Selena Gomez's makeup brand is hiring a 'director of social impact' to tackle the impossible standards of the beauty industry

• Selena Gomez's makeup brand Rare Beauty is looking to hire a director of social impact.
• The role will include shaping out the company's approach to mental health support and promoting self-acceptance, by spreading the message that everyone should love their "imperfections."
• Rare Beauty's CEO Scott Friedman and Gomez told Insider the role is intended to help make a "positive difference in the world."
• Friedman said there's an expectation to look a certain way all the time in the beauty industry, and they want to shine a light on those expectations and pressures.
• Gomez said it's more important than ever to fill the position now, as more people are struggling with their mental health during the pandemic.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Selena Gomez's makeup brand Rare Beauty, which is launching in the summer, is looking to hire a director of social impact. The role is all about celebrating uniqueness on the company's social media and encouraging everyone to love themselves as they are.

Gomez has been candid and open about her own mental health struggles in the past. She sang about her depression and anxiety in a duet with singer Julia Michaels in 2019, and most spoke to Miley Cyrus about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

"When we first began discussing this project, she immediately focused on the ways she could use this brand to help people who are struggling," Rare Beauty's CEO Scott Friedman told Insider.

"And she came at it from a very personal perspective – she had posted on her Instagram, at one point, about 'the beauty myth' and the impossible standards of beauty that women are forced to live up to, and how that pressure can impact a person's self-esteem and mental health."

Friedman said the new position will help shape conversations around many of Gomez' aspirations and passions: beauty, self-acceptance, and mental health.

"The director of social impact will help us go beyond words and really take action to support mental health awareness," he said. "We can only do this if a leader is solely focused on this responsibility. This position is a vital part of holding our brand accountable, both internally and externally."

Making 'a positive difference in the world'

Both Friedman and Gomez want to bring together organizations, philanthropists, policymakers, and brands that also want to raise awareness and support for mental health, and hold corporations to a higher standard.

Gomez told Insider in a statement that the overall idea is to make "a positive difference in the world."

"We had always planned on having someone lead this mission, but we felt that it was imperative to hire the best person for the job now," she wrote, since more people than ever are discussing how their mental health is being affected during the coronavirus pandemic.

"Together, we will work to make sure our brand [...] shapes conversations around mental health and self-acceptance, while giving people access to more support and services."

'There's an expectation to look a certain way'

Friedman added there's still a stigma around mental health, which the company want to help tackle.

"Many people are hesitant to openly talk about their struggles because it's seen as a weakness or flaw," he said. "In the beauty industry specifically, there's an expectation to look a certain way all the time and to alter your appearance in order to mirror celebrities, models, or influencers."

For instance, shifting the focus from "covering up" blemishes and "imperfections," makeup can be used to celebrate originality.

While the conversation around natural beauty and mental health is opening up, there are remaining "expectations and pressures," he said, to help people see their differences not as flaws, "but rather as what makes people unique, special, and rare."

"There's only one you in the history of the world, and that should be celebrated," he said.

As it's a topic that's close to her heart, Gomez will be very involved in the hiring process, Friedman said.

"She has always placed the social purpose of this brand at the same level of priority as the products we are developing, so our new director of social impact will work closely with her to help bring these goals to life," he said.

He said he's grateful to work alongside Gomez because she's "so passionate about celebrating people's individualism."

"As we gear up for our product launch later this year, I look forward to seeing the team rally around and execute on Selena's creativity and vision," he said. "It's hard not to be inspired by her passion for helping others and we'll continue to weave that into the DNA of Rare Beauty."

The job advert is live on LinkedIn from today.

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