Molly went blind at 14. This is her plea to the beauty industry

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“I couldn’t see mannequins anymore. I couldn’t see in store windows. I couldn’t flip through magazines or swatch lipsticks on the back of my own hand.”

“But going blind didn’t change who I am. It changed how I do things.”

It turns out YouTube, and later TikTok, are relatively accessible mediums. Anyone who has watched a fashion or beauty influencer knows the detail with which they tend to narrate their videos – from the texture of a piece of clothing to the specific shade of lipstick.

“I literally was getting every single detail I needed,” says Burke, who learnt slowly how to do things such as apply her mascara or choose the right foundation shade for her skin tone.

People in Burke’s life started to notice.

“Girls at school were stopping me and being like, ‘What eye shadow are you wearing? I love it!’, or ‘Oh, can you give me fashion advice?’”

“They were asking a blind person, who historically we would think would have no value in that conversation, for their advice. And I started making new friends again through that.”

Still, Burke lacked positive role models who reflected her own experiences.

“I didn’t see an example of a successful, happy, thriving blind person,” she says.

At 20, Burke decided to become that person by starting the YouTube channel.

While diversity and sustainability have become buzzwords in recent years, the beauty industry has been slow to adopt accessible design – just 4 per cent of beauty and personal care brands cater to those with disability, according to research by Procter and Gamble.

“Historically, it’s been very clear that the beauty industry just hasn’t cared about disabled people,” she says.

While Burke reads braille, she’s among a small percentage of blind people who do. Universal design, rather than accessible design, she says, is key.

Haircare brand Herbal Essences, for instance, has incorporated raised dots and stripes into its packaging so consumers can differentiate between otherwise identical bottles of shampoo and conditioner.

These additions are universal because they benefit everyone.

And while big brands may dismiss these changes as costly or too niche, Burke points out that its in their financial interests to make them.

“Designing for disabled people, it’s not something I’m saying you should do from the goodness of your heart. This is a business move.”

One in five Australians live with a disability, representing $40 billion in disposable income. Research from Circana found that inclusive brands are growing 1.5 times faster than their less inclusive competitors.

Despite her success, Burke faces daily reminders that the world was not built for people like her. Navigating public toilets, for example, is an ordeal that most people don’t think twice about.

“Being blind will be hard as long as the world isn’t accessible. And that was something I had to realise. For so long in my life, I thought I would just work hard enough and get to a certain point where my blindness would no longer matter.”

“But it doesn’t matter how many followers I have, how much money I make, how successful I am. If the world isn’t accessible for me, that’s hard.”

That hit home earlier this year when Burke was forced to evacuate her Los Angeles home during the city’s devastating wildfires.

“It wasn’t until I was safe that I [realised] that once again society hasn’t really put safety guards in place for my community.”

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People with a disability are two to four times more likely to die or be injured in a natural disaster than the general population. Burke would like to see greater education and policies to protect them.

While Burke has come a long way from that 14-year-old girl with big dreams, her journey to self-acceptance hasn’t been linear.

“As [you] age, your body changes, your face changes, and there’s so much expectation and pressure. I live in Los Angeles, working in entertainment … I see people’s comments on my appearance. It’s not easy being a 31-year-old woman and knowing that I’m changing and I can’t see myself change,” she says.

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