theGrio’s Style Guide: Marie Claire names Nikki Ogunnaike editor-in-chief and Rihanna names a new CEO

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This week was a big one for Black women in the fashion industry — particularly in fashion media, as Marie Claire announced veteran journalist Nikki Ogunnaike as the publication’s new editor-in-chief. Starting August 8, Ogunnaike will lead the publication’s print, digital, and social editorial strategy. 

With her skillset, Ogunnaike will work on expanding fashion and luxury coverage across the publication’s various platforms, enhancing content strategy, and drawing in a more diverse audience. 

“For nearly 30 years, Marie Claire has been the go-to source for women who seek to lead a life of purpose and power,” said Ogunnaike in a statement on Instagram. “As a long-time admirer, I’m thrilled to join the Marie Claire team and lead this brand into a new era. Women who are passionate about their careers, personal style, and the world around them will find a new destination that speaks to their entire identity. I can’t wait to begin this new chapter!”

Ogunnaike has had an extensive career in media. Since starting her career, she has worked with Elle, GQ, InStyle, Glamour, and, most recently, as senior digital director at Harper’s Bazaar. 

Here at theGrio, we’re always “rooting for everybody Black” — we can’t wait to see what Ogunnaike has up her editorial sleeves!

Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty names a new CEO 

After five years, Rihanna is reportedly stepping down from the chief executive officer role at her Savage X Fenty brand. As reported by the Guardian, Rihanna has chosen former Anthropologie CEO Hillary Super to take over the helm of her popular lingerie and activewear brand. 

Although Super will work as the brand’s CEO starting June 26, Rihanna will remain in the company’s leadership as its executive chair. 

“It’s been beautiful to see our vision for Savage X Fenty impact the industry at such an incredible magnitude over the last five years,” Rihanna said in a statement, per the Guardian.  “This is just the beginning for us, and we’re going to continue to expand in ways that always connect with the consumer. I’m so grateful and excited to welcome Hillary Super as our new CEO – she is a strong leader and is focused on taking the business to an even higher level.”

Given the star’s many responsibilities as a multi-brand mogul and expectant mother, we’re all for this working mom doing what’s best for her. 

Solange’s Saint Heron drops a glassware collection

For those still waiting for Solange’s highly anticipated Ikea collaboration to drop, she may have just given you a holdover. 

Taking inspiration from the late, great Luther Vandross and pioneering women of design, the artist has just released a limited glassware line. According to Elle, the collection, titled “Small Matter Art Objects: Handblown Glassware 001,” features sculptural glasses in a range of earthy tones and sleek round silhouettes Solange has designed through her collective, Saint Heron, with Philadelphia-based glassblower Jason McDonald.

Solange’s launch event for the line was themed around Luther Vandross’ hit song “A House is Not a Home.” She told Elle the song inevitably comes to mind when she thinks of home and the items in her collection eventually making it to the homes of others. In tune with Solange’s style, McDonald made 198 pieces by hand for this already sold-out first drop, but per Elle, another collection is on the way. 

Africa Fashion x The Brooklyn Museum

Following its tenure at London’s V&A Museum, the Africa Fashion exhibition is taking over the Brooklyn Museum. From now until October 22, visitors can celebrate the creativity and global impact of African fashions through the decades. 

Described by the museum as one of the “largest-ever presentations of the subject,” the exhibit features over 180 creative works organized in sections, each representing different pivotal moments in African fashion and history. In a multisensory manner, the immersive experience presents various pieces, from haute couture to photography, sketches, film, jewelry, fabrics, and more. 

While you may not be able to afford a trip to the motherland this summer, get the next best thing during your next trip to the Big Apple. 

Lori Harvey gets in the saddle for Good American’s latest campaign

Lori Harvey is getting back to her equestrian roots and getting back in the saddle for Good American as the star of the brand’s summer denim campaign. 

According to a release to theGrio, the moody western campaign was styled by Zerina Akers and capitalizes on Harvey’s lifelong love of horses and her background in competitive riding. The collection includes jeans, jumpsuits, denim bralettes, shorts, and tube dresses in a mix of light wash, black, and white. The collection is available now and ranges in price from $69 to $179. 

The return of Aveeno’s accelerate program

Aveeno’s Accelerate program is back! Renamed The Startup Collective by Aveeno, the program is designed to empower Black female entrepreneurs in the beauty industry. Since its launch in 2021, the program has helped these businesses thrive by offering resources and grants. As a part of Aveeno’s commitment to the well-being of people of color, The Startup Collective helps bridge the gap in healthcare and retail representation by uplifting brands that cater to the specific needs of Black consumers. 

This year, The Startup Collective by Aveeno will disperse $100,000 and $50,000 in grants to two lucky winners. Applications close on August 13, 2023; click here to learn more. 

Taye Diggs, Tinashe, Nicco Annan, and more star in ViiV Healthcare’s “Me in You, You in Me” campaign

With the deadly virus far from eradicated, what stops us from talking openly about HIV? 

ViiV Healthcare, the only pharmaceutical company solely focused on HIV, is getting to the bottom of this question with celebrities and influencers Taye Diggs, Tinashe, Nicco Annan, Villano Antillano, Nicky Champa, and Rafael De La Fuente, who star in the second installment of the company’s “Me in You, You in Me” campaign.  

According to a release to theGrio, this year’s campaign focuses on normalizing HIV prevention and boosting awareness among communities disproportionately affected by the disease, which includes Black women, who led in new cases, Latinx/e men, Black queer and gay men, and trans women.

For the campaign, Diggs and the others went through a social experiment in which they spoke openly and honestly about HIV anonymously with one another and then were filmed as they met each other. According to the release, the experience “Saw them all finding empathy for each other and overcoming bias which is something that keeps many still from getting the resources/info they need to protect them from HIV.”

Karen Pittman shares her thoughts on representation in Hollywood

Starring on “And Just Like That” and “The Morning Show,” actress Karen Pittman takes pride in representing women of color on the big screen. In HBO’s “And Just Like That,” Pittman plays Dr. Nya Wallace, who she describes as “a real reflection of what a woman of color, a Black woman, looks like in Brooklyn, New York City. Like an honest-to-God reflection.” Feeling privileged to be a part of reviving the hit series “Sex and The City,” it was essential to Pittman that her character be seen wearing different, unique natural hairstyles. 

The show’s creator, Michael Patrick King, imagined Nya Wallace as having a “bohemian vibe” and wearing braided hairstyles, even going so far as to reference her hair when introducing the character in the series’ first season. As an advocate for natural hair, Pittman worked closely with the show’s costume designers so that “every iteration of the character [allows viewers to] see her in her natural hair.”

“I will be very happy when we can get to the point where we’re just looking at a variety of women and sharing their experiences and feeling like, ‘Oh, yeah, that’s me. I’ve had that same experience,'” said Pittman in a press release shared with theGrio. “But having said that, I know that it is really, really important that all women see themselves represented in this show and on this platform in this particular way. It gives us permission to dream. It gives us permission to allow ourselves to experience vicariously what our lives could look like. And it’s actually really liberating and meaningful.”

Pittman also revealed her collaboration with Dove’s CROWN Coalition. As an advocate for the normalization of Black women’s natural hair, the actress plans to work with the brand on its advocacy for the CROWN Act in the United States.

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