It was a different kind of homecoming season for Rihanna. This week, the makeup maven and pop culture icon officially celebrated the launch of Fenty Beauty across the Caribbean with a launch event in her home country, Barbados!
Rihanna announced, via Instagram back in early October, that the brands would officially be available at select retailers across nine different Caribbean territories. This includes Antigua, Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, and Sint Maarten starting October 24, 2024.
“It’s always felt awkward that my brand has not been in my home, so this is something I’ve always wanted to do,” the Barbadian native told ESSENCE at the launch event. “I’ve always pushed for it,” she said. “The moment that we were approved to come here—we came.”
She also assured that she plans to continue the Fenty Beauty roll out across the Caribbean. “The Caribbean, I wear that on my back, just like I do Barbados. So even though we launched in nine islands right now, we’re gonna keep opening up and expanding that. We’re going to cover the entire Caribbean and beyond,” the superstar said.
Celebrities like Reginae Carter, as well as Barbadian Prime Minister, Mia Amor Mottley were in attendance at the launch event. The celebration took place this past Thursday at the idyllic QP bistro, an oceanfront restaurant overlooking the island’s dramatic west coast. Rihanna, who is also one of Barbados’ national heroes, delighted attendees by partying alongside guests and even taking over the DJ mic.
Rihanna also touched on the impact of her Caribbean heritage on the development and trajectory of her brands, stating, “beauty has always been a very sincere space. But now I’m incorporating ingredients from the island into my skincare, into my beauty, into the reason I have Invisimatte, the one powder that will matte you down in the moment,” especially in humidity!
“Launching in the Caribbean actually reinforces what we’ve built this brand to be from the beginning—which is inclusive. Everyone found a shade, everyone found their soulmate on our gondola,” she said. “I want to continue to push that. The first person I ever saw put foundation on their skin was my mom, a Black woman. I never knew there was a void. I just did it from my heart because that’s what I’ve known.”
For Rihanna, “inclusivity doesn’t mean skewing to one space. It means skewing to everyone. I want everyone to be able to shop at Fenty Beauty, Fenty Skin, Fenty Hair—it’s my goal.”
