Aerie, the women's lingerie and lifestyle retailer that has staked its mission on empowering women to love themselves as they are, is now taking its message of support one step further by pouring $400,000 into helping leaders make improvements in their own communities.
The company announced eight new #AerieREAL Role Models on Thursday along with 20 changemakers who will each receive $20,000 grants to benefit their work.
"We're doing so much at Aerie, and I think the fact that we're actually giving people the money, and also the investment of our energy, our time, and our platforms is something that no one else is doing," said Iskra Lawrence, a fashion model who was named an Aerie Role Model in 2016.
The company, which began shifting its brand messaging to encourage women to "love your real self — inside and out" in 2014 when it stopped airbrushing photos, is "standing for something," Jen Foyle, Aerie global brand president told Cheddar.
Among the new Role Models named this year are Tony-winner Ali Stroker, actress Lana Condor, and DJ Tiff McFierce.
"It's been really fun mentoring the girls," Lawrence said. "It is a community. It's not just the Role Models. We spread that community to our customers as well."
"We keep looking forward," Foyle said. "What can we do different? Because, like I said, our competition is now following. We have to lead and there's so much more to talk about."
TikTok said it's investing billions of dollars into the southeast Asia market, one of the company's biggest, over the next few years.
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Ed Siddell, CEO and chief investment officer with EGSI Financial, joined Cheddar News to discuss Thursday's positive trading session in what Siddell called "a year of momentum" as investors continue to digest a heavy amount of news that includes monetary policy, inflation concerns, banking fears and some positive economic data.
Rivian is expanding into New York City and launching its first showroom there. Cheddar News took a look at the showroom in NYC that the company is calling "spaces," which is intended to be experiential retail locations to woo new customers.
Rebecca Walser, certified financial planner and wealth strategist, offers tips on how to avoid money mistakes, develop healthy spending habits, and pay off debts.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Wednesday it hopes to weed out false or misleading animal-welfare claims on meat and poultry packaging with new guidance and testing.
Stocks swept higher Thursday, revving the longest rally for Wall Street in a year and a half into a higher gear.
If you're looking for food that's good for you and the planet, look no further than the new Isle of Us café and marketplace in the Upper East Side. Cheddar's own Shannon LaNier is on the scene with more.
The price of one kitchen staple is dropping at a historic rate. In May, egg prices had their largest monthly decline in 72 years. Ricky Richardson, CEO of South Carolina-based Eggs Up Grill, joined Cheddar News to discuss the state of play in the egg industry as prices fall while food costs overall are on the rise again. Egg prices are "returning to more normal levels now, we're running down about 40% on a year-over-year basis," he said.
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