What is Clean Beauty and Wellness?
We have all heard the term “Clean Beauty” in some context but what does it mean? The term Clean Beauty surfaced during the 1970s as a trend for brand products designed with natural ingredients as opposed to synthetics. Since then, as the term became more accepted, clean beauty has become part of the wellness movement across beauty, cosmetics, food, supplements, and many other direct-to-consumer products. This movement has caused regulatory institutions, such as the Environmental Working Group (EWG), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as well as trade groups such as the Personal Care Products Council, to advocate for consumer protection against harmful products, ingredients, and preservatives. Clean Wellness and Beauty is a consumer-driven movement that started with mindfulness surrounding ingredient lists but has become a key part of holding brands accountable for ingredients, manufacturing, and packaging thereby improving the lives of customers and the environment as a whole.
For the fragrance industry, in particular, broad terms such as “fragrance,” “perfume,” “parfum,” and “flavor” have been considered Trojan horses that bundle ingredients in a way that is not fully transparent. Because formulations are considered “trade secrets,” they are protected from being disclosed to consumers, manufacturers, and regulators. There is currently no state, federal, or global authority that is actively regulating the safety of fragrance ingredients - causing inconsistency in systemic assessments of safety, long-term effects, and research on exposure differences across individual characteristics such as age, gender, and ethnicity. As a result of not requiring manufacturers and brands to list fragrance ingredients, a single “fragrance” word can include a cocktail of over 100 ingredients.
VESCENSE was founded to create a higher standard for functional fragrances. The company’s products are purposefully formulated to be naturally derived, clean, non-toxic, and alcohol-free. Using an alcohol-based fragrance on the skin each day leads to skin irritation, dryness, and damage to the skin’s natural barrier. Specifically, where others may simply follow trends, VESCENSE aims to be a market leader. It starts with our clean formulations that utilize the highest quality ingredients from the world’s top fragrance houses. VESCENSE suppliers are held to the highest quality standards and ethical standards both in terms of extraction and sourcing processes. To further raise the bar for clean wellness, VESCENSE products are formulated to be non-toxic. Our products are alcohol and polysorbate-free - we utilize a mixture of natural ingredients, pure blended oils, and water to ensure an efficient and clean feel. Lastly, as part of our sustainability ethos, we chose not to use palm oil in our formulations as its use is linked to deforestation in some of the world’s most biodiverse forests.
Through our products, we consciously create, curate, and promote the highest degree of environmental friendliness, cruelty-free standards, and safety by disclosing our full ingredients, processing methodologies, manufacturers, suppliers, and sourcing across formulation to packaging as well as ethical practices and corporate social responsibility (CSR). Our packaging was thoughtfully designed through Earth-conscious lead-free glass, oceans recycled plastic caps and recyclable paper cartons. And to top off the CSR values that lie within the brand, we are dedicated to restoring the world’s waterways - This is achieved by dedicating 3% of our sales to the VESCENSE Clean Oceans initiative where we fund environmental projects that further the cleaning and sustaining of the world’s waterways.
There are several natural and clean fragrances currently available in the market but VESCENSE aims to encapsulate conscious wellness in our products and brand values. By utilizing a strictly scientific process to weeding out toxic ingredients and applying a conscious approach to clean beauty and wellness, we have designed our first set of indulgent scents that stimulate the senses - and ultimately, the way we feel every day.
Sources:
[1] Washington Post:
[2] The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/23/fragrance-perfume-personal-cleaning-products-health-issues
[3] Pebble Magazine: https://pebblemag.com/magazine/living/clean-beauty-movement
