I have just received a response from the Merchandise Manager of Woolworths, agreeing that there is a need for the company to become more inclusive and how they intend to do so. It is a small step but also a huge step in many ways. Thank you to everyone for your support in getting this far!

Here is the response:

"Dear Rebecca,

Thank you for taking the time to write to us. We appreciate your leadership on this issue, which has highlighted an area where we can make improvements to offer our customers a more inclusive range. We serve a diverse mix of customers and we aim to reflect this in our range.

For our entire supermarket range, we select which products to stock based on the volume of customer demand. With only limited shelf-space to accommodate each brand, alongside others in the same category, we prioritise those which cater to the needs of the greatest
number of customers.

However, we understand that taking this traditional approach in our cosmetics range has an unintended impact on the diversity of skin tones we’re able to offer a suitable shade to match. We are committed to looking at ways we can improve our cosmetics range and are
working to identify solutions to the concerns you’ve raised.

To that end, we are taking the first step by launching an online trial beginning on 23 August, to offer a broader range of foundation tones for online orders in select metro areas in New South Wales and Victoria. As part of the trial, we will be offering 31 additional tones in Maybelline New York’s Fit Me Matt+Poreless range, our most popular Maybelline foundation. We will be stocking the additional tones in five of our Customer Fulfilment Centres, available online only for Home Delivery orders to over 500 suburbs throughout the metro and greater areas of Sydney and Melbourne. 

We are aware this trial is an imperfect solution to some of the issues you’ve discussed, but hope to learn from it and use this time to identify further ways we can offer a broader range of shades to more customers. We will consider how we may be able to effectively provide greater variety in stores as well. Thank you for your constructive dialogue on this issue. We will continue to listen to our customers and work with our suppliers to improve our cosmetics range."

On the 23rd of August, I ask that you please purchase a Maybelline Fit me Matte+ foundation as part of your online shop (delivery only). If you are not sure which shade to choose, you can use the shade matching tool at Findation.com which will allow you to input your current shade in any brand and tell you your shade in the Maybelline foundation. We need to show Woolies that there is a demand!! Thank you! Please spread the word!