What it takes to get gender neutral beauty right
CosmeticsDesign-USA (CDU) spoke to Emily Austin, owner of People’s Beauty to find out more about its gender neutral skin care collection, including the psychology, formulation, packaging and general approach to marketing this type of brand.
People’s Beauty is a prestige range of five products, featuring a cleanser, scrub, toner, cream and dew that were all created in New York and are manufactured in South Korea.
CDU: What is the impact of gender-neutral skin care like People’s Beauty on manufacturers and suppliers to the cosmetics and personal beauty care product industries?
Emily Austin: Directly relating to the manufacturers, they are creating packaging for us that we chose to make using “gender neutral” colors (Yellow). The products themselves differ from most because we use more concentrated ingredients to suit diverse skin types for all genders. We see that society has created this stigma that skincare is only for women, and we want to change that.
CDU: What are some of the greatest challenges of selecting ingredients to formulate gender neutral skin care products like those in the People’s Beauty brand? What solutions have been developed and implemented to address these issues?
Emily Austin: We work directly with our chemists to find the perfect balance for our products. Men’s skin is 25% thicker than women’s, and therefore the products penetrate differently. At the same time, we don’t want to overwhelm women’s skin, so the products need to cater to all genders without overly affecting one and neglecting the other. The pricing also becomes affected because we have a set price without the “pink tax”. Given the fact that our products are not exclusively for women, we don’t include the “pink tax” fee. Men have a lower PH level than women. The cleanser works to adjust the PH levels to set the skin for maximum effectiveness for the follow up products. The toner also adjusts the PH levels in preparation for moisturizing. This is effective in all genders.
As an aside, we work with many botanical oils because we learned that they are oils are similar to our skin’s composition. Being that they are not foreign, they are not attacking our skin.
CDU: What are some ways that People’s Beauty has worked with manufacturers and suppliers of cosmetics and personal beauty care products to be more environmentally friendly?
Emily Austin: Our packaging is 100% recyclable, and we do not include any toxins in our products. We are also cruelty-free, vegan, and plant-based.
CDU: As an indie beauty care brand, what innovations would you like to see more of from manufacturers and suppliers to the cosmetics and personal care product industries regarding gender-neutral and/or sustainable product formulation options?
Emily Austin: I would like to see more honesty and transparency from company to consumer. No consumer wants to read a bunch of ingredients not knowing what it truly means. We would also like to see the best ingredients accessible to all, not just wealthier consumers. Why are some products so much more expensive? A lot of cosmetic companies list tons of ingredients that serve no purpose. They solely exist to raise the costs with claims that they used “more” ingredients. We make sure our products only include active ingredients.
CDU: Do you have any future plans to develop additional gender-neutral product options for consumers in the coming months or year?
Emily Austin: Absolutely, we only plan to grow and expand our company. I would love to create a daily wear sunscreen for all genders to enjoy. We want to contribute to making cosmetics more relatable and friendly.
CDU: What is your proudest achievement with the brand?
Emily Austin: I am most proud of the fact that we do not harm any animals in the creation of our products. The world is based on energy, and there is no good energy in abusing animals for our beauty. We can still achieve beauty without the inclusion of animal cruelty.
