Editors' Top Reads: News from P. Louise, Shellworks and more...
Here are some of this week’s news and features highlights handpicked by TheIndustry.beauty team.
The Interview: P.Louise's founder on rewriting the rules of beauty retail and revealing its first flagship
Few beauty brands have disrupted the market and the internet quite like P.Louise. Did you see last year's 'Pinkmas'? The brand isn't chasing trends, it's creating culture.
What began in founder Paige Williams’ bedroom has exploded into a global, multi-category beauty brand with a cult-like following and record-breaking sales. From pioneering viral launches on TikTok Shop to redefining what direct-to-consumer beauty can look like in the UK, P.Louise is rewriting the rules of modern beauty retail.
At the centre of this meteoric rise is Williams herself, who remains deeply connected to her brand and its community. Under her leadership, P.Louise has become known for its maximalist branding, high-performance products, immersive experiences and a fiercely loyal customer base that shows up in the millions.
As the brand gears up for a milestone year, with its largest-ever Pinkmas activation, the expansion of its skincare line and the upcoming launch of a flagship retail experience, Williams sat down with us to share the story behind the brand’s rise, the strategy fuelling its growth and why she’s only just getting started.
Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.
Shellworks tackles beauty waste with world's first compostable pipette
Are you familiar with Shellworks? The pioneering sustainable company produces beauty packaging from Vivomer, an award-winning, plastic-free material derived from waste biomass such as plants. Vivomer breaks down completely in a matter of months when composted and it will also eventually break down in landfill if it ends up there (we don't want it to end up there but if it does, then it's a better outcome than plastic).
Shellworks has now extended the use of Vivomer beyond pots and bottles and into pipettes. This is huge because to this point, due to its mixed material construction, packaging with pipettes typically evades recycling systems and ends up in landfills or incineration. Now the whole thing can be composted and brands no longer have to compromise when it comes to shelf-appeal versus sustainability.
What is particularly exciting about Vivomer is that it can be produced at scale and so presents a huge opportunity for beauty to tackle its growing waste issue. Am pleased to see one of my favourite brands Hair by Sam McKnight getting in on the act. Let's hope more do the same.
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.
Lorna Luxe breaks into beauty with minimalist brand, 98 Beauty
Lorna Luxe, one of Britain's OG fashion and lifestyle creators, has officially made her move into the beauty industry with the launch of 98 Beauty. The debut product, the Hydra Bond Hydrating Mask (£35), is a one-step solution to healthy, radiant hair, formulated for 'real people' with 'real routines'.
Known for her elegant aesthetic and candid storytelling, Lorna Luxes (whose off-screen name is Lorna Andrews) has cultivated a loyal audience. Following successful brand collaborations, including her best-selling collections with In The Style and her very own home fashion brand L.A-SPACE, 98 Beauty marks her first standalone move into beauty.
In a saturated beauty market, Lorna has chosen intentional simplicity over sprawling ranges. Launching with a single hero product shows confidence in formulation and focus. This minimalism aligns with modern consumer habits: people want multitasking, effective products that simplify their routines.
Her entrance comes at a time when influencer-led beauty brands are dominating the market. Over in the US, Hailey Bieber’s recently gave beauty its latest billion-dollar moment, announcing she has sold her cult-favourite skincare and colour cosmetics brand Rhode to E.l.f. Beauty in a blockbuster deal valued at $1 billion (£740 million). If you needed more proof of the power of influencer brands, look closer to home at Molly-Mae Hague’s tanning brand Filter and fashion brand Maebe, not to mention Jess Hunt's Refy, Grace Beverly's TALA or Jamie Genevieve's Vieve. Influencers with engaged communities are rewriting the rules of beauty branding.
Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.
