We’re committed to social and environmental responsibility.
We're a small, independently-owned creative agency that works with companies and nonprofits that value equitable and environmentally responsible practices. We're proud to be a Certified B Corp, a women-owned and operated Emerging Small Business (ESB), and Women Business Enterprise (WBE) certified by the State of Oregon. Here’s how we put our values into action:
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We’re proud to be a Women Owned Emerging Small Business (ESB) and Women Business Enterprise (WBE) certified by the State of Oregon.
More than 87% of our clients are either women-owned businesses, purpose-driven organizations, or have demonstrated a commitment to social responsibility in their own business practices.
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B Corp Certification is a designation that a business meets high standards of verified performance, accountability, and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and input materials. These standards include high social and environmental performance, accountable governance, and transparent reporting. Learn more about B Corp Certification requirements.
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We believe in the power of design to make a difference, and that good causes deserve access to good creative work.
Each year, we extend three 25% low-bono discounts to nonprofit organizations working with us on comprehensive projects, and donate over 40k in pro-bono work through our Pro Bono Grant. Our 2023 grant recipient is Disability Rights Oregon.
In 2016, The Beauty Shop founded Visible Studio, a 501(c)3 nonprofit creative agency. Together with our team of volunteers and Studio Partners, we coordinated the donation of over $1M in pro-bono creative work between 2016-2021.
Check out an archive of Visible Studio’s work here.
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We’re committed to creating and deepening our social impact by examining how our business can help to mitigate the impacts of racism.
DEI education strengthens our creative work by helping us learn how to design for and consider a wide range of audiences and perspectives through an equitable, inclusive, and socially responsible lens.
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We’re not a subsidiary of a large corporation, or owned by any other company.
Small business ownership is a tool for expanding prosperity and advancing economic opportunity. When you support small, independently-owned businesses, you contribute to healthy communities, and help advance economic opportunity.
Research has shown that communities with a larger share of independently-owned businesses have more social capital, stronger social ties, higher levels of civic engagement, and better success solving problems.
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The Beauty Shop is committed to an equitable salary system for all employees, and to less than a 20% pay difference between owners and employees.
Our salaries are based on years of experience rather than subjective measurements, and raises occur automatically on an annual basis. Title and role promotions are goals-based.
Pay equity is one of the top issues facing women in the United States. For every dollar paid to men:
• Latinas earn 54 cents
• Native American women earn 58 cents
• Black women earn 62 cents
• White women earn 79 cents
• Asian American women earn 90 cents -
We’ve signed with Pledge Paternal Leave to provide 12 weeks of PTO for new parents. Pledge Parental Leave (PPL) exists to encourage companies in the creative industries to guarantee their employees a meaningful minimum standard of parental leave benefits. The Beauty Shop has joined the Pledge Parental Leave movement with a commitment to providing the following benefits to all employees:
• 3 months full paid leave
• Uninterrupted medical insurance coverage
• 6 months job security
• A commitment to making the policy openly available online
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We take work/life balance seriously.
We support reasonable project deadlines and discourage work after 5pm and on weekends.
We observe all federal holidays, offer unlimited sick days, participate in Paid Leave Oregon, and practice flexible-hours remote working.
Our studio workflow offers two offline work days free of calls, team communications, and meetings each week. Fridays are either offline or flexible off-work days based on weekly project goals.
In addition, we dedicate 5 weeks per year to a full studio closures. These studio closures are a time that our entire team is totally away from work, free of all studio communications, deadlines, and client work.
Community Engagement
Our commitment to local community runs deep. More than 87% of our clients are women-owned businesses or purpose-driven organizations, and over half are based in the Pacific Northwest. We’re proud to support local nonprofits through pro-bono and low-bono services. Giving back is woven into everything we do, and we’re passionate about working with clients who share our dedication to social responsibility.
