Skin care

How cosmetics can take the lead in reducing plastic pollution

15-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

In this guest article, a packaging expert takes us through some key ways that beauty and personal care players can lead in the fight against plastic packaging waste.

UK women spend £1.15bn on facial skin care: latest trends and insights from Mintel

14-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

In 2017 British women spent £1.15 billion on facial skincare, with sales set to increase by 3% to reach £1.18 billion in 2018.

Regulatory eye: EU investigates permanent cosmetics and tattoo inks

14-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Tattoo inks and permanent makeup are currently in the regulatory spotlight, as the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) says it is assessing the risk they may pose to human health.

5 of the best indie beauty brands in the naturals space

14-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Consumer hunger for the latest niche offering in the naturals and organics beauty space has never been higher. Here are our top picks for independent companies leading the pack.

Schwarzkopf hair care ‘e-brand’ launch: next level personalisation

10-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Schwarzkopf says its new My Specialist brand offers a whole new level of personalisation for the hair care sector.

Liquorice derived ingredients in the spotlight

10-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

We take a look at enoxolone, a liquorice-derived ingredient used in cosmetic products that has just passed REACH registration.

Sustainable packaging: eye on the guys

10-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

One market research firm suggests that sustainable packaging may offer a key way to entice more men to become male grooming consumers.

Male grooming and cultural influences: Love Island’s impact

09-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Mintel, a market research provider, has drawn a link between current cultural phenomena and male grooming trends in the UK.

Biotech partnership & naturals focus for BASF

08-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

With an eye on the naturals trend and how it intersects with environmentally-friendly consumer goods, BASF is one company making strides to prove its credentials.

Beauty packaging trends up to 2022: what’s hot?

08-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Euromonitor has released its latest data and analysis on the current consumer spending on beauty packaging, and how it’s evolving.

Ingredients suppliers need more support from the rest of the industry

07-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

When it comes to performance innovation and regulatory compliance, the wider beauty and personal care industry should look to support ingredients suppliers better, suggests one expert.

How can the industry fight its corner when it comes to the falling number of ingredients available for formulation?

07-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Kevin Gallagher, industry consultant with Kevin Gallagher Consulting LLC and formerly of ingredients supplier Croda, here suggests that industry bodies could do more to protect the beauty supply chain when it comes to the ingredients suppliers and the...

Exclusive interview

Limited ingredients set to be a ‘serious’ challenge for the industry in the future

07-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

We caught up with an industry expert on the ongoing challenge of limited ingredients available for cosmetics formulation and innovation - what is the issue, and what can be done?

Nano-sized UV filter passes EU Cosmetic Regulation

03-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

The European Commission has amended the Cosmetic Regulation to include a nano UV filter now approved for use in cosmetics products.

The Hut Group continues to grow: new 1 billion USD banking facility announced

03-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

A contender to Amazon’s rising dominance in beauty retail online, The Hut Group (THG) has quickly become a huge player in the world of digital retail for the industry.

L’Oréal acquires German naturals player

02-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

With the European market the global hotspot for naturals and organics in beauty, L’Oréal has made another decisive move in the market, acquiring German player Logocos Naturkosmetik.

Naturals and organics masterclass cuts through the murk around labelling

02-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

With greenwashing ever a risk, the number of certifications and labelling claims around natural and organic beauty and personal care was under the spotlight at a recent industry event.

L’Oreal aims for La Roche Posay site buyout

01-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

The beauty giant has announced the project of acquisition of Société des Thermes de la Roche-Posay.

Amazon’s beauty retail: ‘Reef safe’ claim in demand

01-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Together, health & personal care and beauty are a significant amount of Amazon’s consumables retail in the UK: in the recent quarter, they generated £130 million in sales, up roughly 40% year on year.

Guest Insight

What can health & beauty learn from the success of fashion sales online?

01-Aug-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

In this article, Charlotte Varney, Customer Success Manager, E Fundamentals, shares expert insight into how augmented reality and social media can transform beauty retail, with lessons from the fashion industry.

Gender neutral products for children and babies: Euromonitor latest data

31-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Gender roles are shifting, and we’re seeing a particular rise in initiatives which encourage girls to develop in ‘non-traditional areas’, suggests the market research firm. How far is this being seen, though, in personal care trends?

Look Fabulous Forever: ageless beauty player launches at-home selling model

31-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Look Fabulous Forever, a UK brand dedicated entirely to cosmetics for older women, has announced a new at-home selling model for its retail operations.

Yves Rocher under fire for ‘union busting’ at Turkish factory: over 100,000 demand action

31-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

The global cosmetics and skin care player has attracted criticism for its move of laying off over 120 employees in Turkey, allegedly for joining a Trade Union.

News Analysis – Guest Author

Beauty products caught in an ugly trade war

30-Jul-2018 By Aliza R. Karetnick

As global players, the well-being of cosmetics and personal care companies depends, in large measure, on an open international marketplace free from excessive duties, which have a tendency to depress manufacturing growth and, in turn, dampen robust industry...

