Expert Viewpoints

This Month in Fragrance: July 2019

This Month in Fragrance: July 2019

By Deanna Utroske

This July, Symrise shared results of its new AI-powered digital perfumer test in Berlin, beauty and fragrance packager Albéa announced plans for a circular packaging strategy, method soap created scents for its latest limited editions, and product discovery...

The industry continues to bolster support of Indie Beauty

The industry continues to bolster support of Indie Beauty

By Deanna Utroske

Late last week in-cosmetics announced that the show is formally expanding its indie brand programing for 2019. This year’s North American edition of the tradeshow will include the new Indie Trail feature as well as dedicated tours and PCPC content for...

Vegan probiotic beauty has arrived, and it’s winning hearts and minds

Vegan probiotic beauty has arrived, and it’s winning hearts and minds

By Deanna Utroske

At Unfiltered Experience, this past Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada, Dr. Lili Fan was showcasing her newly launched eponymous brand of skin and body care, formulated with lactobacillus—notably, a strain of the microorganism that is not the product of fermented...

Indie Beauty Profile Victoria Fu and Gloria Lu, Chemist Confessions Inc.

Indie Beauty Profile

Victoria Fu and Gloria Lu, Chemist Confessions Inc.

By Deanna Utroske

In their Indie Beauty Profile, Victoria Fu & Gloria Lu, founders of Chemist Confessions Inc., explain how a chemistry blog on IG became a skin care brand, why that makes for a loyal yet quirky consumer base, and that often times as entrepreneurs,...

Uplink Live opens in New York City this August

Uplink Live opens in New York City this August

By Deanna Utroske

Produced by the Indie Beauty Media Group, Uplink Live is a 2-day event where brands at any stage of business can connect with a wide array of service providers. And prominent industry suppliers—like Gattefossé, Lubrizol, Croda, and Symrise—will be on...

Indie Beauty Brand leaders as product knowledge experts

Editor's Spotlight

Indie Beauty brand leaders as product knowledge experts

By Deanna Utroske

Startup founders and independent brand leaders in the cosmetics and personal care business know what’s been missing in the marketplace and they often keep in close contact with consumers both online and in person, making the beauty entrepreneur’s perspective...

Project Beauty Expo moves to Los Angeles, California, for 2019

Project Beauty Expo moves to Los Angeles, California

By Deanna Utroske

Last year, the beauty discovery show and entrepreneur education event, hosted by and for women of color, took place in New York City. For 2019 it’s headed to the West Coast. PBE will take place from September 14 through 16, and a first look at the program...

6 indie brands helping define the mindful beauty movement

6 indie brands helping define the mindful beauty movement

By Deanna Utroske

Mindful beauty is a catchall term that describes the sorts of businesses and brands that conscious consumers want to support. Here, Cosmetics Design takes a look at 6 types of mindful beauty and a small selection of the indie brands that are envisioning...

2019 Indie Beauty Innovators Awards finalists announced by ICMAD

2019 Indie Beauty Innovators Awards finalists announced

By Deanna Utroske

This week, ICMAD, the Independent Cosmetic Manufacturers and Distributors association, released its list of 30+ finalist across 11 categories. Winners will be announced at a celebratory dinner later this month in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Unilever advances zero-deforestation initiative

Unilever advances zero-deforestation initiative

By Deanna Utroske

This week, Unilever published lists of its paper and board product suppliers as well as of its soy suppliers. The beauty maker believes that this sort of transparency will compel partner companies along the supply chain to be accountable for practices...

Society of Cosmetic Chemists preps for annual meeting

Society of Cosmetic Chemists preps for annual meeting

By Deanna Utroske

The 2019 SCC technology showcase and meeting event site is live. And it lists out an agenda full of cutting-edge topics, spanning microbiome beauty; sustainable formulations; clean beauty; and textured hair; as well as all things CBD, hemp, and cannabis....

This Month in Fragrance: June 2019

This Month in Fragrance: June 2019

By Deanna Utroske

This June on Cosmetics Design, fragrance headlines included news of new leadership at Parlux, a licensing deal for Kate Spade scents, a couple big developments for fragrance startup Phlur, and Scentbird’s move into a whole new product category. Read on...

