Two Black students from the University of Michigan installed a vending machine selling beauty supplies when they couldn’t find products for people of color near their campus.

Two Black students from the University of Michigan installed a vending machine selling beauty supplies when they couldn’t find products for people of color near their campus. YPulse’s Life Plans, Rewritten trend research found that the majority of 13-39-year-old Black consumers aspire to be entrepreneurs. When students Mia Wilson and Rico Ozuna-Harrison, both 22, struggled to find beauty supplies near their campus, they connected with other students of color on group messaging apps like GroupMe to talk about the lack of options, and to help each other find barbers and nail technicians in the area. Wilson said she also used to go to nearby cities or drive an hour back to her hometown to stockpile products. The collective experience inspired the duo to come up with the YOUniversity Beauty vending machine. To develop the idea, the two joined their school’s OptiMize’s Social Innovation Challenge, which helped them sculpt their plan and receive a $10,000 grant last year to start the venture. They used $7,000 to buy the first vending machine, which was installed on the campus in the fall. Earlier this year, Ozuna-Harrison showed off the vending machine and its products in a TikTok video. It sells hair oils, do-rags, bonnets, hair ties, brushes, and other needed items, with prices similar to beauty stores. (Insider)