Cosmopolitan - November 2016 UK

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SHARMADEAN REID
Age: 32 Nationality: British
Who: The millennial Evelyn Lauder.
Originally from Wolverhampton, Reid initially started Wah as a fanzine in London
discussing music, fashion and how to be a street-smart feminist. It was so popular that
in 2009 she used her savings to open Wah Nails, a salon that also hosted jumble sales,
parties and film nights. The salon was so successful, its services were soon in demand
at London Fashion Week, and for collaborations with brands including Nike, Marc Jacobs
and Diesel. Now Reid’s brand is available globally, and she’s seen as a mentor and beauty
mogul who inspires other budding British entrepreneurs.
Priyanka
Chopra
Age: 34 Nationality: Indian
Who: India’s fairy godmother.
Actress, singer, philanthropist,
Miss World 2000, one of
Bollywood’s highest-paid
actresses, a UNICEF Goodwill
Ambassador working for children’s rights since 2010… And if you’re
worried she’s resting on her laurels, Chopra also uses her 15 million
Twitter followers to campaign for gender equality – particularly in her
native India, where she launched The Priyanka Chopra Foundation For
Health And Education, helping underprivileged children. She donates
10% of her earnings (she’s thought to be worth around $8 million) to
the foundation, which pays for the education and medical expenses of
70 children – 50 of them girls.
JENNA
MARBLES
Age: 30
Nationality:
American
Who: The woman
reinventing comedy.
Thought Amy
Schumer invented
self-deprecating
humour that poked
fun at the darkest,
most ridiculous parts
of being a woman?
Think again. Jenna
Marbles (real name
Jenna Mourey) has
made a name (and
a comedic genre)
out of her satirical
character skits.
She has four million
Twitter followers,
16 million YouTube
subscribers and
two billion (yes, you
read that correctly)
total video views.
A recent clip of her
applying 100 layers
of make-up over
seven hours went
viral to the tune
of 10 million in
just two weeks.
Laura Bates
Age: 30 Nationality: British
Who: The voice of feminism’s fourth wave.
Originally an actress, Bates decided to call
time on the sexist abuse she faced daily
by starting The Everyday Sexism Project.
A platform that encourages women to
share their experiences of harassment,
it began in 2012 and has collected well over
100,000 entries. As well as touring and
campaigning, she’s also written two books,
Everyday Sexism and Girl Up. Her TEDx
talk, entitled – you guessed it – Everyday
Sexism has had over half a million views,
and she was recently called upon by the
House of Commons to give evidence about
sexual harassment in schools. Definitely
a woman you’d want in your corner.
JESSICA WILSON
Age: 24 Nationality: Australian
Who: The new-gen retail mogul.
Co-founder of Stashd, the ‘Tinder for
fashion’ app where you judge items
by swiping left or right, then review your
‘stash’, Wilson has changed the way we
shop in 2016. With users in 136 countries
and over a million garments ‘stashd’,
Wilson proves there is life for techies
outside Silicon Valley. She also campaigns
to get more women into the industry.
If you hear the phrase ‘virtual wardrobe’
a lot this year, she’s the reason why. ◆
WORDS LUCY VINE. PHOTOGRAPHS TRUNKARCHIVE.COM, FELIX CLAY/EYEVINE, REX FEATURES, GETTY IMAGES, JOE SHEFFER, BEN RIGGOTT, REGAN CAMERON,
RAY BURMISTON, CONTOUR BY GETTY IMAGES, CAMERA PRESS/LAURA PENNACK, CAMERA PRESS, PEROU, SAM PEACH
112 · COSMOPOLITAN