Beauty Bakerie was founded in 2011, by Cashmere Nicole, a breast cancer survivor whose motto is better, not bitter. Nicole believes in overcoming adversity by doing something positive for the world. A self-described risk-taker, she started the beauty line in her home, inspired by nature, art, food, music, and conversations, as well as her guilty pleasures: cakes, candies, and pastries. On October 21, her products will be available on UltaBeauty.com and at 350 Ulta stores as of October 28.

Her cancer diagnosis in 2010 made Nicole keenly aware of what she was consuming and what ingredients were in her cosmetics. Shocked by the many toxic chemicals found in makeup, she decided to create a non-toxic, budge-proof lipstick formula that would last throughout the day while eating and talking. She wanted a product that wasn’t continually being absorbed, something that stayed on the lips until it was taken off.

After winning her battle against cancer, Nicole thought she had more to lose by staying still than going out on a limb. Committed to focusing on her brand, rather than eyeing the competition, Nicole sought to improve the lives of her customers and her employees while making a contribution to the world around her.

Nicole keeps her products affordable because she is well aware that in the past she struggled to make ends meet. The California-based company has a number of celebrity fans, including influencers Jackie Aina, Tati Westbrook, and Alissa Ashley, as well as Beyoncé, who supported the black-owned business early on. Other celebrity fans include singer Kehlani and rapper Cardi B, who loves the brand's best-selling Matte Lip Whips in Très Jolie, a bright magenta.

“Every product is made considering the audience, what they like, what they can afford. Quality is key at Beauty Bakerie. I’ll send a product back to the lab until it’s right because I value and appreciate anyone taking time to search, buy and support my brand. Our dollars are our time spent earning them…I value that,” she said.

Nicole takes pride in keeping her products cruelty-free since animals are a part of the world.

“Beauty means self-less, an ability to represent for those who’ve been silenced or unheard of. It means taking care of others but also taking care of self. We are caring for others when we choose cruelty-free, we are caring for others when we choose smudge-free…but we are also treating ourselves to convenience and worry-free options,” Nicole said.

The brand recently launched a new range of Cake Mix Demi Matte vegan foundations, which are available in 30 shades from dark to light. The line of medium-coverage foundations are numbered one to thirty, beginning with the darkest shade first, which is unusual in the beauty industry. According to the brand, the shades are numbered like this to encourage “unity, understanding, and love.”

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As Nicole explained to Teen Vogue, "For Black women, in particular, we are reminded everywhere we go, on a daily basis, multiple times throughout the day, that we are second. You go into a store and you are bending down to nearly the ground to get your shade, or you go to a beauty store’s website, and when you’re looking for your shade you’re scrolling to the bottom of a list.

“When we launched the foundation we sat down so many girls asked what they thought about the shade range, and shade #1 was this girl named Julia, and she had really, really, dark, dark, rich skin…they said, ‘what do you like about Beauty Bakerie Cake Mix?’ and she giggled in the most innocent way and said, ‘That I’m number 1.”

RELATED: Beauty Bakerie's 'Cake Mix' Foundation Line Highlights The Beauty Of Deeper Skin Tones

The Cake Mix Demi Matte foundation range is available from the Beauty Bakerie website for $28 a bottle.

Beauty Bakerie’s upcoming launches include the versatile and buildable Milk & Honey Highlighting Palette, which features four highly-pigmented shades: Spoiler Alert, Oh Honey, Bee Sweet and Queen Bee'ing that blend seamlessly.

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