Ami Colé Is Breaking Beauty Boundaries With L’Oréal’s BOLD Investment

Black-owned clean beauty brand Ami Colé has just secured a new bag with L’Oréal’s venture capital fund, BOLD (Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development).

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To say Ami Colé brand’s rise has been meteoric would be an understatement.

The Black-owned beauty brand launched in 2021, earning a loyal customer base with its lip treatment oils and foundation offerings catering to melanin-rich skin tones. One year later, it secured a spot on Sephora’s “Next Bing Thing” shelves. It now boasts nearly two dozen offerings including skin-enhancing tints, foundations, and concealers with even more visibility.

Earlier this year, it expanded its Sephora footprint in Canada and will now be on the Clean Beauty shelf in all US-based stores this fall.

The BOLD investment will help founder Diarrha N’Diaye-Mbaye further expand the brand’s audience, reach, and marketing efforts. 

“We are excited to announce our partnership with L’Oréal through their venture capital fund, BOLD,” said N’Diaye-Mbaye in a recent statement. “This union will enable the brand to continue propelling as a force demanding change and amplifying voices that have been left unheard.”

This marks the first time L’Oréal has provided early-stage funding for a Black founder with a primarily Black customer base, according to Carol Hamilton, group president of acquisitions and business development, L’Oréal USA.

“There are still not enough funds that are willing to invest in founders, especially female founders and Black founders,” said Hamilton in a recent interview with WWD. “This is an opportunity to separate ourselves from those funds,” she said. “We want to support this community in a big way; it’s important for the industry that we do that.”