5 ways indie brands are approaching microbiome beauty

Editor's Spotlight

5 ways indie brands are approaching microbiome beauty

By Deanna Utroske

Emerging data on the human skin microbiome is changing the way cosmetics and personal care brands of every size approach product development and formulation. It presents opportunities for new benefits and more ways to design for and deliver conventional...

Why is Algenist going vegan?

Why is Algenist going vegan?

By Deanna Utroske

This week the algae beauty brand announced its new product formulation and marketing strategy, adding the on-trend ‘vegan’ qualifier to its already of very contemporary list of designations: marine, biotech, naturally derived, etc.

Does indie beauty move first? a look at trend-driven innovation in 2019

Does indie beauty move first? a look at trend-driven innovation in 2019

By Deanna Utroske

Ours is a notoriously fast-paced industry. Still, everything new has to start somewhere. And there is a fair amount of work to be done educating consumers, integrating novel ingredient tech, capitalizing on new industrial-scale opportunities. Here, Cosmetics...

3 takeaways from The Global Beauty Tech Forum

3 takeaways from The Global Beauty Tech Forum

By Deanna Utroske

At yesterday’s Global Beauty Tech Forum in New York City, technology leaders, brand executives, retail experts, and consumer media pros took the stage to discuss current and emerging digital technologies—technologies that are transforming the cosmetics,...

In Conversation: Cosmetics Design interviews indie brand leaders, PART 2

In Conversation: Cosmetics Design interviews indie brand leaders, PART 2

By Deanna Utroske

One of the best ways to learn is to listen. Last Friday’s Editor’s Spotlight item here on Cosmetics Design was a compendium of 8 video interviews with indie beauty brand founders. Today we’re adding 8 more conversations with entrepreneurs and innovators...

In Conversation: Cosmetics Design interviews indie brand leaders

In Conversation: Cosmetics Design interviews indie brand leaders

By Deanna Utroske

Innovative cosmetics and personal care startups have been making headlines here on Cosmetics Design for years. But not all of our conversations with indie brand leaders are included in the weekly Indie Beauty Profile column. To highlight brands and innovations...

Cosmetics in China: regulatory updates by COSMED

Cosmetics in China: regulatory updates by COSMED

By Lucy Whitehouse

Cosmed, a professional association for the beauty industry, here presents its latest insights in the China market for beauty players: e-commerce, new draft regulation, animal testing and more.

Indie Beauty is Everywhere!

Indie Beauty is Everywhere!

By Deanna Utroske

Startup and founder-led brands innovating and selling beauty products can be found on nearly every continent and in nearly every country. Here Cosmetics Design takes a look at a selection of innovative, independent cosmetics and personal care brands from...

This Month in Fragrance: May 2019

This Month in Fragrance: May 2019

By Deanna Utroske

This month on Cosmetics Design, the scent of extinct flowers, and packaging to help fragrance makers go green and get new product to market faster made headlines; as did a fragrance pop-up and concept shop, CEW award winning fragrances, and the importance...

Does feminine care belong in beauty? an interview with Amber Fawson and Cherie Hoeger, founders of period care brand Saalt

Does feminine care belong in beauty?

By Deanna Utroske

With new categories taking shape like hormonal skin care and whole-body beauty, and with more and more women leading cosmetics and personal care brands, the industry is shifting to reflect and respond differently to consumers’ lived experiences. Cosmetics...

3 indie brands bringing muscle care to beauty

3 indie brands bringing muscle care to beauty

By Deanna Utroske

As the wellness movement, active beauty, and alternative pain relief converge, it’s likely that more and more startup brands will get involved in the muscle care category. Here, Cosmetics Design looks at 3 indie brands ahead of curve in this unexpected...

Genemarkers launches gene expression test for CBD

CD Buzz Video

Genemarkers launches gene expression test for CBD

By Deanna Utroske

At this year’s NYSCC Suppliers’ Day tradeshow in New York City, Anna Langerveld, president and CEO of Genemarkers, was talking with attendees about her company’s latest offering, a test that skin care makers can use to help develop CBD products with the...

Cosmetics Design Editor Deanna Utroske to talk Beauty & Bacteria at 2019 AIRS Conference in Barcelona, Spain

Cosmetics Design to talk Beauty & Bacteria at AIRS Conference

By Deanna Utroske

May 31 and June 1 in Barcelona, Spain, the Institute for the Advancement of International Rehabilitation Standards is hosting a second International conference on Genomics and Microbiomics. And Cosmetics Design Editor Deanna Utroske will be there, speaking...

