Once upon a time…
There was a skincare maker who made beautiful skincare products using all natural ingredients like herbs, extracts, essential oils, waxes, butters, plant oils, and only ingredients that had naturally occurring antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-fungal properties as preservatives. Her products were beautiful, and people loved them. Small stores and spas ordered them, and she did well selling them in small batches online.
Word spreads about her magical products, and she gets more customers and more orders. Her business grows, which is great–but she’s now faced with new demands like hiring more employees, finding more efficient ways to manufacture the products without compromising the quality, and having to run a business.
Business is great for several years, but then she notices new inquiries coming from spas and customers:
- Are your products organic?
- Are your products cruelty-free?
- Are?your products non-GMO?
- Gluten-free?
- Green?
- Sustainable?
And that’s just the beginning…she then begins to get questions (still from potential customers) like:
- Are your ingredients organic, gluten-free, sustainably grown, non-GMO, and cruelty-free?
- What are your manufacturing processes?
- What are your quality control standards?
- Is your packaging eco-friendly/recycled/sustainable?
- Is your business run in an energy efficient/eco-friendly/sustainable way?
- Do you source ingredients and packaging from?organic/cruelty-free/sustainable/green suppliers and vendors?
- What are your goals for continuing to reduce?your company’s carbon footprint?
- Are your marketing efforts sustainable?
Whaaaat? Does this really happen?
Just a few years ago, the term “holistic skincare” was used by aestheticians to describe the practice of only using non-invasive and natural skincare products and treatments. Then nutritionists got on board and started educating people about how what you eat and how you live affects the skin and can cause lasting improvements to many conditions. I later expanded the definition (in my book, Love Your Skin, Love Yourself) to describe holistic skincare as “treating the skin from the inside out and outside in using nutrition and healthy lifestyle choices in addition to high-quality, natural skincare products to nourish and protect the skin.”
But now, it seems that the definition of?”holistic” in the skincare industry has further expanded to now include more eco-friendly and even political initiatives.
I was able to attend a webinar this week given by American Spa Magazine and presented by?Richard Pietz, Global Director of Product Development and?Lisa Polley, Director of Education?of the global natural skincare company,?Jurlique. I have to admit that when I signed up, I was really expecting the presentation to mostly be about how natural ingredient technology has improved. The webinar certainly addressed that (which was fascinating!), but a large percentage of the presentation was dedicated to educating about the fact that natural skincare consumers’ expectations have expanded.
While customers certainly?look for products that claim to “contain natural ingredients” or that are “free from” ingredients like parabens and sulfates, they’re beginning to shift their purchasing power to support businesses who adapt holistic, green, and sustainable practices in every aspect of their business: running the office, purchasing, manufacturing, transportation, marketing, giving back to the community, and more. They’re asking the questions I listed above to these companies directly via phone, email, and most visibly–on the company’s social media platforms.
Who sets holistic skincare?standards?
There are independent organizations that inspect and certify green initiatives and manufacturing practices,?and the U.S. Green Building Council offers certifications for companies who exemplify?Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)–but there aren’t currently any globally-recognized standards.
However, there isn’t currently any regulation of how the terms “natural” and “holistic” are used in skincare–and the term “organic” isn’t always reliable or relevant depending on the product and ingredients. According to Pietz, this will be changing in the near future as there is an initiative in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to have international standards to help regulate natural products, and the claims made on their packaging and in their marketing. Won’t that be helpful for label-conscious consumers?
As the term “holistic” continues to morph into “sustainable, there are many efforts you can make as a consumer to keep the industry moving in this direction and also help more standardization and regulation initiatives become a reality.
First of all, you can ask companies any or all of the questions above about their holistic skincare standards–as a consumer, it is your right to ask. You are spending your hard-earned money on these products, often with the belief that they share your values. The good news is that most of the companies who already have sustainable practices in place are proud of it and talk about it on their websites and in their social media. Others are still transitioning, but make their goals and projections clear.
You can also start setting goals to make your own home or business greener, safer, and more energy efficient. Pietz and Polley stressed that holistic skincare is no longer about ingredients–and I’ll add that it’s no longer just about nutrition–it’s about an entire culture, ethos, and lifestyle.
We’ve already made many changes in our household and for Holistically Haute?, and this webinar inspired Chef Joe and I to sit down and evaluate what additional steps we can take and goals we can set to be even more Earth-conscious.
What holistic, sustainable efforts do you already employ in your home or business?
I’d love to know! Leave a reply below in the comments and tell me all about it.
*Disclaimer
**Energy efficient light bulb image by Arvalarva (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons
