Nyakio Grieco

Nyakio (pronounced Neh-Kay-Oh) Grieco is a beauty entrepreneur and advocate for clean, inclusive beauty that suits all skin types, tones and needs. As a veteran beauty founder and trusted voice in the industry, Nyakio has launched two successful businesses: her award-winning eponymous brand nyakio™, based on her family’s Kenyan beauty secrets and launched in 2002 and inclusive beauty e-commerce destination, thirteen lune, launched with cofounder Patrick Herning in 2020.

It was during the racial reckoning of 2020 that Nyakio was inspired to launch thirteen lune. The world was profoundly impacted by Black Lives Matter’s racial justice movement and Nyakio noticed a plethora of Black owned beauty brands finally getting due recognition from mainstream media, yet there was no e-commerce platform where consumers could seek out and purchase the products efficiently. Additionally, she observed the continued misconception that BIPOC beauty founders were only creating product for BIPOC consumers. Thus, thirteen lune launched as the first of its kind, e-commerce destination designed to inspire the discovery of beauty brands created by BIPOC founders that resonate with people of all colors.

Thirteen Lune has received top industry awards including, Fashion Group International 2022 Rising Star Award “New Retail Concept”, WWD Beauty Inc.’s 2021 Newcomer of the Year Award and InStyle Bad Ass 50 Women 2022. Continuing her commitment to inclusive beauty and with a deep understanding of where the niche was in the market, Nyakio created Relevant: Your Skin Seen, a clean, science-led skincare brand that works for all skin tones and types. Working with top labs to ensure a diverse mix of the best chemists, Nyakio formulated each product with superfruits and actives in efficacious percentages to create products that truly perform. As a dedicated activist and mentor, Nyakio sits on the boards of Girls Inc. Los Angeles, Legacy Youth Leadership and BeautyUnited.