2019 CEW Beauty Awards highlight cosmetics and personal care industry trends

CEW Beauty Awards highlight industry trends

By Deanna Utroske

At last week’s CEW Beauty Awards luncheon event in New York City, the organization honored brands in over 45 categories and in doing so, showcased several top industry trends: probiotic care, wellness products, indie brands, sustainability initiatives,...

Who is the indie beauty consumer?

Who is the indie beauty consumer?

By Deanna Utroske

The indie beauty continues to grow; and while direct-to-consumer brands, pop-up shops, and makers markets are still very much a part of indie retail landscape, most major department stores, beauty specialty shops, and countless lifestyle boutiques carry...

4 beauty trends seen at 2019 Cosmoprof NA preview event

4 beauty trends seen at 2019 Cosmoprof NA preview event

By Deanna Utroske

Tuesday morning in New York City, the organizers of Cosmoprof North America hosted a press preview event, featuring 25+ brands and manufacturers that will be at this summer’s show. Cosmetics Design was there, and these are the formulation, packaging,...

Ginkgo Bioworks showcases the fragrance of extinct flowers at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City

Ginkgo Bioworks showcases the fragrance of extinct flowers

By Deanna Utroske

Late last week, the Boston, Massachusetts – based biotech firm helped open a multisensory installation at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City. Resurrecting the Sublime is the culmination of a 5-year project for Ginkgo: a project...

IBMG makes Indie Beauty Expo purely B2B and adds supply side event, Uplink Live

IBMG makes Indie Beauty Expo purely B2B and adds supply side event

By Deanna Utroske

Today, the Indie Beauty Media Group announced it’s closing the consumer discovery portion of its IBE events to better focus on the business needs of exhibiting brands. And at IBE NY this August, the group will debut a new face-to-face event—Uplink Live—connecting...

2019 Indie Beauty Innovators Awards, hosted by ICMAD, open for entries

Indie Beauty Innovators Awards open for entries

By Deanna Utroske

The annual CITY awards facilitated by ICMAD have been rebranded for 2019 and are now accepting entries for products, brands, and people across some 14 categories.

Indie Beauty Profile Nickie Nougaisse, Curls Dynasty

Indie Beauty Profile

Nickie Nougaisse, Curls Dynasty

By Deanna Utroske

In her Indie Beauty Profile, Nickie Nougaisse, founder of Curls Dynasty talks about building a solution-based hair brand for people with textured hair, specifically for people with dry hair issues and those who are transitioning from a chemically relaxed...

New brands emerge at The Makeup Show 2019

New brands emerge at The Makeup Show 2019

By Genevieve Santos-Bann

Dubbed as the “Beauty Experience,” The Makeup Show is where professional makeup artists go to restock their favorite products and engage in demos and workshops with premier artists from around the globe.

Consumer Education: Supergoop pop-up teaches the basics of SPF

Consumer Education: Supergoop pop-up teaches the basics of SPF

By Deanna Utroske

This past weekend in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood, the prestige sun care brand opened a pop-up shop that invited millennials back to school to learn about the importance of daily sunscreen use and about how the Supergoop brand can help make that...

4 indie beauty brands standout at The Makeup Show NYC

Editor's Spotlight

4 indie beauty brands standout at The Makeup Show NYC

By Deanna Utroske

This year’s New York City edition of The Makeup Show includes numerous indie exhibitors across categories, from skin care to color cosmetics, from lash makers to nail brands, and from accessories to brushes. Following this weekend’s press preview of the...

Who’s talking to consumers about cosmetic chemistry? a Cosmetics Design interviw with Trina Espinoza, msbeautyphile

CD Buzz Video

Who’s talking to consumers about cosmetic chemistry?

By Deanna Utroske

In this interview filmed at in-cosmetics Global, Cosmetics Design sits down with science communicator Trina Espinoza (aka msbeautyphile) to learn about her work educating beauty consumers, what she’s doing to bridge the gap between industry information...

This Month in Fragrance: April 2019

This Month in Fragrance: April 2019

By Deanna Utroske

Fragrance can be elusive. But it’s an important sector of the beauty industry and one that Cosmetics Design covers more often than you might think. This month we’ve shared news of corporate partnerships, venture capital investment, recognition of an outstanding...