Alternatives to animal testing - basics for non-scientists

27-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Wondering where to start with testing for safety and efficacy without any animal cruelty? We offer some insights.

Can packaging help with preservative challenges in beauty?

27-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Cosmogen reckons that by using packaging technologies, cosmetics and personal care players can work around the limited preservative ingredients currently available.

Better Regulation three years later – is it really working?

27-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Better regulation aims to help organisations reach compliance with EU regulatory demands, and offers a toolbox of services and information to do that.

Personalised beauty: Formulation Summit to tackle the rising demand for customisation

26-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Customisation - the ability to create or alter products to make them unique to an individual consumer - is a hot rising trend in beauty. One upcoming conference is set to explore it.

FreeFrom Skincare Awards: winners revealed

26-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

This year’s FreeFrom Skincare Awards have announced their winners, with brands including Harborist, Neal’s Yard Remedies and Green People taking home accolades.

Digital influencers – from myth to practice

26-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Beauty brands have stepped it up with digital offerings, but still lag behind non-professional video bloggers in terms of direct influencer impact. Can they catch up?

L’Oréal scoops gender equality recognition

25-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

The global beauty giant has been awarded recognition of its efforts in a bid to employ women in key positions in the company.

Moving towards greater international regulatory convergence

25-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

What are the drivers for both the industry and for its regulators when looking at international regulatory alignment, and where have we got to so far?

Beauty science business InnoFaith brings in new managing director

25-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

InnoFaith beauty sciences has appointed Robert Hukshorn as new Managing Director, bringing to the role his experiences at Henkel and Amcor.

6 hottest new beauty innovations to watch

24-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

We’ve picked out our selection of the latest beauty and personal care innovations to keep an eye on.

Airless packaging spotlight: an answer to preservation challenges?

24-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Consumer and regulatory demands are limiting the available preservatives for cosmetics, and some suggest packaging could offer a solution to this challenge.

The Hut Group: beauty behemoth acquires translation company

20-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

In a sign that The Hut Group (THG) is gearing up for ever greater dominance on the international stage, the tech company focused on beauty and wellbeing retail has acquired a languages service provider.

Unilever half year results: beauty and personal care solid performance

20-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Despite otherwise mixed results from other parts of the business, Unilever’s beauty and personal care unit continued to grow over the past half year.

Best practice: Gattefossé renews its ISO 9001 certification

19-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Gattefossé has been audited and certified for its design, development, manufacture, marketing and sales of oleochemical excipients and plant derived products, designed for personal care applications.

Globally aligned beauty industry: political instability and ‘trade war’ a threat

18-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

How much is the recent international political instability and the related ‘trade wars’ with between the US and Europe a concern for our industry? We get an expert’s perspective.

Digital consumer & sustainability focus: Exciting opportunity, exciting innovations

18-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Consumers are more engaged and better connected than ever: here’s one expert’s take on how we can meet their evolving demands and why it’s exciting for the industry.

Exclusive interview

Can limited ingredients and a lack of fact-based regulation threaten the beauty industry?

18-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

One industry leader has suggested that the major challenges facing the industry are the reduced palette of ingredients available to formulators, and the move away from fact-based policy making in regulations.

Mixer & Pack strengthens contract manufacturing offering in Europe

17-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Mixer & Pack, a contract developer and manufacturer of perfumery and cosmetics, has announced its most recent financial results, enjoying growth of 82% (42.6 million euros) in 2017.

Beauty markets: is Africa the next Asia?

13-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Is Africa, with its growing middle class, the ‘continent of the future’ for consumer goods industries like beauty?

Crisis communications for beauty players: strategies for success

13-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Knowing how to respond when things go wrong is essential for any business, but none more so than in an industry that relies so much on consumer trust, loyalty and endorsement.

The digital ingredients list: preliminary results of a pilot version

13-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Consumers are demanding transparency: one way to respond could be by providing an industry-approved guide and list to ingredients online.

In-market control and enforcement of the cosmetics regulation

12-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

What can we learn from the German in-market control approach for cosmetics on the challenges and trends of enforcing regulation?

New certification for ‘sourcing with respect’: Weleda signs up

12-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Weleda has become one of the first to earn a new certification: the Union for Ethical Bio Trade (UEBT)’s label for sourcing with respect.

Beauty ecommerce: selfie skin-analysis “increases conversion by 50%”

12-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

Revieve, a leading player in the interactive digital retail space, suggests that providing online shoppers with the ability to analyze their selfie online increases conversion by 50%.

How to go about cosmetics product testing? New UK conference to investigate

11-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

With testing for the UK’s £17 bn cosmetics and personal care industry a key area of focus for formulators and brands, a new conference dedicated to the topic is gearing up to launch.

Environmental concerns for beauty: consultant suggests where to focus

11-Jul-2018 By Lucy Whitehouse

European chemicals regulation REACH is driving the demand for environmental beauty, suggests one industry consultant. We look at how and why.