Tracee Ellis Ross doesn’t just put her money where her mouth is.

She puts mind, body, heart and soul there, too.

The multihyphenate launched Pattern Beauty, hair look after curly, coily and tight-textured hair, in September 2019,  just months before COVID-19 shut the world down and the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis sparked a latest social justice movement.

But fairly than deter her, for Ross — successful actor, producer, advocate and, now, entrepreneur — who had worked for a decade to bring the brand to life — those events helped catalyze  a fair larger role: becoming a number one voice in beauty for driving meaningful change around inclusivity and equity within the industry.

“Tracee is such a magnetic force whose superpower  is inspiring others to feel seen and thought of,” said Nyakio Grieco, cofounder of Thirteen Lune. “Tracee creating Pattern is an extension of her artistry, talent and talent to encourage a future generation of founders.”

That has meant Ross taking up additional roles beyond the confines of Pattern, corresponding to diversity and inclusion adviser to Ulta Beauty. But much more importantly, it’s resulted within the founder doubling down not only on growing her business — however the textured hair category overall. She has turn into a number one voice for driving equity across the wonder industry, holding herself — and her partners — accountable.

“There was progress,” said Ross, “more Black-owned brands on the shelf, more people showing up wearing their hair in a natural way. But there may be more work to be done.”

For one, although textured-hair care is the fastest-growing category in hair, with greater than half of the U.S. population considered to have textured hair, it’s still considered “area of interest” by many. “Black consumers represent $1.2 trillion in spending power, which is a large opportunity for growth, but I still don’t think Black consumers are being prioritized,” said Ross, who believes that more research and data is required to show the scope of the chance.

And it’s not only getting more Black-owned brands on store shelves. It’s helping them stay there, too. “It’s no joke, the quantity of monetary and operational resources that a brand needs to remain competitive in a significant retail environment,” said Ross. “A variety of newer brands aren’t arrange for that, particularly for those who take note of that Black female founders are the most important growing group within the industry, yet the cash is at the bottom end of the dimensions. That should be checked out from a systemic perspective.”

Ross knows whereof she speaks — she’s a hands-on founder who’s intimately involved within the day-to-day operations of the business. “She’s a dynamic businesswoman who’s deeply keen about her brand and the community she serves,” said Dave Kimbell, chief executive officer of Ulta Beauty. “She’s been an incredible champion for our DEI efforts and a trusted partner to helping keep us accountable. She helps keep us honest and focused on areas we must improve, and offers unique perspective that we depend on to fuel our work.

“She pours a lot of her heart into every thing she does,” Kimbell continued, “and it’s reflected in the outcomes of her efforts.”

Pattern Beauty’s success belies Kimbell’s assertion. Since launching in 2019, the brand has grown from seven stock keeping units to greater than 50, within the wash, style, treat and warmth categories; distribution has grown from Ulta Beauty into 10 retailers globally, including Sephora, Macy’s, ThirteenLune and Ulta at Goal in North America and Boots within the U.K.

Up to now, Ross spoke of expanding into body care and potentially skincare, too, but for the moment, she is fully focused on hair. “The business has scaled at an amazing pace, and I didn’t know what got here with that growth,” she said. “Being a sensible leader and smart business owner means continuing to pivot when it comes to what the business needs, staying focused on that vision and at the identical time responding to the expansion that is occurring.”

“The thing that has been most resonant with customers is our dedication to a selected promise and purpose, our conversation around authentic beauty and the actual fact our visual language is constant validation of that promise,” she continued. “That’s something I’m transparent about when  I consult with other entrepreneurs — be clear about your mission and stay focused on it. Really deliver in your promise, which suggests you may have to define that promise and mission from the start.”

Ross recently brought in former Fenty exec Christiane Pendarvis as co-CEO, but has no plans to step back from the business. She interviews every latest hire (favorite questions include: What’s your superpower? What’s your dream job? What sort of growth are you searching for?) with the goal of constructing a team and culture that’s joyful, kind, creative and purposeful. “Pattern is a hands-on, heart-led business — every thing from our formulas to our campaigns really come from that space,” she said. “That requires a selected variety of team.”

If all of it sounds very personal — it’s. “I’m the chooser,” she famously told Oprah during an interview in 2020, noting that so often young girls are brought as much as dream about their big weddings fairly than their life goals. “I’ve pushed up against this a lot because I would like young people to dream of the life they need and what they need to present back to the world,” Ross said. “Launching Pattern wasn’t nearly doing something — it was, I would like to share something with the world to make it feel higher about something.”

She tells a story of a disagreement she had with a beauty entrepreneur within the service sector who went on to turn into a household name.

“I said to her, ‘I don’t understand. If you happen to’re constructing a business, don’t it’s essential maintain your core customers like me? You’re going to lose your core for those who keep upsetting them.’

“She said, ‘my goal is to be a household name and if meaning sacrificing my core customer, that’s OK by me,’” Ross recounted.

“I’ve at all times remembered that, and the one thing I dropped at Pattern is I’ll at all times honor my core customer base. I won’t ever sacrifice the core mission of the brand to be more lucrative,” she said. “The success for me must come from honoring and servicing the mission.”