Our advocacy for grassroots efforts is rooted in the belief in the intrinsic value of community organizations in fostering local resilience and vitality. We acknowledge the hurdles that smaller organizations often face in securing essential funding and support, as well as the limitations they encounter in accessing the creative services necessary to engage with their audiences effectively. Below is a timeline of our studio’s community activity and initiatives over the past ten years.
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2023
Our team volunteered with Disability Rights Oregon to convert all of their printed "Know Your Rights" resources into an accessible online format. This effort aimed to make it more sustainable and accessible for Oregon residents with disabilities to learn about and access their rights under Oregon law.
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2022
Our team collaborated with the Portland Fruit Tree Project to design a new brand that met their needs for inclusivity and expression of the diverse population they serve. Our Associate Creative Director, Denise Hernandez, presented the new brand at their annual fundraiser party.
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2016 — 2021
Our team founded and ran the 501(c) non-profit organization, Visible Studio. Together with our team of volunteers and Studio Partners, we coordinated the donation of over $1M in pro-bono creative work to support underserved businesses, causes, and non-profits.
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2021
The Beauty Shop hosted the Visible Studio Residency Program to support emerging creatives from backgrounds that are underrepresented in creative industry leadership with a paid internship, in-studio mentorship, and training. As part of this program, residents completed pro bono work for small non-profit organizations and small businesses to benefit communities of color. Under the guidance of our creative directors, residents completed projects for Black & Beyond the Binary Collective, Roots & Beats, and Happiness Family Farm.
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2020
Associate Creative Director Denise Hernandez is a featured panelist at the Comma event, Stories from Alums. Comma is organized by PSUGD students & faculty, seeking to amplify representation and connection for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) + allies in the Portland creative community.
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2020
We collaborated with Aquent to create and distribute a Creative Services Guide designed to educate small non-profits on how to access low- and no-cost professional creative services.
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2020
Our Creative Director, Liz Neilson, joined the advisory committee of OK You, a nonprofit that supports youth in using creative wellness practices to support youth mental health.
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2019
Our team organized three Design Equity Tournaments in collaboration with the Bend Design Conference, and Design Week Portland. Design Equity Tournaments gather a group of volunteer designers together for a day of direct action to provide a small non-profit organization with a new logo in a single day. Tournament recipients included Portland in Color, Out in Focus, and Right to Health.
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2018
Our CCO, Jen Thomas, was a speaker on the panel of Citizen Designers: a conversation exploring the role of design in igniting positive cultural change in our society, which featured participants from the 2018 program at Bend Design and Design Week Portland.
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2018
Our Brand Strategy Director, Kristin Howe, volunteered in collaboration with Vocal Type, The Joinery, Scout Books, and B Local PDX as the transcriptionist, editor, and writer for US, A Collection of Immigration Stories from our B Corp Family.
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2018
Denise Hernandez, our Associate Creative Director, volunteered for Causa, Oregon's Immigrant Rights Organization, donating a brand and website at no cost.
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2018
Liz and Jen participate in providing mentorship to emerging female designers at the AIGA Women Lead workshop.
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2018
Liz and Jen are featured at the Gray Magazine Design Minds Panel, speaking about why designing for good is not elective, but essential in developing our communities.
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2017
The Beauty Shop volunteered with the Portland Mercado to finesse their illustrated logo and create their website free of charge.
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2017
Our team presented on the Center Stage at Design Week Portland about using design as direct action to create social change. We encouraged those in the creative industry to use their skills to benefit communities of color and support underfunded non-profit organizations.
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2017
The Beauty Shop hosted The Creative Resistance: a panel on design as activism featuring a panel of design leaders actively working to create social change through their work.
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2016 — Present
We have volunteered with the Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center to raise awareness of multi-racial logging history by refreshing their brand, website, marketing materials, and designing a traveling exhibit. Our work has assisted MHIC in raising funds to purchase and preserve the Maxville townsite, a multi-racial logging community established in Wallowa County in the 1920s, and list the site on the National Register of Historic Places. Maxville Heritage was awarded the Oregon Excellence Award in May 2024.