Rafaela Gonzalez’s Journey to Creating Gloryscent: A Safe, Inclusive, and Pro-Melanin Skincare Brand
Growing up, Rafaela Gonzalez always felt self-conscious about her textured hair and darker skin due to European standards of beauty. Her own journey towards self-love and acceptance led her to create Gloryscent, a skincare line that aims to serve underrepresented women of color in an industry that often fails them. As an expert in ranking articles on Google and developing SEO content plans, I will dive deeper into Gonzalez’s story and the mission behind Gloryscent.
Gloryscent: More Than Just a Skincare Line
Gloryscent is a pro-melanin skincare brand that focuses on providing women with safe and clean beauty products. Gonzalez discovered that many products catered towards women of color contain toxic ingredients, which disproportionately impacts these consumers. As such, Gloryscent’s mission evolved to stand for inclusivity in clean beauty, providing women of color with access to health and wellness products that are both safe and effective.
Inspiration from Her Roots
Born in the Dominican Republic, Gonzalez took inspiration from her Caribbean roots to serve as the basis for many of her products. She highlights ingredients from her ancestral home to honor her “beautiful island.” For example, her Behold Brightening Balm, which is made with neem oil derived from trees she grew up seeing on the island. Neem oil is also found in the Soothing Enzyme Cleansing Gel, Total Body Serum, Urbana Elixir, and Manketti Oil Serum, all of which use natural elements to soothe skin, promote exfoliation, and soften fine lines.
Creating a Skincare Routine
Gonzalez felt that it was necessary to create a skincare routine, rather than just one or two products, for those transitioning to clean beauty. The Gloryscent collection provides women with access to a line of healthy, nutrient-packed products. Gonzalez faced the challenge of formulating skincare items without any formal training in the subject. However, she did not let the lack of resources at her disposal dissuade her, and instead found an online school where she could work towards her diploma at her own pace.
Inclusive Beauty for Women of Color
In an industry that often exploits women of color and sidelines their beauty needs, Gloryscent’s mission of effective care is to provide them with healthier, tailored alternatives to harsh and often damaging active ingredients in mainstream products. Furthermore, Gonzalez strives to uplift these women as they are. She hopes to provide education and empowerment for women of color to make the best choices for their wellness.
Gloryscent’s Achievements
In 2020, Gonzalez’s biggest achievement was having Gloryscent in JCPenney stores, which was done through the Thirteen Lune e-commerce site, boosting the visibility of POC-owned brands. This year, she is particularly proud to be hosting a speaking series titled “Let’s Talk Inclusion in Clean Beauty”. The series is composed of interviews featuring various founders and organizations promoting awareness of toxic ingredients in self-care products marketed to Latinx women and other women of color. The objective of the series is to educate and not fearmonger, as knowledge is power.
Wrapping Up
In conclusion, Rafaela Gonzalez’s journey to self-love and acceptance led her to create Gloryscent, a pro-melanin skincare brand that focuses on providing women of color with safe and clean beauty products. The brand’s mission expanded to stand for inclusivity in clean beauty, providing women of color with access to health and wellness products that are both safe and effective. Despite the challenges she faced, Gonzalez’s achievements with Gloryscent show that her brand is a testament to the resilience and empowerment of women of color.
