When other companies stepped away from diversity efforts, e.l.f. stepped up

While many companies – and the federal government – are walking away from diversity, equity and inclusion, either in name or in deed, e.l.f. Beauty has come out in vocal support of the practice as a foundational part of its business.

“Our diversity is a key competitive advantage in terms of our results,” said CEO Tarang Amin, CEO and chairman of the affordable cosmetics brand. He touted the company’s 23 (since updated to 24) consecutive quarters of net growth as proof of the monetary value of inclusion.

These values aren’t new or reactionary for e.l.f. in the wake of the new presidential administration. In May 2024, they released a well-received campaign dubbed “So Many Dicks” that highlighted the number of men named Richard (and its related nicknames, including Dick) serving on publicly traded boards compared to various minority groups. It’s a fact that conveniently helps e.l.f. tout that its board is 74% women and 44% diverse.

“We are saying the same thing today as we did yesterday, last month and last year – all built on the principle we were founded 21 years ago: e.l.f. is for every eye, lip and face,” wrote Samantha Critchell, VP of corporate communications, in an email interview. “The renewed conversation around diversity and inclusion is being driven by external factors.”

But it’s a conversation e.l.f. has proven happy to be involved in. In a series of interviews with CNN with accompanying LinkedIn posts from Amin, the company has repeatedly and clearly touted diversity activities as good for business, a refrain that companies such as Costco and Apple have also cited in their defenses of the practices. Critchell and her team saw an opportunity to become part of the current conversation – and seized it.

“It was very intentional to create an ethos that stretched as time and situations evolve, so while we dial up and down the volume on particular parts of our narrative to be relevant and serve the conversation, there wasn’t any sort of situation room,” Critchell said. “We keep tabs on the news and sentiment from our community on a daily basis.”

Their strategy, driven largely by an on-air interview on CNN as well as a digital article on CNN.com, was also bolstered by accompanying LinkedIn posts from Amin that reiterated key points from the interviews for a different audience.

“We stand behind everything we say and don’t change the meaning of a message depending on audience or platform – although we will mine for nuggets of what the community wants to talk about,” Critchell said. “Tarang values the direct dialogue that LinkedIn creates. He doesn’t mince words or hide behind spin. He listens, learns and responds with humanity, and it really is him reading and commenting. Addressing diversity and inclusion is no different than talking about any other topic.”

But Critchell was careful to somewhat separate the brand from DEI, the capital-letter acronym that has become shorthand for several criticisms from conservative politicians. Despite that shift, she said that response to their public-facing efforts has been positive.

“Because lower-case diversity, equity and inclusion is so much a part of our identity, our community already knows where we stand,” Critchell said. “We’ve had an incredibly positive and robust response, including inbound emails from new members of the e.l.f. community thanking us for being a voice – and telling us they are now purchasing e.l.f.!”

However  the continued push for diversity is not a purely external move. In addition to those board diversity numbers, e.l.f. also advertises that their employee base is 75% women and 45% diverse. The same messages that are sent to external audiences are reinforced for e.l.f.z., as team members are called.

“There’s no difference in what we’re saying internally and externally,” Critchell explained. “Tarang writes an all-team note each week, and he has kept the team informed on our commitment to diversity every step of the way.”

When asked what advice she’d give to other companies mulling their next step when it comes to diversity efforts, Critchell was unequivocal.

“Creating a best-in-class workforce that reflects the community you serve doesn’t have to be a choice. My suggestion is to figure out how to make it an ‘and.’”

Allison Carter is editorial director of PR Daily and Ragan.com. Follow her on LinkedIn.