Guyanese American Karen Young of Oui the People on Redefining Beauty with Purpose
Photo Courtesy of Tyre Thwaites
written by Shanida Carter
You may have seen Oui the People body care products in your local Sephora with the image of a beautiful, glowing woman of color in a two-piece flanked by products like the Lactic Acid Body Wash or the incredibly luxurious Featherweight Hydrating Body Gloss, which is a 2024 Allure Best of Beauty winner. What you may not know is that Oui the People has been called the fastest-growing Black-owned beauty brand in the U.S. And the powerhouse that launched it is Karen Young, born in Brooklyn and raised in Guyana.
Phot Courtesy of Maria Be
Phot Courtesy of Maria Be
Guyanese Roots That Shaped the Brand
Young credits her earliest years with family in Guyana through age seven as the foundation of who she is today. Her first lessons in beauty didn’t come from glossy magazines, which were banned in her home for oversexualizing women and disparaging language. Her grandmother’s small, mirrored silver tray—holding a hairbrush, pink lipstick and dusting powders lit the spark.
“It shaped so much of what I believe about myself and my place in the world… and my exceptional taste in food,” she recalls. “Every day, her goal was to make sure we were clean and well moisturized. We didn’t have a lot of means, but we would never appear unkempt under her watch,” Young says.
Her beloved “granny” lived modestly, but her uncles were all about looking sharp and showing out. She says, “They instilled a love of fragrance, grooming rituals and well-made clothing that I gravitate to this day.”
[Additional Read: 5 West Indian Owned Beauty Brands You Need to Know]
Guyanese Roots That Shaped the Brand
Young initially contemplated careers in architecture and law but eventually landed in that familiar space of fashion and beauty. She built a decade-long career in luxury fashion at global brands including Dolce & Gabbana and Roberto Cavalli. She was also an executive at Estee Lauder for four years. It was there that Young noticed something was missing.
“I realized it was that beauty just wasn’t speaking to me,” she says. “At Lauder, I saw Bobbi Brown and Becca cosmetics (RIP) turning Black women into bronzed, beautifully highlighted goddesses. It was the age of the bold highlight across the bridge of the nose and cheeks, and the cheekbones. The makeup was understated and glowing, and I finally saw something I wanted to emulate.” She says the minimalist, skin-first exploration led her to launch Oui the People in 2017 with $1,500 and a dream.
Redefining Beauty
The brand’s name is a clever twist on “We the People” and a nod to her Guyanese heritage. Young says, “The “OUI” (French for “yes”) is a nod to my Caribbean heritage, where French and Creole influences are woven into the culture. I wanted a name that felt both global and deeply personal—one that says yes to self-acceptance, yes to beauty on our own terms, and yes to rewriting the rules of an industry that hasn’t always seen us.”
Oui the People was organically grown, one day at a time, with customers and press who loved her products as well as her story. With the winning of a large grant and raising more than $4M in venture capital, she launched with a specially crafted razor designed to eliminate rashes, ingrown hairs and burns from shaving. The line expanded into fragrance and fine body products. Then in 2023, Oui the People hit shelves at Sephora. It’s now in more than 400 Sephora stores.
Photo Courtesy of Tyre Thwaites
Bodycare with a Message
At its heart, Young says Oui the People is about high-standard body care for all with the belief that the body deserves the same level of care as the face. “That means products that perform, scents that feel like an experience and formulas that work for all skin types and tones,” she says. “In a market where consumers are more informed and intentional than ever, our message resonates because it’s a standard we live by.”
Perhaps most powerful is the messaging that women don’t need ‘fixing.’ “That messaging not only limits how we see ourselves,” she says, “it limits the kinds of products we’re offered.” The brand rejects outdated beauty ideals by celebrating joy, care, and the skin you’re in.
It’s clear Young loves the skin she’s in from the brand’s Instagram page, sprinkled with her products alongside nostalgic video campaigns shot inside a Caribbean market and photos of her granny and uncles with love notes of thanks. She is a master of linking beauty to memory and the uniqueness of self. Her Caribbean-inspired campaigns are resonating not only with the Caribbean community but also with global audiences. She says, “It’s not about exclusivity, it’s about invitation: sharing a piece of my culture in a way that makes people say, I see myself in this, no matter where they’re from.”
Giving Back and Growing Forward
A successful and growing company, coupled with marriage and motherhood, is enough to keep anyone super busy, but Young is keeping the ladder down for those coming up behind her. Budding entrepreneurs can schedule time to ask Young for advice through Intro. Meanwhile, Young says the next chapter for OUI the People is to expand its fine-fragrance-inspired bodycare portfolio and continue to innovate in categories that have been overlooked. She is also looking to grow channels to connect directly with our community.
“We’ll keep telling stories rooted in culture and care,” she says, “and we’re aiming for sustainable, profitable growth so we can be here for decades, not just this moment.”
