Amanda E. Johnson & Kristen Jones (KJ) Miller
Co-Founders and Co-CEOs of Mented Cosmetics
Amanda is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Mented Cosmetics, a digitally native beauty brand targeting women of color. A graduate of Howard University and Harvard Business School, Amanda is excited to be an entrepreneur focused on digital strategy and brand building. With a myriad of experiences in finance, consumer marketing, and digital experience Amanda is excited to craft brand stories and build customer communities. Amanda is very involved in her community through involvement in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc, The Junior League of New York, and Howard Alumni Association. Connect with Amanda on Twitter and Instagram.
Kristen Jones (KJ) Miller is the co-founder and Co-CEO of Mented Cosmetics, an upscale beauty line targeting women of color. Since its launch in January 2017 Mented has taken the beauty industry by storm by unapologetically placing women of color at the forefront. The company has been featured in several publications including Allure, Cosmo, Teen Vogue and Black Enterprise, and was recently selected to participate in Target Corporation’s prestigious startup accelerator. Prior to founding Mented, KJ spent most of her career working in retail, with a two-year hiatus to attend Harvard Business School graduating in 2014. Her immense retail and product experience spans across functions including merchandising, assortment planning, and supply chain management. KJ is passionate about helping women and minorities develop their entrepreneurial visions and navigate the often murky startup world.
What’s a challenge you’ve faced and how did you get through it?
Mented Cosmetics has faced a host of challenges, but most notably fundraising. Most venture capital funds are run by white men and getting them to understand the big opportunity of beauty for women of color was difficult. However we persevered and found the right people who could look at the numbers and beyond their own biases. To date, we have raised over $1 million.
What’s something you’ve done that you’re really proud of?
We’re really proud of the community we’ve built around beauty for women of color. At Mented, we firmly believe that every woman deserves to find herself in the world of beauty. We should all feel included, celebrated, and prioritized. Our community of Black, Hispanic, Middle Eastern, and South Asian women are strong and engaged.
What’s something that’s been on your mind this Black History Month?
We do not take lightly the steps taken before us. We purposefully launched Mented on MLK Day 2017 because we had a dream and we wanted to take the big leap on a big day. We understand that we stand on the shoulders of giants and we believe it’s our responsibility to share that with others.
