b'PHYSICALWHY DEISMALLGETTING RETAILSMATTERS MINERSPOLITICALFUTURE STRUGGLE IN PUBLIC Diversity of experience helps to eliminate, or at least reduce, blind spots. deliberately left unattended by the struggling dinosaur in that space, Taylor points to one fairly recent PR disaster as an example:Victorias Secret. H&Ms 2018 ad featuring a young Black boy wearing a sweatshirtWith Savage x Fenty, Rihanna gave so many women what they reading Coolest Monkey in the Jungle.had long wanted but could not findlingerie modeled by wom-There was also Pepsis infamous 2017 ad starring Kendall Jenner,en who looked like them and available in shades of nude that which was seen as trivializing the Black Lives Matter movement. matched their skin tone. Who was in the room that no oneWomen of all shapes, sizes, colors and flagged this? No one else in the roomThe solution isnt tellingphysical abilities appear in Savage x Fenty saw this being problematic becausesomeone theyre wrong orads, and they strut around the stage at there was no diversity of thought inasking them to validate orthe brands fashion shows, a stark the room, she says.justify their experience.contrast to Victoria Secrets Diversity also breeds innovation andStop. Believe them. Thenparade of ultra-thin, mostly helps retailers reach a broader audi- start finding ways towhite women at its now-defunct encepeople who, in the past, mightmake sure that doesntannual fashion show.have felt left out because they dontcontinue.Fenty Beauty and Savage x Fenty see themselves in a companys advertis-Nicole Taylor,have both exploded in popularity, ing, staff or products, as well as thoseDEI consultantraking in millions in sales and helping to make consumers who support the ideals ofRihanna one of the richest self-made women diversity and inclusion.in America, according to Forbes.Just ask Rihanna. Shes mastered inclusion. Shes mastered In 2017, the singer and entrepreneur launched Fenty Beauty withcelebrating differences and not putting one characteristic above the the idea of offering foundation for allmakeup foundation in 40others, Taylor says. shades (since expanded to 50) that matches every skin tone, from theRihannas emphasis on inclusion and diversity is a lesson for any fairest to the deepest. industry. The following year, the millennial mogul expanded her inclu- Read the room, Taylor concludes. What you personally think sionary ethos to a lingerie line, Savage x Fenty, which filled a voidmight not really matter when youre running a business. 50 STATE OF THE MAJORS 2020'