Top 20 ethical cosmetics & toiletries
2021-11-24
Confido
12 minutes
Want to make some ethical swaps in the bathroom? We've got you covered.
As of 2021, 44 countries have banned animal testing for cosmetics. That’s just 22.5% of counties worldwide. However, the demand for sustainable and cruelty-free products is rising, with 35% of consumers actively looking for those claims when browsing for products.
As is the need for vegan cosmetics and toiletries (products not containing any animal-derived ingredients such as beeswax or carmine). In fact, 29% of cruelty-free consumers exclusively purchase cosmetics that are both cruelty-free and vegan.
According to Market Research Future, the cruelty-free cosmetics market is estimated to reach $10 BILLION by 2024. This is largely due to the rise of new and independent brands, like some of these...
Here are our top 20 ethical cosmetics and toiletries...
Makeup
About: Glossier make skincare, makeup, body care, and fragrance products which are all painstakingly perfected to be worthy of your bathroom shelf. Their products are dermatologist tested and formulated for all skin types. Their products are certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny, the only internationally recognized certification organisation for cruelty-free companies.
Location: New York
Company size: 101-250 employees
Funding: Glossier has raised a total of $266.4m in funding over six rounds. Their latest funding was raised in July 2021from a Series E round.
About: Zao Make-Up is a make-up brand owned by Cosm’Etika France. It was co-founded in 2012 by four friends, David Reccole, Philippe Donnat, Yvan Rouvier and Salima Macozzi Reccole. Lovers of nature and aware of the impact of our consumption on the environment, the 4 friends chose to develop a brand of organic makeup in accordance with their deep values. They gave birth to Zao Make-Up, the first rechargeable make-up brand, 100% natural and certified organic by Ecocert.
Location: Vantaa, Finland
Company size: 1 to 10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Milk Makeup produces beauty and skincare products which are cruelty-free (Leaping Bunny certified), paraben-free, phthalate-free and 100% vegan. They are also working on ways to make their packaging more sustainable through using less plastic, offering more refills, and using recyclable materials on packaging and in-store merchandising.
Location: New York
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: Their latest funding was raised in December 2019.
About: PHB is a family-run business based in Brighton which makes award-winning natural, ethical and sustainable beauty products. Every product they make is 100% natural, vegan, halal, cruelty-free & palm oil-free because PHB believe in better beauty for your skin and for our planet.
Location: Birmingham
Company size: 1-10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Elf make quality products at affordable prices. All their formulas are 100% vegan, with no animal testing. They are also free from phthalates, parabens and sulphates.
Location: New York
Company size: 51-100 employees
Funding: Unknown
Toiletries
About: Wild produce a sustainable natural deodorant which is delivered straight to your door. It is aluminium free with compostable plastic-free refills. Every time you buy from Wild, a tree will be planted thanks to their partnership with ONAMISSION. Wild's products are also vegan and cruelty-free.
Location: London
Company size: 1-10 employees
Funding: Wild has raised a total of £2.5m in funding over two rounds. Their latest funding was raised in October 2020 from a Seed round.
About: Faith in Nature make products such as shampoos, conditioners, body wash and laundry liquids. Their products are recyclable, natural, vegan, biodegradable, sustainable and cruelty-free (certified by Leaping Bunny). They also give you the option to refill at home or in their stores so fewer products are wasted. Faith in Nature are also partnered with Treesisters, so for every order they plant a tree.
Location: Manchester
Company size: 51-100
Funding: Unknown
About: The Mooncup team are proudly supporting the plastic-free periods revolution. Mooncup is the original, soft, medical-grade silicone menstrual cup designed by women as the convenient, safe and eco-friendly alternative to tampons and pads. Over 2 million #RealMooncupUsers around the world have already made the switch to sustainable periods with the Mooncup menstrual cup.
Location: Brighton, UK
Company size: 1 to 10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: DAME is a sustainable personal care brand on a mission to turn the bathroom green. D, their reusable tampon applicator and their range of organic, toxin-free tampons are available nationwide in Waitrose and shipped globally from their website. DAME has saved 130 million pieces of single-use plastic from going to waste and is a certified B Corp. They’ve also received a revered Dezeen Design Award and achieved a finalist place in Fast Company’s 2019 World Changing Ideas Awards. Read their most recent impact report, here.
Location: London, UK
Company size: 1 to 10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Hair removal should be optional. Great hair removal shouldn’t. That’s why Estrid was created. Most razor brands use animal byproducts in the soothing strips on your razor, but Estrid doesn't. Instead of that, they’ve chosen to use natural ingredients like aloe vera, shea butter and cocoa butter. Better for the skin, the planet and your body.
