It is great to look good. But to look your best, you need to feel good too. Finding out that your foundation or lipstick was tested on animals can be enough to make you feel bad, not only at that moment, but any time you use those products. As businesses begin to realize that their customers would rather pay a little more for ethically sourced and produced products, there are now a great number of makeup brands that don’t test on animals. Let us take a look at a few.
Urban Decay
Currently a subsidiary of the French-owned by L’Oreal, Urban Decay started, more or less on a whim in 1995, when friends Sandy Lerner and Patricia Holmes realised they were dissatisfied with the largely beige, pink and red themes that predominated in the beauty product business, and set up Urban Decay to provide the wider choices they craved. Their first product launch, in January 1996, offered a line of ten lipsticks and a round dozen nail varnishes.
The products names echo the nihilism of the brand, with Acid Rain, Rust, and Oil Slick. After a fantastic start, the company passed through the hands of Louis Vuitton and a few other companies. L’Oreal then acquired Urban Decay for US$350 million in 2012. They now offer a comprehensive range of products and also work towards the empowerment of women, making buying their animal-free products a feel good indulgence!
Yardley London
A veritable grandpa in this list, Yardley proudly proclaim on every label that they have been in the business since 1770, but in fact, the company existed in some form long before, claiming to have lost a great many precious records in the Great Fire of London in 1666. Despite being the product of the Cleaver family, Yardley takes its name from William Yardley. He purchased the company and expanded it. Taking part in the Great Exhibition as a vendor of hair pomades, soaps, various powders, perfumes and other toiletries helped to make this possible.
The company has survived and thrived – albeit with a wobble or two here and there – by adapting to changing circumstances, selling Twiggy Eyelashes in the 60s, launching a men’s range, and going cruelty free, and offering vegan-friendly products where possible. The company has a number of Royal Warrants (issued when senior members of the royal family use products) including from Queen Elizabeth as ‘perfumers and manufacturers’.
The Body Shop
It is not often that an empire is launched by a disillusioned wife and mother, looking for a way to keep her two children and herself fed and housed while her husband is away travelling for inordinate lengths of time, but that is exactly what happened to Anita Roddick.
She began selling and automatically adopted the habits with which she was raised. This includes reusing containers, recycling when possible, and also using cruelty-free and ethical ingredients. The brand has been acquired by L’Oreal but adheres to its cruelty-free beliefs. It now offers a great range of delicately scented lotions, soaps and gift sets.
Lush
If you have ever walked down a UK high street and suddenly encountered a waft of floral, fruity, sweet and musky scent that seemed to smack you straight in the nasal synapses, you know exactly what Lush is and what it is all about. The rich scents and feel of the lotions and soap that Lush produce are fully vegetarian and 85% are vegan. This was the vision of its’ founders, Mark Constantine and Liz Weir.
Cruelty-free products were always a point of interest for Constantine. She worked as a Beauty Without Cruelty consultant for many years, before taking a leap of faith with Lush. For a time, Constantine and Weir sold their products to The Body Shop, but ultimately opened up Lush. Environmental issues and animal friendliness became the basis of Lush. SO strong is this ethos, that Lush published the ‘Lush Life: We Believe’ mission statement.
Fenty Beauty
The baby on this list, opening in 2017. This cosmetic company is the brainchild of singer, businesswoman and actor, Rihanna (Fenty is her surname). While Fenty does not claim to be a vegan company ,some products use beeswax and carmine . They are strongly against animal testing however, and will not allow third-parties to use animal testing on their behalf. The innovative company celebrates diversity of all sorts, from environmental and animal-friendly concerns to female empowerment to gender fluidity.
These companies are makeup brands that don’t test on animals will help you to look good while remaining guilt free. Why not check out these brands and contribute towards ending animal cruelty?
