Growing up as a Latin American immigrant in a homogenous country like Sweden, I never found myself represented in mainstream media and the products I consumed. Especially in beauty.
Hair and beauty has always been a central part of my culture. My father was a hairdresser and had set up a hairdresser chair equipped with a styling mirror and product cart in our living room. He often cut hair for family and friends and would spend hours braiding my long hair.
As I grew older, my dreams evolved with me. Determined to create a different future for myself than the one of my parents, I embarked on a journey of my own. I moved out of home at the age of 18, was the first in my family to get a degree, joined the tech industry as one of few women and eventually relocated to the U.S. for work.
Upon arriving in the U.S., I reconnected with my Latinx heritage. For the first time I could see myself in others and realized how many have grown up in-between cultures, just like myself.
Despite the modern Latinx community I met, coupled with the fact that Hispanics account for 20% of the U.S. population, I still witnessed an enormous void of Latinx representation. As such, I began to feel a strong sense of responsibility to propel change.
