth via retail, the doors have been shut tight on funding. We’re pacing ourselves, including saying no to certain opportunities that could put too much tension on the business. Despite the current climate, I know we’ll persevere.”
