When intolerance seems to be rampant, small gestures of inclusivity are what make all the difference in the world.
Instead of a customary annual sale, Dubai based beauty brand Luscious Cosmetics sent out a stock of products to the transgender community in Lahore as a grand gesture of inclusivity and to simply make their day! We reached out to speak to CEO Mehrbano Sethi to find out what gave her this idea, and the importance of inclusivity in our society.
SH: How did you come up with this idea and how did you make it materialize?
Mehrbano Sethi: I’ve been considering doing this for a few months now. As Luscious expands globally we have observed a strong tie between makeup brands and the LGBTQ community worldwide. The transgender community in Pakistan are largely marginalised and my team and I have been brainstorming about how we can support and highlight them as part of our corporate social responsibility.
We reached out to several organisations that work for transgender rights, for the homeless and also organisations that are working to put transgender persons into the mainstream work force. While we were working on creating a comprehensive support program, my sales team entered the meeting to ask me the details about our end of season sale for the Pakistan market. It hit me that it would be wonderful if we donated the overstocks instead of having the sale this month. Makeup is a tool that Pakistan’s transgenders use daily.
SH:Â How do you think society can be more inclusive and accepting of the different communities and minorities?
Mehrbano Sethi:Â Inclusivity and tolerance must be the mantra for 2018 and beyond. We must work mindfully to be tolerant and supportive of everyone regardless of age, gender, colour, creed… only then can we evolve and grow as a nation.
SH:Â How do you think brands like Luscious can contribute in bringing about this change?
Mehrbano Sethi: We are a small indie beauty brand at the end of the day. The downside of that is that we do not have large amounts of funds and resources to support our causes. But there is an upside. We don’t answer to corporate red tape, hence we can respond quickly to causes where we feel we can make a difference. We hope to carry out similar support activities in all Luscious markets worldwide.
