Hats off to Teen Vogue’s Editor-in-chief, Lindsay Peoples Wagner for putting on the unforgettable 2019 Teen Vogue Summit.
Three days dedicated to networking, creativity, inspiration, and individuality. This jam-packed weekend was one for the books!
I wanted the full Teen Vogue experience, so I purchased the Icon Pass which grants you access to all three days of the summit.
Friday was a “work immersion,” day, before the start of the summit we were sent surveys regarding our interest, based on the results we were split into groups matching our answers.
I was sent on the beauty and fashion route visiting Uoma Beauty and Nike. Our first stop was Uoma Beauty, is a Nigerian owned cosmetic brand. The founder, Sharon Chuter was a true inspiration. Accompanied by her team of three other amazing women, her mission is to make women of all ethnicities and walks of life feel beautiful. I think she is just getting started, she described herself as a ‘wild child” or “crazy lady,” but I don’t believe there is anything crazy about knowing what you want and going for it. The 6-month-old brand took 12 years to produce and launch, and mark my words, they will be changing the way we view the cosmetic industry.
Our next stop was Nike, though based in Oregon, Nike has a production studio in Culver City, a city in Los Angeles. We were able to tour the massive production studio responsible for all the amazing graphics and content we see on nike.com. Similar to our visit to Uoma beauty, we ended with a panel of Nike professionals along with Nike athlete, Olympic high-jumper, Vashti Cunningham. It was an incredible experience to hear from Design Director Nicole Rendone, who took us through the science and dynamics behind some of their best selling sports bra, as well as new innovative designs that will be created to fit the needs for the everyday Nike woman.
Saturday was overwhelmingly fun, emotional, and inspiring. It was a day full of numerous keynote speakers and networking. To name a few Jackie Aina, Samatha Smith, Issa Rae, Karla Welch, and Demi Lovato spoke at the “Boss Moves” main stage along with several others including Kristen Noel Crawley(KNC Beauty) and Sami Miro.
The fashion soul of me wanted to jump out of my seat when Karla Welch graced the stage. Her stylistic approach to shoots and her impressive resume of clients makes her one of the most respected stylists in the industry. She emphasized the obvious, yet overlooked skill of hard-work. I feel as though nowadays people want to cut corners and try to get to the top the fastest way possible. But you can’t get to her level or anyone else of her caliber without hard work.
Now, the main thing I was excited about was the amount of black women that spoke and walked the stage. It sounds cheesy, but there truly is something different when you see someone that looks like you, successful in the industry you so desperately want to enter. I can’t even go into the black girl magic that was present at the Teen Vogue summit because that’s a whole different article.
I will, however, leave you with the best advice I received from the panel of speakers, “Don’t be on the wrong side of history,” says Samantha Smith, younger sister to the late, great Nipsey Hussle. Staying true to who you are, keeping your integrity intact and pure and you’re bound to do great things.