The recent launch, which marked the brand’s first entry into national retail for lip care, includes five new SKUs now available at Walmart stores across the U.S.
The line includes Shimmering Vanilla Mint Lip Butter, Vanilla Glaze Lip Butter, Pink Velvet Lip Butter, Vanilla Lip Mask, and Berry Lip Mask. According to the company’s press release, the rollout spans more than 3,000 Walmart locations and Walmart.com.
From basic care to wellness ritual
NatureWell’s approach reflects an evolution in how beauty consumers are approaching the lip care category. “Wellness has shifted the way consumers think about beauty,” Keran Look Loy, vice president of marketing at AX Beauty Brands, told CosmeticsDesign US. “They’re looking for products that go beyond basic function to enjoyment.”
The shift towards wellness has informed both the formulation and development, as well as the strategic positioning, of some new product launches. “Lip care is no longer just about hydration—in addition to being purposeful, consumers want ingredients that are efficient and the packaging is aesthetically pleasing,” Look Loy added.
Digitally native innovation drivers
The line was also developed with real-time input from social media platforms, where the brand has been actively testing content strategies and monitoring user trends.
“Social media has become the testing ground for what resonates in beauty,” said Look Loy. “We’ve also looked at how [consumers are] talking about lip care, such as trending flavors like vanilla and berry or textures such as shimmer, buttery cushion formulas or multi-sensory experiences.”
He noted that trending flavor profiles and finishes directly influenced product development. “We created flavors like Shimmering Vanilla Mint and Pink Velvet Lip Butter. These flavors and finishes directly reflect what’s trending in beauty communities and consumers will be more enticed to test purchase them,” he said.
Balancing mass appeal with efficacy
With the move into Walmart, the brand aims to maintain its wellness-forward positioning while expanding reach. “Accessibility and credibility go hand in hand for NatureWell,” Annabel Short, director of brand and product development for NatureWell, told CDU. “We’ve always believed wellness shouldn’t come with a prestige markup, which is why we pair clinically informed formulations with high-quality, wellness-forward ingredients,” she said.
The products are designed to deliver on both sensory experience and efficacy. “Even at a mass scale, our products deliver on efficacy through carefully chosen ingredients and textures that perform,” she added.
Earning consumer trust
Ingredient transparency and consumer education are key to the brand’s strategy, as “consumers want to know not just what’s in their products, but why it matters for their wellness,” said Short.
She added that the new collection highlights ingredients such as nourishing butters and hydrating complexes, supported by clear explanations of how these support routine use. “Our team draws from clinically informed research to guide formulation, but we translate that science into approachable language and storytelling so consumers can easily connect the dots,” she said.
Lip Care as lifestyle accessory
NatureWell also views lip care evolving beyond a functional category into something more expressive, and the category “has truly expanded into an extension of skin care,” Short said. “We’re even seeing it become a fashion accessory, with fun designs and charms turning lip products into something to show off, not just use.”
The collection is designed to fit into this more ritualized, expressive behavior. For example, Short illustrated, “our masks function like a treatment step and our butters double as an everyday indulgence that offers more than hydrated lips.”
Expansion plans
Naturewell anticipates continued opportunity in the lip care space and plans to build on this launch. “This is just the beginning of our lip offerings,” Short confirmed. “We’ll continue exploring with various scents, ingredients, and packaging to keep offering products that are premium in performance while maintaining our commitment to make high-quality, wellness-forward products.”
As noted in the company’s press release, NatureWell has experienced steady growth in recent years, supported by new product innovations, expanded distribution, and viral attention for its hero SKUs, including the Retinol Cream and Cheeky Cream.
The brand is currently available at Target, Amazon, TJ Maxx, DSW, and now Walmart.
