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- Delaney Sawyer via Fast Company
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Rare Beauty's Rare Impact Fund Hits $30 Million for Youth Mental Health
ReRare Beauty's Rare Impact Fund Hits $30 Million for Youth Mental Health
Selena Gomez's cosmetics brand has raised $30 million for youth mental health through its Rare Impact Fund, supporting 30 nonprofits across five continents and reaching 3.5 million young people since 2020.
Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty has raised $30 million for youth mental health through its nonprofit arm, the Rare Impact Fund, since launching in 2020. The cosmetics brand donates 1% of all sales to the fund, which has now supported 30 nonprofits across five continents, trained 208,000 educators, and reached 3.5 million young people.
Gomez, a recording artist, actress, and entrepreneur, spoke about the initiative on Thursday at the Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York. She said the fund gives the brand a purpose beyond commerce. «It is a business, but I just don't ever like to see it that way,» Gomez said. «I always like to believe we are super mission driven and I'm very proud of what the company will evolve in.»
The Rare Impact Fund was established alongside Rare Beauty in 2020 with a goal to mobilize $100 million in 10 years. Its grants support nonprofit partners that connect young people with mental health resources. The fund's reach now spans five continents, with 208,000 educators trained and 3.5 million young people served.
Elyse Cohen, chief impact officer and president of Rare Beauty and the Rare Impact Fund, said the connection between the products and the mission keeps customers engaged. «What's become really special is that so many of our community members, our customers, come to us for these incredible products, but they really stay around because of the mission and the connection and the resources that they find in the work that we do,» Cohen said.
All Rare Beauty products carry names tied to the brand's empowerment message. The blush shade Happy and the lip liner shade Intuitive are examples of Gomez's approach to naming. «The moment you pick up a product, we want you to feel empowered,» Gomez said. «So I think words and everything are crucial, but I love that we can talk about it.»
As Rare Beauty expands into new markets, the fund follows. Cohen explained that the strategy was built for global growth. When the brand entered the UK and Southeast Asia, it worked with local experts to identify organizations in those regions. «I will say that mental health and the conversation around it is very different in different regions, and we're very careful about knowing what we don't know and not entering a market trying to be an expert,» Cohen said. «It's certainly about who's doing what already there and how can we amplify and mobilize a bit more in that space.»
The fund intentionally does not have its own Instagram page. All content related to the Rare Impact Fund is posted on Rare Beauty's main account, which has more than 15 million followers. Cohen said this approach brings the fund's resources directly to the brand's community. «It allows us to bring the resources and the content of what the fund does directly to the people that the brand serves,» she said.
Other companies have approached Rare Beauty to learn from its model, and some have launched their own initiatives connecting nonprofit funds to their businesses. Gomez said she welcomes the broader movement. «In a way, I think there's room for everyone,» she said. «I don't think what we're doing is better or worse than anyone else.»
The Rare Impact Fund's growth reflects a wider trend of consumer brands tying their business models to social causes. For Rare Beauty, the 1% donation from every sale creates a direct link between customer purchases and mental health resources for young people. The fund's $100 million goal over a decade remains the long-term target as the brand continues to expand globally.
