Beauty is a women-dominated industry and although there are still imbalances in management roles and pay in many companies, women-owned and led brands are on the rise.
Not just that, but women-owned and led brands that are not just focussing on the bottom line, but actively working to better the lives and conditions of other women and those who identify as women.
On International Women’s Day this conversation becomes rightly amplified but it’s heartening to engage with brands that have an ongoing commitment to contributing to this cause, rather than just on one day.
Here are what some local and international brands do beyond making beauty items, to support women in their communities.
While working hard to extend the conversation around product ingredients and environmental sustainability, supporting other women in the pursuit of equal rights and opportunity is also one of the pillars of Emma Lewisham Skincare. Emma herself has been a member of, and sat on the board of Zonta International, an organisation that seeks to provide opportunities for women through a number of educational programs and awards. The brand also supports the Malala Fund. Founded in 2013, Malala Fund champions every girl’s right to 12 years of free, safe, quality education and invests in people and organisations working to make this a reality in areas where there are significant barriers preventing it from occurring.
Founded in the USA by Jane Wurwand over 35 years ago, the entrepreneur has spent much of the interim not only building her brand but providing support and tools to ensure salon owners – the large majority of them women – find ongoing success. In New Zealand the brand is distributed by a woman-owned company called Two Hundred Doors that shares this desire, as well as supporting those in other, challenging circumstances. “Last year we set an ambitious goal to empower 1,000 women by 1st April 2022, directly through aspects of the business,” says Two Hundred Doors CEO Natasha Bourke. “As of January 31st we have directly helped 704 women including raising 362 safe-nights for Women’s Refuge.“ That commitment remains ongoing. As well, every purchase at Dermalogica.co.nz is given the option to donate $2 at the checkout to our current nominated charity (Women’s Refuge) and Dermalogica NZ have pledged to match all donations made.
Kiwi bath, shower and bodycare brand Anihana creates a number of sustainable and affordable products with minimal packaging. Owner Sophie Cooper is vocal about the impact self-care routines can have on mental health, and how her own experience as a mother has led her to using her business to support other mothers. As a gold sponsor of The Mum’s Clique charity, Anihana provides ongoing products as part of support and assistance packages for mums in need.
Inspired to start her luxury skincare brand for the body following her one years-long experience with endometriosis, Tronque founder Tanné Snowden is now providing skincare products to raise money for other women experiencing the painful and debilitating gynecological condition. To help raise money for Endometriosis New Zealand, Snowdon is offering her ‘Soft Focus Scar Concentrate, a nourishing vitamin-c rich oil to care for healing scars on the body , for a donation to Endometriosis New Zealand’s Givealittle page.
Among a long list of environmental and sustainability goals on the vegan nail polish brand’s website is the commitment to giving at least 2% of revenue to registered charities charities and initiatives (like the Victorian Women’s Shelter) that support and uplift women within local and global communities. “We believe more can be done to support our customers’ livelihoods, social security, and basic needs.”
The Australian-founded skincare brand famous for its skin smoothing AHA exfoliants and other skin-renewing products maintains a platform called Alpha Women, a banner under which a number of women-empowering initiatives fall. Currently these include an ongoing partnership with Support The Girls, an Australian charity that works to restore dignity to disadvantaged women by providing them with bras, underwear, toiletries and access to essential services and The Encoreship, a multi-brand initiative, that provides employment opportunities for women who are facing challenges re-entering the workforce.
