The good things in life may be free, but the things that have cost the planet dearly now, must at least be CRUELTY-FREE.
Glamour! Beauty! Allure! Razzle-Dazzle! These are words that come to mind when we think of the beauty and fashion industry. And it is just how it should be. Millions of new aspiring makeup artists, skincare specialists, beauty pageants, and social media influencers play their part in promoting sometimes unrealistic standards of beauty to the world at large.
The feeling of unboxing shiny packaging, glossy boxes, and amazingly fragrant makeup products gives a great feeling of well-being. Regardless of age, everyone loves spending money on makeup and skincare products. The makeup industry is for sure a powerful realm that is free from any 'ism's. Thus, people love makeup regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or color. Dozens of new products hit the market every day, yet the cosmetic industry cannot fulfil consumers' demands. Huge brands with multifunctional makeup production units get SOLD OUT within days, or even seconds if you are Kylie Jenner.
The business of looking good has to always put its best face forward (no pun intended) if it wants the billions of dollars it earns to continue lining its coffers. But the industry, beauty in particular, does hide some things that would take the sheen away. The fashion industry is the second largest polluting industry in the world, second only to oil!
So what is the actual environmental cost of looking good?
Do you know how a marine animal dies every time you buy a new makeup product?
Let’s Address the Elephant in Makeup Room
The recent pandemic gave us a good chance to contemplate our life choices. When nature suddenly rang a siren, forcing the world to stop, thankfully, it did not cease our cognitive abilities. Most of us came out of it more mindful and stronger.
Similarly! The Clean Beauty Movement received an enormous amount of acknowledgment and attention. Amidst the pandemic chaos, people started respecting a healthy lifestyle more, which soon shifted their attention towards the ingredients in their makeup. A lot of popular makeup brands have been using carcinogenic ingredients that affect human health and contribute to the carbon waste in the environment. I am sure we have all heard of the McArthur Report which states that by the year 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in our oceans. There have been encouraging developments after the report was published back in 2016, but a lot more needs to be done.
Escalating environmental shifts and global warming made the environmentalists call out the beauty industry. Their demand to watch out for huge carbon footprints and non-recyclable plastic waste was an appropriate sign of a global movement. After all, we must protect Mother Nature and provide for other species, don’t we? Well, at least till Elon Musk figures out how to colonise Mars.
So, it was high time to reengineer the cosmetics industry with eco-friendly products and sustainable production cycles.
Is Eco-Friendly Makeup the Next Big Trend?
All makeup businesses have ecological footprints, but those who abide by a promise to strive harder to reduce waste are now having their moment in the sun. People appreciate the great steps sustainable makeup brands have started to take. For instance, Lush Beauty, and Fenty Beauty by Rihanna are some of the best sustainable makeup brands, who have set an example by manufacturing products and packaging that are highly recyclable. To take it a step further, they even reward people with free products upon reusing the packaging.
On the other hand, The Body Shop has been a voice of vegan and cruelty-free makeup products for a long time. They started a movement against animal testing even when no attention was paid to the ingredients list printed on jars and palettes. There are innumerable small startups that are changing the landscape of the makeup industry by manufacturing organic products, using healthy alternative ingredients and packaging that supports a zero-waste policy.
While using recyclable and refillable plastics is a step in the right direction, it's no news that just under 9% of all recyclable plastics are actually recycled.
Photo Credit: Pawel Czerwinski @unsplash
Hence, we at GoPlay Cosmetics, have taken a rather innovative and unique angle at sustainability. Our production is 100% plastic neutral (and we'll be net positive next year). That means, we take the responsibility of actually recycling the same amount of plastics used in our products. Not just that, our components are reusable, which means we reduce the usage of single use plastics. Also, since our products are modular, there are only a finite number of 'cartridges' being produced and shipped around the world, which means the environmental impact of our supply chain is minimised. You can read more about our 'Why' here.
Is My Makeup Cruelty-Free and Eco-Friendly?
Cruelty-free makeup means the brand is against animal testing, and they do not harm any animal in the process of manufacturing and testing their products. Vegan means your makeup does not contain any ingredient that has been sourced directly or indirectly from any animal, causing loss of life or harm to any creature. Moreover, these products stay away from harmful ingredients such as dibutyl phthalate, formaldehyde-releasing preservatives, parabens, parfum (a.k.a. fragrance), PEG compounds, coal dyes, BHA, and BHT for the sake of your health and safety.
However, while seeing more cruelty-free and clean products is a good sign, more can be done to address the environmental impact of makeup as well. The manufacturing and global logistics of these makeup products still contributes significantly to the pollution problem. The trend of unboxing videos for instance, has led brands to increase the amount of packaging that goes into each product. While it makes for good entertainment, the environment is the ultimate loser as every shred of paper and plastic is simply discarded once the unboxing experience is complete.
Ugly is better than dead though, right?
That should be the last of your concerns! The movement towards clean, sustainable, and responsible beauty is here to stay! The exorbitant number of options that you will soon find at your fingertips is the actual worry you should have at this time. The slow move towards better beauty will catch up with the world soon enough, and we will all be better off for it.
Best Model for Eco-friendly Makeup
At the recent ‘National Clean Beauty Day’ on the 15th of July, the reusable makeup model was nominated as the best model that supports sustainability and eco-friendliness.
GoPlay’s Strategy for Manufacturing Zero Waste Makeup
Where most brands chose to introduce a sustainable line separately, some newer eco-friendly makeup brands came up with an even better solution.
GoPlay Cosmetics is one such thoughtful brand. Eliminating the waste footprint and introducing reusable products in eco-friendly packaging, GoPlay promised and delivered plastic neutrality, and is now looking to cement itself as the forerunner among zero waste makeup brands.
GoPlay Cosmetics modular LIPSKIT
The GoPlay LIPSKIT alone can provide numerous customizable shades, which means you no longer have to buy several plastic-encased lipsticks and thin plastic bottles of lip glosses. You can even tweak the texture for your lipsticks from matte to moisturizing with our sustainable lipstick kit. All the makeup you create is completely customized to your skin-tone so the chances of you going wrong and throwing away good makeup is minimal.
LIPSKIT Bullets (Cartridges) Custom assembled based on user's color season.
We at GoPlay Cosmetics have dedicated ourselves towards creating a line of makeup products that are modular, reusable, and allow you to ‘do it yourself’, therefore giving you all the freedom you want, without the guilt of wastage. Our business model is to products that completely replace single purpose makeup items, and thereby reduce the amount of wastage associated with the beauty industry.
Summing Up!
A mindful consumer has the potential to revolutionize any industry. Therefore, you have the power to decide the future of the makeup world by your purchasing choices.
Supporting cruelty-free, vegan and sustainable makeup brands like GoPlay will help you contribute to the noble cause of making the world free of plastic waste and a safer place for our future generations, without giving up on the joys of glamming up.
Go green, go clean, GoPlay!
