There’s no denying that the natural and organic beauty arena can be overwhelming – “unless you’ve got a chemistry degree, it is really hard to know what ingredients mean,” said Anjali. Her top tip? Look at the order in which the ingredients are listed on each product; the higher they appear on the list, the higher the concentration within the product. “If it’s number 10 on the list, it’s not really doing anything for you,” she noted.
“Find the thing you are no prepared to compromise on,” was the advice given by Khandiz, who has seven distinct factors that she considers when looking at products: animal welfare, health, environment, inclusivity, social impact and religion – she noted on the final point that some faiths would prohibit the inclusion of alcohol or ingredients sourced from animals in beauty products. For Khandiz make-up is about self-expression, her products simply “a paint that I’ve learnt to make a living with.”
In the last two to three years, Madeleine has approached her beauty regime with a view to minimising and making use of what she already has. Before buying a new product, she asks herself: ‘Will I use it until the end?’ – and if not, it goes back on the shelf or gets deleted from her online beauty basket.
With almost seven years’ of experience running a natural and organic beauty brand, Annee has seen the industry landscape shift to embrace environmentally-conscious consumer demands. “It was so much more difficult in the beginning,” she said; “People used to look at me like – ‘you funny hippie’.” Now, finding sustainable solutions to the issues a beauty brand faces is much simpler – and Annee takes a 360° view to making these decisions. For instance, while glass may be easier to recycle, it’s heavier to ship, and if she’s looking at plastic, she’s asking whether it’s a virgin plastic and if it’s wholly recyclable. “I’m looking at the impact every step of the way,” she says.