3 Brand Nailing Sustainability in 2023

According to a Global Sustainability survey from 2021, 65% of global consumers would be willing to pay more for sustainable and planet-positive products. With leading beauty retailers like Sephora and Ulta making clean beauty a prominent product category in the past few years, and the rise of other retailers like Credo Beauty, Thirteen Lune, Violet Grey, and more, it’s clear that ‘Clean’ isn't going anywhere. However, ‘Clean’ has not come without criticism.

There is no industry-wide standard for what defines Clean, and sustainability credentials can seem murky or ambiguous to many consumers. A recent CNN article on the efforts of beauty’s ‘green’ ambitions interviewed British Beauty Council CEO Millie Kendall, who stated, “The term ‘clean beauty’ has become quite dangerous. It’s used to sell more products…Customers need better marketing information and certification information.”

With ‘Clean’ and ‘Green’ sometimes feeling more like buzzwords than a promise, which brands are actually walking the walk? Here are three brands putting sustainability and innovation front and center towards more planet-friendly products.

MOB Beauty

Created by MAC Cosmetics co-founder Victor Casale and former Laura Mercier Global Makeup Artist Alisha Gallagher, MOB Beauty is doing some of the most interesting sustainability innovations in terms of packaging and overall product production that’s been super exciting to watch. The core tenet of their line is that it is all refillable packaging, but it’s not just any packaging.

Casale and their team have been working hard to develop their ‘Earth-First’ packaging system, which was initially made of PET and PP resin materials that are the easiest to recycle and include 50% post-recycled consumer materials. All the packaging is recyclable, and MOB currently partners with PACT to make it easier for everyone to recycle the products.

As of 2023, they’re working on and testing new packaging materials made of 100% PCR cardboard, bamboo, sugar cane, flax, and corn + wheat starches that will eventually break down and can be composted without sacrificing packaging quality. The formulas themselves are also sustainable, cruelty-free, and vegan, and they also work to ensure their ingredients are ethically sourced. They’re very transparent on their site about all their efforts and their mission; in fact, it could be said they’re one of the most transparent beauty brands regarding their sustainability.

If this all wasn’t exciting enough, the products look really good and give you total freedom to customize your palettes with the products and colors you want to do a full face or keep it minimal. The Clay Cream Shadows have a seafoam green that is calling my name!

dew mighty

Regarding sustainable packaging, dew mighty’s philosophy seems to be the less, the better. This skincare brand is, in their words, “reinventing circular and refillable skincare” by offering solid skincare bars in small cardboard packaging that can come with refillable metal containers and uses no plastic in either the packaging or ingredients, which also aims to be as zero waste as possible. Skincare in solid bar format isn’t new; other brands, including Lush, have been offering it for years, but dew mighty’s approach and mission are what sets it apart.

While to brand makes little to no carbon footprint, they work to calculate their footprint and offset this by donating to projects with goals towards climate change and sustainability solutions.

In terms of how well their products work, their ingredient lists include bromelain, bakuchiol, kaolinite, and blue tansy are used by several popular, prolific skincare brands as well, so they aren’t skimping on quality. They also offer sample sizes you can try, which is great for testing the brand without wasting full-size products and seeing if you like them. I’ll be over here putting the Bloom and Nova Serum Bars in my cart.

caliray

Created by Urban Decay Cosmetics co-founder Wende Zomnir, this brand is sustainable-meets-California style. Their brand identity is ‘clean, laid back, wellness-centric, California lifestyle.’ After meeting her caliray co-founder, Jenna Dover, while playing beach volleyball, the two agreed they wanted a clean back that worked and performed well. That laid-back vibe definitely carries over to the products, which are as easy to use and perfect for no-fuss looks.

The brand focuses on “sexy sustainability,” using post-consumer recyclable materials and bioplastics like sugarcane and veggie and algae inks and keeping ingredients clean (while there is no industry-wide standard, they do follow the Clean at Sephora guidelines.) They want their packaging to be as recyclable as possible and partner with PACT to help accomplish this.

So did they create sustainable products that work? They sure did! Their ‘Come Hell or Highwater’ Mascara is an amazing tubing mascara that gives volume, feels lightweight, and comes off so easily. The Hi! Light powder highlighter gives such a glam, beautiful glow, and the Freedeeming Foundation fills the gap that the dearly departed Kosas Tinted Oil left in my heart.

There’s still a long way for the beauty industry to go in terms of making things better and being more eco-friendly, but it is getting better, and with the ‘Clean’ movement moving more to include packaging and production methods, here’s hoping we see more innovation ahead with bio plastics and cutting down waste from start to finish.