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Ulta Beauty says it is relaunching a texture training program for its stylists after a Black woman and her 7-year-old daughter filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against the company over an alleged refusal of service at its East 86th Street salon — an incident that is drawing renewed attention to a longstanding divide in the hair care industry.
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The national beauty chain told the New York Times it is “not able to comment on pending litigation, but we’re working towards a resolution,” and separately confirmed it is relaunching a texture training series to better serve customers with textured, curly, and coily hair. The Times reported on the lawsuit this week.As East Side Feed previously reported, Lauren Smith and her daughter arrived at the East 86th Street Ulta salon on July 6, 2025 for confirmed hair appointments ahead of a professional photoshoot. Both were wearing hats that fully covered their hair when employees told them their assigned stylist was “not comfortable” doing their “type” or “texture” of hair. Smith said she offered to walk the stylist through the process herself, but was still turned away. Her daughter left the store in tears.
The lawsuit, filed in March in federal court in Manhattan by attorney Wendy Dolce, alleges violations of federal civil rights law, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law — all of which prohibit discrimination based on hair texture as a proxy for race. The suit is seeking monetary and punitive damages, as well as industrywide anti-discrimination training and enforcement of the Crown Act, which bars discrimination based on hair texture and protective hairstyles including locs, braids, and twists.
The case has echoes of a prior Upper East Side discrimination complaint. In 2019, Black employees at the Sharon Dorram Color at Sally Hershberger salon described being discouraged from working with clients whose hair fell outside the salon’s stated expertise — with box braids, Afros, and locs said to clash with the salon’s upscale image. That case was settled with New York City’s Commission on Human Rights, with the salon required to partner with a cosmetology school to train employees on Black hair care.
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The Smith lawsuit comes as New York State moves to strengthen cosmetology education standards. Last month, the state published an update to its styling curriculum requiring future students to complete 220 hours of training in hair braiding, locking, and weaving, plus 245 hours in styling techniques including silk press. The changes, passed in 2023, take effect in September — though they apply only to new students, meaning currently licensed stylists will not be required to undergo additional training.Have a news tip? Send it to us here!
