Ulta Beauty just announced their initiative Conscious Beauty at Ulta Beauty, a plan that will certify brands as being “Conscious” in stores and online.
The program will include five main pillars: Clean Ingredients, Cruelty-Free, Vegan, Sustainable Packaging and Positive Impact. Although the plan will be taking full effect in the fall, starting today, Ulta pledges that half of products sold will be packaged in refillable, bio-sourced or recyclable materials by 2025.
Additionally, each pillar must fall within specific guidelines in order to be verified by the brand as “Conscious Beauty.”
Clean Ingredients: Ulta has created a “Made Without List” that products will need to comply with to be authenticated as Clean. Although the list will change as research and ingredient standards evolve, the list of ingredients will indicate that a brand is “free of parabens, phthalates and ingredients from more than 25 chemical categories,” according to Business Wire. Additionally, ClearForMe, an independent authority on ingredient transparency, is partnering with Ulta Beauty to verify brands’ clean ingredients.
Vegan: In order to be confirmed as Vegan, brands’ products will need to be made without animal byproducts, animal derivates or ingredients.
Positive Impact: Brands that contribute to charitable causes and give back will be validated as a Positive Impact company.
Cruelty-Free: This ensures brands do not participate or partake in animal testing. PETA, Choose Cruelty-Free, and Leaping Bunny are organizations that will work with Ulta Beauty to guarantee brands are cruelty-free.
Sustainable Packaging: This initiative will pave the way for Ulta Beauty’s plan to sell 50 percent or more of products made from refillable, bio-sourced or recyclable materials.
Ulta Beauty president Dave Kimbell states about the initiative: “As the beauty retail leader, we have the unique opportunity to inspire positive change in our industry. With ‘Conscious Beauty at Ulta Beauty’, our focus is to educate, guide and simplify product choice and elevate those brands doing good for our world. This initiative helps our guests readily navigate our assortment through the lens of what matters most to them. We are thrilled to offer such transparency and set significant standards as a company. We have always taken pride in offering guests a diverse assortment of products to meet their individual beauty needs, including many brands that align to the Conscious Beauty pillars,” says Kimbell. “Today’s announcement marks a definitive milestone on our ongoing journey in this space and we look forward to further meeting guests needs this fall in-store and online.”
