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How Skincare Brand Selfmade Was Created For Gen Z BIPOC — Exclusive
In the spring of 2020, the world turned upside down when the COVID-19 outbreak impacted millions of lives. People lost their loved ones, employment, and the freedom to have physical contact with family and friends as they were confined to their homes to reduce the virus’s spread. As a result, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that global cases of depression and anxiety went up by 25% within a year of the pandemic, and it impacted young people and women the most.
Generation Z — or Gen Z — is the population of young people born in 1997 or after (via Pew Research Center), and according to the American Psychological Association (APA), they are more likely to experience stress and mental health concerns compared to the older generations regarding issues like immigration, sexual assault, and mass shootings. Similarly, in the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) community, lack of access to health care, including mental health services, dependence on welfare, and unemployment result in higher rates of mental health disorders, per Resources to Recover. Minorities and youths are suffering from more mental health crises and need more support for their emotional wellbeing, and that’s why Stephanie Lee created selfmade. Selfmade is an AAPI (Asian or Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander origin) owned female-founded brand…