The Ethical Beauty Boom

What exactly does it mean to sell “ethical” beauty, and who wants to buy it?

• For some time now, beauty editors the world over have been putting together lists of brands, items and treatments that aren’t just there to make you more beautiful, but to do so in ethical ways.
• Beauty, once the realm of the superficial, now purports to be about much more: self care, mental health, identity, healthy values, environmental consciousness, fair manufacturing practices and more.
• This holistic approach to beauty has created a market for a whole new range of products and experiences, from “clean” or “green” serums over fair trade ingredients to inclusive beauty ideals.
• With dignity now a major part of the beauty conversation, initiatives such as the setting up of “beauty banks” - freely accessible ranges of personal hygiene products for the poor - are spreading.
• Company culture also plays into the evaluation of a beauty brand - with diversity and tolerance writ large in particular, so that it doesn't just matter what’s in a bottle, but also who put it there.
• And of course, sustainability is a major pillar of the ethical beauty boom, a concept referred to in beauty branding as often as it is, unfortunately, vague and unregulated.