Keturah Postell
Title: Custom Projects Manager at Early Charm Ventures
Age: 24
Keturah Postell fell in love with polymer and color chemistry during her first 101 class at North Carolina State University, quickly becoming enamored with learning more about the large molecules and their uses in everyday life.
Now at Early Charm Ventures, Postell, a Coppin State University Master's degree student, uses her knowledge to create custom materials, including fire-resistant treatments for military uniforms. But the Coppin State University master's student has her own entrepreneurial goals, too. Postell hopes to start a cosmetics company, creating products that will be gentle on the skin, with a focus on brown skin tones.
You want to start your own cosmetics company after graduation. What needs do you hope to address? My long-term dream is to open my own cosmetics company, specializing in hair and skin care, as well as makeup. I think a lot of cosmetic companies make the mistake of not being completely transparent with their consumers about the ingredients used and the potential harms they pose to the target area of use. I believe consumers should not have to wonder about whether there are potential ingredients in the product that could irritate or be harmful to them.
Diving into makeup and skincare, up until recently, there were not many foundation shades for brown-skinned women. I would provide accurate shade matching for all shades, especially brown-skinned women. There are so many different undertones and skin conditions that are the underlying cause for inaccurate shade matching, along with the color inconsistencies of shade matching under typical fluorescent lights in a store setting and getting home to incandescent light and it not matching the customer’s skin.
Along with providing a plethora of foundation, concealer and contour shades, I plan to build a company that not only sells makeup but also inclusive skin care products that cater to sensitive skin and can treat stubborn skin issues. With a background in polymer, color and material science, I can also expand my target audience to not only makeup lovers, but cosmetologists, diving into the hair care/dye industry. Every product and its packaging will be in a way where we are leaving a less significant carbon footprint compared to other Fortune 500 cosmetic companies.
You said you want to create more space and opportunities for women of color in STEM. How do you plan to work toward that goal? Why is it important for women of color to see people like themselves in the STEM field? Being an advocate for women of color is the first step. Whether that be sharing networks, vouching for women of color or helping provide the resources and knowledge needed to get a foot in the door, making sure that we are looking out for one another is crucial.
As I advance through my professional career, I am already growing and taking on more leadership roles that help shape me into the role model and boss that I want to become. I am also involved in a mentoring program, Mentoring Our Children Higher Academy (MOCHA), a Christian-based program predominantly for Black youth ages 13-21 where we discuss real-life issues and give tips on how to navigate through school and life while keeping our faith. These platforms allow me to be a part of those conversations to get more women of color involved in my current and future endeavors and expose them to STEM fields.
Growing up, I did not see women, specifically Black women, in my life involved in STEM. I did not have an interest in STEM until I met a woman who saw my work ethic and what I was capable of and introduced me to the beauty of STEM and its importance in the world. Seeing somebody who looks like themself is almost like holding up a mirror and saying “Wow, that could be me!”.
What do you enjoy about your current work with Early Charm? The thing I love most about working at Early Charm is the ability to work on several diverse projects. From developing and treating a fire-resistant treatment for military uniforms to working on custom materials projects, I am exposed to many different things and gain a lot more experience with specific areas than I would working for a general chemistry or manufacturing company. Another aspect I love about Early Charm is the sense of community that we have here. I love how I can come into different labs or office spaces and interact with other people with different backgrounds and roles in the company to fully know the ins and outs of how we all play our individual parts as a team and are able to do what we do best.
I also love how my managers motivate me to do better, think outside of the box and be a better leader than I already am. Setting the example goes a long way and I truly do have several people to look up to when it comes to the attributes of a great leader and a team member.
To read about the rest of our Inno Under 25 class, click here.
