Born Robyn Fenty from a small parish in Barbados, Rihanna has grown from local girl to global tycoon in 15 years - successfully elevating her status outside of music into business.

Having been ambassador to several iconic brands including Dior and Puma, the singer launched her own empire in partnership with luxury corporation LVMH - leading with make-up brand Fenty Beauty in 2017. Buzz surrounding what the Bajan native would bring to the beauty industry sparked amongst make-up buyers particularly those of colour. According to a survey, people of colour markedly invested in beauty more than white consumers that year despite the lack of products made available to them.

This all changed with Fenty Beauty’s introduction of 40 foundation shades - an unprecedented number at the time - along with a host of accompanying wide-ranging collections. This exposed just how narrow the diversity gap had been in make-up before launching. The brand’s inclusivity proved to be a solid selling point along with the fairly affordable mid-range prices of high standard beauty products - putting competitors not as accommodating to shame. These brands had previously drawn in appeal through pretentious marketing, while Fenty Beauty knocked that of the way in favour of relatability.

The brand reaped the benefits of this with an estimated $570million after its first year in sales, quickly dominating the beauty space for not only being expansive but creative. Fenty’s developed products that haven’t been targeted towards Black people before with its own bronzers and body shimmers as examples. Fenty Beauty’s game-changing foundation led to make-up brands such as Clinique and L’Oréal Paris widening their shade ranges.

As creator of Fenty Beauty, Rihanna has always made it clear her inclusive intentions for the brand are based on an emotional attachment and awareness of what the industry is missing. She said to T: The New York Times Style Magazine: “Growing up, I wanted to be darker, always. So, making makeup, it wasn’t even a thing I had to think about. I didn’t even really know how bad it was, the void in the market for dark foundation, because all I’d seen was black women put makeup on.” At the beginning, the model diversity shown in social media campaigns was most important in connecting Fenty Beauty with buyers globally as the products were sold exclusively online internationally. Consumers from any region could identify products to their skin tone through this individualised way of marketing. This led to Rihanna’s second venture in her Fenty empire.

Lingerie line Savage X Fenty was unlike anything else on the market when it launched in 2018. It presented XS-XXXL fits on body types previously considered ‘unconventional’ in underwear campaigns. Sold exclusively online in partnership with TechStyle Fashion Group, the brand draws in consumers through its Instagram page of four million followers. It showcases designs sported by Rihanna herself, alongside diverse brand ambassadors and famous faces such as Lizzo and Normani. The label’s fashion shows have received much critical acclaim for being inclusive and diverse featuring pregnant women, trans women, non binary and plus size models.

With Savage X Fenty now worth $1billion, Rihanna has successfully transferred the diversity message across both Fenty brands which has forced competitors and the modelling industry to adapt to this new inclusive era. No longer do consumers want to see airbrushed bodies in advertisements; they prefer relatability to a fantasy. This may explain why long standing brands such as Victoria’s Secret have declined. Based upon a dated and heterosexual enticement selling strategy, the company doesn’t match up to the innovative approach of Savage X Fenty. The lingerie buying trends have switched from Wonderbras to more comforting styles stocked by Savage like the bralette. 

Nude underwear for dark skin tones has also been made more accessible thanks to Savage X Fenty’s extensive range, which had previously been provided by a small group of companies including Nubian Skin with limited availability across regions.

Rihanna’s Fenty empire has shown undeniable strength in inclusivity, which is perhaps where its youngest counterpart - luxury fashion brand Fenty - has fallen flat. Rihanna and LVMH extended their co-ownership towards creating this fashion house in 2019 - the first time a Black woman has been a fashion designer for LVMH. The line’s affordability vastly contrasted that of the first two Fenty brands with staples averaging at $500 and upwards. Although Fenty continued to promote inclusivity with an immigration collection and broadened size ranges, high prices ousted a significant portion of consumers which lost the message altogether.

With decreased demand and production due to the Covid-19 global pandemic, this has led Rihanna to focus on expanding Savage X Fenty with further investments being made by LVMH to support the brand. While this will no doubt advance Savage X Fenty to its next successful business phase, hopefully the ethical message of diversity led by Rihanna will continue to flourish and not be overseen as a trend we move on from in the future.