Clean beauty is big business, with a forecasted value of $11,558.5 million by 2027 for its global market. With the tagline “Better for the People and for the Planet,” Clean Beauty, London’s inaugural trade show, brought together brand founders (both aspiring and established), organic accreditation partners, product and packaging manufacturers, as well as consumer insight agencies, to discuss the evolution and future of the industry segment.

BeautyMatter traversed the stalls and attended the two days of conferences in East London’s The Brewery to gain first-hand insight. Read on for our key takeaways below.

Debunking misconceptions

• The beauty industry is in itself not sustainable as we are ultimately putting product into the environment, but this makes it all the more important to innovate and educate in order to lessen its impact

Clean ≠ natural & organic

• Organic products constrain certified or otherwise private standardized ingredients which meet the organic criteria; natural cosmetics are made from plant extracts and natural ingredients, containing a minimal amount of synthetics; clean beauty focuses on formulations free of certain ingredients like parabens, petrochemicals, formaldehydes, sodium lauryl sulfate, minel oils, aluminum salts, and phthalates, explains Ecovia Intelligence

Branding and packaging terminology needs to be revised

• Claims to avoid (courtesy of Re/sources): multiuse, recyclable, cruelty free, vegan, zero waste, eco-friendly, greener, waterless, biodegradable, recyclable, sustainable packaging
• Recommended claims to use instead: less waste / waste reduction, partly refillable/reusable packaging, partly recyclable
• Inclusivity needs to be in the infrastructure of your business, not just your marketing, proclaims diversity and inclusivity consultant Joseph Harwood
• We should move away from terms such as multiethnic and multicultural when referring to non-white consumers, as these create a divide. True multiculturalism embraces everyone as an equal, states Beautystreams

Accreditations

• Sustainable and upcycled ingredients are now becoming more of a priority than natural ingredients
• Plant-based certifications remain popular, with over 20,000 licenses for the vegan label having been distributed to the beauty industry to date
• A unification of eco-friendly accreditations could benefit consumer clarity
• Carbon neutral is not enough, move towards being planet positive

Retail

• Retailers’ legislations and regulations will be a key aid in avoiding greenwashing
• Sharpen your USP from the onset; simply being a clean beauty brand isn’t enough to differentiate you from competitors
• Build customer awareness through DTC and activations before reaching out to buyers, and realize that more retailers isn’t always better

Key Product Trends

• Microbial-based, compostable packaging (Shellworks)
• Fusing of cosmeceutical with natural ingredients  (Ambari)
• Diversification of product categories (Love Ocean)
• More stem cell-focused skincare (Darya Hope)
• Vegan, nature-derived color products (Seeds of Colour)
• Carbon-negative packaging (BYBI)
• Waterless formulations (Clockface Beauty)
• Brands which also take religious beliefs into account when thinking about inclusivity, such as halal- and wudu-friendly nail polishes (Sienna Byron Bay)

Future Perspectives

• Biotech can offer more sustainable product ingredients to their all-natural counterparts by improving resource efficiency
• Focus on developing evergreen product collections instead of seasonal releases
• Whereas nontoxic beauty was about controversial ingredients, clean beauty is now about gentleness, sustainability, and ethics. The clean beauty of the future is conscious beauty

The 3 rules of conscious beauty (according to Dynvibe)

1. Lead in one pillar and be good in the others.
2. Be transparent and promote education through science.
3. Keep effectiveness at the top.