Location: Stockholm
Company size: 51-100
Funding: Estrid has completed one funding round.
About: Brushd specialise in eco-friendly oral care for happy teeth, gums and planet. The majority of toothbrushes are made from plastic, and dental floss is usually coated in plastic. Most toothpastes are in plastic tubes, and mouthwashes are usually in plastic bottles. But not Brushd! Plus, for every subscription, they plant a tree (yay!). You can even return your old toothbrush heads for them to recycle.
Location: London, UK
Company size: 1 to 10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Who Gives a Crap sells beautiful, forest friendly toilet paper, paper towels and tissues and they donate 50% of their profits to help build toilets for those in need. As much as they love toilet paper, the reason they’re in business is the impact they’re having on the world—To date, Who Gives A Crap has donated over $8 million Aussie dollars to their charity partners.
Location: Melbourne, Austrailia
Company size: 100 to 200 employees
Funding: Who Gives a Crap has raised a total of $41.7m in funding over two rounds. Their latest funding was raised in Sep 2021 from a Series A round.
Skincare
About: Green People are a natural and organic skincare brand. Their cosmetic products have been certified organic by the Soil Association, Organic Food Federation and EcoCert. They are the only cosmetics company to be independently certified by three different certification bodies. Green People have been praised for their dedication to using organic, sustainable ingredients that are cruelty-free and fairly traded by The Ethical Company Organisation.
Location: West Sussex, United Kingdom
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: UpCircle provide competitively priced, high performing skincare products from upcycled ingredients. Their mission is to leave the world better than they found it by transforming ingredients that would otherwise be discarded into natural, organic beauty products. Every product in their range is created with rescued by-products from other industries – like discarded coffee grounds. UpCircle’s products are natural, vegan, palm-oil free, cruelty-free with 100% recyclable packaging.
Location: London
Company size: 11 to 50 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Pai Skincare create products which are so natural, ethical and sustainable they have goodness built-in. They are independently certified by COSMOS (Soil Association, Cruelty-Free International and The Vegan Society). They use organic ingredients and independently patch test their products to ensure they’re suitable for sensitive and eczema-prone skin.
Location: London
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: Pai Skincare has raised a total of $13.3m in funding over two rounds. Their latest funding was raised in April 2021 from a Series B round.
About: BYBI is a skin positive, pro-planet beauty brand for all. They create natural, vegan, cruelty-free skincare. BYBI have a goal to be the first carbon-negative beauty brand; they hope to reduce total carbon emissions by making huge changes across their entire supply chain. BYBI are cruelty-free and Leaping Bunny certified. 100% of their products are vegan and their tubes, bottles and boxes are all recyclable. They also offer the option to send empty glass bottles back to them for free, to be incorporated into their circular recycling scheme.
Location: London
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: BYBI has raised a total of $7m in funding over one round. This was a Series A round raised in December 2020.
About: Bloomtown produce a range of face, body and bath products which are palm-oil free, vegan and cruelty-free. They are UK’s first certified palm-oil free company and appeared on Dragon’s Den. Bloomtown uses recycled/ recyclable materials and packaging where possible in order to reduce its environmental impact and biodegradable packaging peanuts and bubble wrap to reduce plastic waste.
Location: Cornwall, United Kingdom
Company size: 1-10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Human+Kind makes skincare with a conscience with vegan, natural, cruelty-free personal skincare products, free from harmful chemicals. They focus on providing simplified, ethical skincare that is chemical-free and environmentally conscious, and primarily not harmful to the well-being of your skin.
Location: Cork, Ireland
Company size: 1-10 employees
Funding: Unknown
About: Aurelia London are a multi-award-winning ethical brand developed to support your skin, health and beauty with sustainably sourced, naturally derived and scientifically proven ingredients and solutions. They are cruelty-free, Leaping Bunny certified and all of their cartons, glass jars and bottles are recyclable. Their range is suitable for vegetarians and many of their products are registered with the Vegan Society.
Location: London
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: Their latest funding was raised in February 2016 from a Series A round.
About: Face Theory stand for beauty that doesn’t cost the earth, with affordable, clean vegan and cruelty-free formulas that deliver real results. Most of their products are now available in either glass jars or aluminium tubes which are easy to recycle. They are Leaping Bunny approved and are on a mission to make the very best clean skincare products they can and to deliver them at an affordable price point.
Location: London
Company size: 11-50 employees
Funding: Unknown
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Funding information taken from Crunchbase.