Update: Birchbox response to the recent actions of Lisa Alexander, founder and CEO of LAFACE
Thank you to the Birchbox community for speaking up and speaking out, and bringing the racist actions of Lisa Alexander to our attention. There is absolutely no space at Birchbox for racism, and we condemn Lisa Alexander's actions. We have not sampled the LAFACE brand in boxes in several years and, as a result of the CEO's actions today, have officially cut ties with them. We've removed their products from our online shop and will not be working with them again in the future. #blacklivesmatter
Thank you,
The Birchbox Team
To the Birchbox community,
We are without all of the right words. We are sad and angry that systemic racism is part of our reality. We stand with everyone who is hurting, we stand with the families who have lost loved ones, we stand for anti-racism, and we stand for a wakeup call. We need to have this conversation everywhere until violence and loss of life are no longer needed to protect the basic rights of Black Americans. We also know that we need to be a platform that advocates for change, is an ally, and is a voice of solidarity.
While we remain committed, we also recognize that part of this process is owning our failures. We unequivocally own the fact that we have not done enough to be an ally to the Black community. We haven’t delivered in the way we should have in the representation of the products we carry, the brands we work with, and within our own team… we’ve certainly taken steps forward, but also taken steps back. We have been comfortable, and haven’t taken our full responsibility in being an ally as seriously as we should have been - that stops now.
Our entire company is currently working on a plan that is about creating meaningful and importantly, lasting change. While we will focus on our product itself and how it serves and delights the Black community, there’s much more we can and will do. We are looking at investment as a whole - every place we put our money is an opportunity to invest in the Black community, dismantle systemic racism, and shift the paradigm.
In the immediate, we have created a committee within the company to be champions of ongoing plans across our teams who will help make this part of everything that we do. The first step of our commitment is to reassess and develop plans to impact the following areas:
- Our leadership principles to ensure that they reflect our commitments set forth here
- Hiring and the interview process
- Our beauty partner and sampling selection within boxes and our online shop
- Education and training for our team
- Agencies and other vendors that we work with
- Logistics and manufacturing partners that we work with
- Partnerships
- Donations and sponsorships (monetary and volunteer time)
Our team is also in the process of developing a 3 year plan, and we will continue to set annual plans beyond that to continue the work and to hold ourselves accountable. This week and next, our entire company is coming together to discuss and develop more tactical plans and commitments. Next week, we will update you on our progress on the development of our immediate and ongoing plans of action.
This does not stop when the momentum on social media quells - we will continue, always, to do our part moving forward. We are looking ahead, more determined than ever, to be an advocate for change. But don’t judge us on our words - judge us on our actions.
From,
The Birchbox Team