Clean Beauty is a philosophy for making personal care products that has been defined in numerous ways by brands, retailers, and consumers. Not unlike the Naturals movement, it is increasingly popular, unregulated, and difficult for companies and customers alike to understand. Clean Beauty hero brands are gaining consumer trust, leading a new movement, and acquiring market share. In addition, Clean beauty is associated with (although not equivalent to) other macro shifts the industry has undergone including natural, sustainable, and eco-friendly.

• The Wellness Enthusiast: some consumers associate 'clean' with being safer and healthier for the body by eliminating or restricting ingredients that they feel have insufficient data to conclude they are safe
• The Conscious Consumer: some consumers associate 'clean' with being safer for the environment by eliminating traditional ingredients that have questionable environmental profiles
• The Careful Caregiver: some consumers associate 'clean' with being safer for their families by avoiding perceived potential risks

Formulating without certain questionable ingredients is largely the result of many clean beauty definitions or restriction lists. However, when we get down to the foundation of why those ingredients are restricted, some key philosophies arise:

The foundations of Clean Beauty

1. Consumer safety: choosing safer alternatives; eliminating ingredients with questionable safety profiles
2. Efficacy without excess: using actives at effective use levels; streamlined packaging
3. Low environmental impact: choosing sustainable alternatives in ingredients and packaging
4. Radical transparency: sharing ingredient details, specifically feedstocks; sharing processing details; third-party certification and verification; going beyond regulatory standards
5. Incorporating ethics & corporate social responsibility: choosing vegan & cruelty-free; incorporating a social mission