Topicals: Olamide Olowe’s Skincare Revolution

Five years ago, Olamide Olowe started Topicals with just $1,000, a deep understanding of chronic skin conditions, and a powerful vision: to make skincare inclusive and accessible for everyone. Today, she stands as the youngest Black woman to secure $15 million in venture capital and the founder of Sephora’s fastest-growing skincare brand. Topicals isn’t just selling products; it’s redefining beauty by merging clinical-grade formulas with cultural relevance, reframing conditions like eczema and hyperpigmentation as part of our identity, not something to hide.

A Cultural Approach to Skincare

Topicals’ journey has been anything but ordinary. The brand has tapped into culture with the flair of a fashion house, featuring cinematic campaigns inspired by hip-hop classics, viral brand trips to Ghana, a strong focus on mental health advocacy, and collaborations that foster genuine community. “I believe that skin conditions [can be] an extension of your personal sense of style,” Olowe shared exclusively with ESSENCE. “We lean into storytelling in a way a fashion house would, because we think that there are so many ways for us to basically poke fun at this idea that beauty looks one way through storytelling.”

This cultural fluency has allowed Topicals to create a significant space in an industry that has historically underserved skin of color. While many customers are Black, the brand’s appeal spans numerous ethnicities. Olowe notes, “What’s been interesting is that as we’ve made products that have worked better for darker skin tones, we’ve actually made products better for everyone.”

Education and Accountability in Skincare

To celebrate its fifth anniversary, Topicals launched a groundbreaking initiative alongside its new Acne Reset Kit, developed with licensed esthetician Tiara Willis. This program partners Topicals’ clinical expertise with Willis’s educational approach to train 10,000 estheticians and dermatologists on best practices for treating skin of color. “By pledging to educate 10,000 estheticians and dermatologists on skin of color, we want to bring accountability, honestly, to the industry,” Olowe explained, highlighting the need for investment in experts who understand diverse skin needs, especially given historical testing practices.

Tiara Willis, whose platform is dedicated to skincare education, found the collaboration a natural fit. “My entire platform has always been about education, and I would say I’m always trying to share my brain with my audience—everything I’ve ever learned, they know, too,” Willis said. “Topicals has always stood out to me because the brand is very education focused. They don’t only care about making good products, they also care about culture and mental health. That’s something you don’t really see with other brands.”

Addressing Urgent Needs

The Acne Reset Kit targets common concerns for melanin-rich skin: acne and hyperpigmentation. It includes products from Topicals’ Clearly and Faded collections, plus exclusive educational content from Willis. “Not everyone is working with a professional,” Willis noted, emphasizing how the kit provides consumers with both products and guidance, making expert advice more accessible. She also pointed out the outdated nature of many esthetics programs, stressing the importance of this initiative in better equipping professionals to treat skin of color without extensive additional costs.

Beyond Skincare: A Vision for Cultural Brands

Olowe’s ability to blend cultural authenticity with clinical rigor has positioned Topicals as a brand with broad appeal. “I’m excited that people of all gender orientations feel excited about us,” she shared. “Again, it comes back to this greater idea that we want to be at the center of culture as a brand.”

Looking ahead, Olowe has launched Cost of Doing Business, a holding company aimed at acquiring and scaling culturally aligned brands. This strategic move positions her not just as a founder, but as a visionary building an ecosystem for Black-owned and culturally rooted businesses. Topicals is now the foundation for a larger mission to empower these companies to thrive on their own terms.

I have never actually thought about Topicals as a skincare brand, and that might sound counterintuitive. You’re going to see us show up in different places and spaces, particularly spaces that you haven’t seen other skincare brands show up in. — Olamide Olowe

Olowe’s vision for Topicals extends beyond product sales, aiming to reshape the industry through community and accessibility. “The legacy of Topicals will be community oriented, and it will be community in a way that isn’t just a buzzword, but in one that gives people financial [access] and access and resources that we haven’t had in a long time. Or ever.”

After five years, Olamide Olowe has transformed a $1,000 idea into a cultural and beauty powerhouse. Topicals is poised not only to influence the skincare market but also to transform the culture surrounding beauty itself.