Race and the beauty counter: What a greater selection of hues says about culture

When Wanja Ochwada dropped by cosmetic store Sephora recently she encountered a scene she describes as “coming into a sisterhood”: women excitedly trying out a new brand of makeup and offering up their opinions to their friends.

“[There were] maybe 14 or 15 other black women … [saying] ‘Do you think this works with my shade? Could I get away with this concealer...?’ Everyone’s hopping in being kind of like a bossy older sister with each other. It was great,” recalls Ms. Ochwada, who was looking for a foundation in the new Fenty Beauty line to match her dark skin tone.

But the color she wanted was already out