Woman says Ulta Beauty employee told her she’s ‘too dark’

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A Houston woman is calling for diversity training after she says a popular makeup store told her she was “too dark” for its products.

According to a post on her Instagram account, Ebony Kankam London went to an Ulta Beauty location in Holmdel, New Jersey, to get her makeup done for her upcoming baby shower.

The expecting mother advised the employee on how she wanted to look for the event and was told in return that her skin tone was “too dark for most colors in the store.”

The employee then asked if she had ever had her makeup done professionally.

In her post, London shared her emotions stating, “Like I felt like I was in 1990 when makeup was made for one type of skin. In a store full of people who didn’t look like me, I felt sad and upset. Like my skin tone was a problem.”

Utla Beauty released a statement through its Twitter in response to this incident, stating in-part:

“We stand for equality, inclusivity and diversity and when we hear that we are not meeting that expectation, we want to understand what our guest is feeling, and hold ourselves accountable to do better.”

Many customers commented under Ulta’s post and shared their experiences of being discriminated against inside stores across the nation.