Billie Jean King and e.l.f. Beauty Serve Facts About Diversity

Boom! Bam! Bang! Billie Jean King launches one ball after another against the window of a company meeting room. She’s not messing around!

The tennis legend and women’s rights icon looks spry at 80—and her serve packs a wallop in e.l.f. Beauty’s new PSAs backing corporate diversity.

The point: there’s a distinct lack of equality in American business, and it’s time for a change.

Oberland developed the quirky, likable approach, and BJK aces her performance.

Of course, King’s cultural bona fides are exemplary, ranging from the famous 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” vs. Bobby Riggs to her fight for women’s tennis reforms. It’s inspiring to see her take a swing at hot-button issues here in 2024.

For this campaign, e.l.f notes recent surveys showing that women make up 27 percent of corporate boards, which are on average 88 percent white.

The company describes its own board numbers—⅔ women and ⅓ diverse—as “a big step in the right direction.” Still, outreach is needed because “most people aren’t aware that there is so little equity in seats of decision-making.”