The ups and downs of ‘The Beauty Bean’

Alum Alexis Wolfer aims to change the way women talk about beauty, health and wellness

Long before People StyleWatch named her “The DIY Beauty Queen,” Alexis Wolfer had the DIY mentality as she set out to create “The Beauty Bean,” an online women’s magazine that would change the way women talk about beauty, health and wellness.

After earning her bachelor of arts in women’s studies and psychology from Washington University in St. Louis, Wolfer went on to earn her master of arts in human rights and women’s studies from Columbia University. While working at Lucky Magazine for fun, she developed the idea for her master’s thesis on the corporate social responsibility of women’s magazines and their influence on eating disorders. The thesis would become her business model for “The Beauty Bean.”

“I realized that the ultimate human right is the right to love yourself and that if you don’t love and respect yourself it becomes very difficult to ask others to love and respect you,” Wolfer says.

“The Beauty Bean” takes the focus away from weight loss and dieting and instead encourages women to lead healthy and happy lives. The site features anything from DIY beauty recipes and motivational messages to makeup, hair and fitness tips.