In good co. is a series where our co-creators share their experience + perspective in helping formulate our product launches.
Hello! My name is Simone, known as Simone Nicole on social media. I currently have a YouTube channel and an Instagram where beauty and promotion of self confidence is my focus. I am also a Co-Creator for Function of Beauty’s brand new Custom Co-Wash. To have this opportunity as a black female micro-influencer has been amazing. The chemists were very open to the suggestions I made about the formula, and the entire creative process felt so collaborative. I felt like the formula was missing that “it” factor in the first round of formulation. I talked to the chemists about adding in more extracts and, my personal favorite ingredient in hair care products, aloe vera leaf juice. All of my suggestions were taken into consideration, and added to the final formulation of the co-wash. The formula is now full of extracts, juices, and oils, which is going to help so much in providing slip for detangling on wash days. I am so proud of the product that I had a hand in creating. And to know that myself and two other women of color co-creating the formulation is so special to me. Now that you know the end of the story, let’s start at the beginning to see how all of this came to be!
During the pandemic, I finally had the time to invest in my content (both monetarily and physically). When I was brainstorming ideas, I knew I wanted to do a video on Function of Beauty because I had seen so many influencers that I loved talking about it. However, none of them had hair like mine. So I bought the products I saw people rave about the most: the customizable shampoo, conditioner, and leave-in. I didn’t care for aspects of it, and made an honest video about my thoughts. Little did I know what that video would turn into. It became the most viewed video on my channel, even to this day. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with most people applauding me for the detail and research that went into the video. With the positivity also came a lot of people saying that they were going to buy the products, but decided not to because of my video. That never sat well with me because it was never my intention to do the company any harm. I just made a video that ended up blowing up in a way I never expected.
So imagine my surprise when I got an email late one evening from the Communications Director of Function of Beauty..
I was very surprised to read that she and the entire team had watched my video and wanted to reach out to me because of it. Instead of informing me that I was being sued, which I had convinced myself of after seeing who the email was from, she actually wanted to hop on a call to talk about a new product they had in development. Honestly, being sued would have been less of a shock. Not only did the whole team watch my video, they actually listened to the constructive criticism I gave and wanted to fix it. They informed me that they were starting to work on a customizable Co-Wash formula and wanted me to be a part of the creative process. I cannot begin to talk about the amount of respect that I have for this company. They took what I said in stride, because they knew it was a market they weren’t doing well in.
I could not be happier about the product that myself and my fellow Creators have come up with. I hope everyone enjoys this product as much as I have, and that it provides a unique experience made especially for you!
