2020 Beacon Awards coincide with Beauty Independent anniversary

75 brands, products, retailers, and people were nominated for IBMG’s new awards program, as Cosmetics Design reported​ in August. And in an online ceremony on September 30th, this year’s winners across 15 categories were announced.

Independent cosmetics and personal care is all about consumers and innovators  

“Consumers are increasingly voting with their dollars for emerging brands that have unique voices, distinctive products and founders with compelling stories,” ​says Rachel Brown, Beauty Independent Editor in Chief, in her remarks about the inaugural Beacon Awards. And, she points out that “Beauty Independent's mission is to focus on these emerging brands and the Beacon Awards celebrates them.”​

While many of the 2020 Beacon Award winners have already made headlines or been quoted on Beauty Independent, the site is now running a series of feature items, focusing on one winner at a time over the course of 15 weeks.

“Many of the most innovative products and visionary leaders in beauty and wellness are to be found among the small startups doing things that larger and more established companies would or could never do,” ​says Nader Naeymi-Rad, publisher of Beauty Independent and co-founder of IBMG, in a recent press release about the awards.

“These individuals and their organizations are a beacon;” ​he says, “they are a symbol of possibility, revealing the edges of how far we could go, but daring us to surpass it.”​

15 brands, products—including hand sanitizer—and people won 2020 Beacon Awards

The winners of the 2020 Beacon Awards follow:

• Entrepreneur of the Year
  Julissa Prado
• Industry Icon
  Marcia Kilgore
• Brand of the Year
  Kreyol Essence
• Brand Launch of the Year
  Odele
• Product Launch of the Year
  Olive & June's The Studio Box
• Product Development Innovation of the Year
  Touchland's Moisturizing Hand Sanitizer Mist
• Best Packaging
  Kjaer Weis
• Best Social Media
  Hero Cosmetics
• Sustainability Champion
  Axiology
• Inclusivity Champion
  Spktrm Beauty
• Large Indie Retailer of the Year
  The Detox Market
• Small Indie Retailer of the Year
  Inside Outer Beauty
• Online Retailer of the Year
  Verishop
• Investor of the Year
  Unilever Ventures
• Indie Deal of the Year
  Topicals