Beauty by Jenna’s all-natural lip balms, with their brightly colored packaging and scrumptious flavors, do more than just moisturize — they also provide jobs for people on the autism spectrum. That’s the motivation behind the cosmetics company founded by Jenna Grabow and Anna Lundmark.
And the first person for whom the brand helped find employment is its co-founder herself. Grabow, who is autistic, graduated cosmetology school in the spring of 2023, the culmination of three years of effort. She then spent six months looking for work, to no avail.
“There aren’t a lot of jobs out there,” Grabow, 28, told Nice News. “I was trying to figure out what my next step was, but I didn’t know what to do. I guess you could say it was my form of identity crisis.”
Lundmark, also 28 and engaged to Grabow’s brother at the time, was disheartened seeing her now sister-in-law blocked from expressing herself creatively in the field she’d dedicated so much time to. “It’s a difficult position because Jenna is creative, brilliant, and kind, but she is not able to work a regular job,” she shared. That’s when the idea struck her: What if instead of seeking out an opportunity for Grabow, they made one themselves?
“I asked if she wanted to create her own business with the mission of creating jobs for disabled adults,” Lundmark recounted, “and she said ‘yes.’”
@beautybyjennaofficial Jenna didn’t speak till she was 5 and went through many struggles to get where she is today. ❤️ She graduated high school without a diploma and spent two years getting her GED so she could get into a trade school. She spent 3 years in a 9 month beauty program and when she graduated we knew she wouldn’t be able to work in a salon. She went through major depression and used to be very shy, quiet, and reserved. But ever since Beauty By Jenna, she is JOYFUL spreading her love through art and knowing that she makes people happy. 🤗🌟 #autism #autismsupport #autismawareness #spreadjoy #positivity #goodnews #autismacceptance
♬ Beautiful Things (Piano Instrumental) – Benson Boone
So the two women got to work developing a line of organic lip balms, inspired by the fun, flavored varieties that were so popular when they were growing up. Grabow has sensitive skin, so they decided to sell products that were safe and gentle. They also opted to use only responsibly sourced ingredients and to have all their products manufactured in the U.S.
“We knew that we wanted our company to do good all around, and if it was going to be a positive force in the world, we wanted to build it correctly from the ground up,” explained Lundmark.
In January of this year, the pair launched their online store and began growing their presence on social media, polling followers to find out what products they should create next. Using that feedback, Beauty by Jenna added a strawberry-peach lip scrub to the lineup in early November, with plans to introduce a face serum next.
The business is still quite small, but the women are already making good on their mission to empower people on the spectrum.
“We’ve hired three different autistic adults. One young man named Cruz regularly helps us with packaging our products. We hired a photographer named Crystal for our main product photos. And we’ve hired an autistic graphic designer to help us with artwork,” Lundamark said, adding: “The goal is to one day hire 100 disabled adults.”
@beautybyjennaofficial The beginning of something incredible ❤️🤗 There are SO many deserving individuals in the Autism and Disabled community. We have only started making a difference but the future is so bright! It’s time for companies to prioritize such a talented group and for the world to celebrate human kindness and joy! By supporting Beauty By Jenna, you are helping us build our dream company that can hire 100 disabled individuals! We will get there together 🌟 #autism #autismawareness #autismacceptance #autismmom #autismfamily #specialneeds #disabled #goodnews
♬ Beautiful Things (Piano Instrumental) – Benson Boone
The beauty of the company (pun intended) lies in not just empowering those adults, but also highlighting to the world just how much they, and others like them, can contribute.
“There’s still so much about autism that people don’t know,” Grabow shared. “And people still see autism or people with disabilities as they can’t do things, but it’s just there are so many limits, and we want to be able to lose some of those limits, and just show what autistic people and people with disabilities are capable of.”
To Lundmark, it’s abundantly clear that her sister-in-law’s newfound position of responsibility has an enormous difference in her life.
“Her confidence has increased tenfold and she now is outgoing and talkative even with strangers, when in the past she would try to blend into the background. She is excited to tell people what she does and she feels purposeful,” Lundmark shared. “Everyone deserves to feel this way, and it’s our mission to help as many people as we possibly can.”
Grabow noted that the most impactful part of the journey for her has been “getting responses, like people saying that they’re inspired by my story, and that they have kids of their own, and that they’re autistic, and that they’re inspired by my story.”
The other most meaningful aspect of her experience? “Working with Anna,” she added. “She’s just such a great person. Working together to help make the world a better place.”
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