Highlights from TheIndustry.beauty LIVE: Beauty's Sustainability Opportunity

During TheIndustry.beauty LIVE: Beauty's Sustainability Opportunity, business leaders from brands and retailers such as Space NK, Grown Alchemist, L’Occitane Group, NEOM, Cowshed, Neal’s Yard Remedies, Emma Lewisham, The Estée Lauder Companies, Jo Loves and Creed, Rituals, Glow For It and Wildsmith, amongst others, gained insights into how the beauty industry can lead the way in sustainable innovation - and discovered how smarter retail and e-tail strategies can drive both profit and positive impact for the planet.

Hosted in partnership with sustainable packaging experts Shellworks and sponsored by Noatum Logistics, the event brought together professionals to learn from brands, retailers and industry experts from the likes of Elemis, Wild, Reome, UpCircle and The Inkey List, about product and outer packaging innovations, delivery strategies - from supply chain optimisation to final mile solutions - evolving marketing and PR tactics, and much more.

In Conversation with Joanne Ellner

Joanna Ellner founded REOME in 2023 with a vision to merge cutting-edge skincare with world-class biotech innovation. She joined us for the first session to share her journey and approach to sustainability.

Ellner was trained in both Western and Chinese medicine, which she described as "a baptism of fire". Her degree led her to discover biotech, and she was surprised that major brands weren’t already using it. That realisation became the foundation of REOME.

"Biotech can seem ambiguous, but ultimately, it's science's perfect replication of nature. For the first time, we can replicate natural compounds in labs. In the past, we had to reply on synthetics, but now we can copy them and enhance the molecules. We can also produce it at volume with perfect stability," she said. This means the beauty industry no longer has to depend on harvests, which may vary in potency from one season to the next. With biotech, we gain precision and consistency from batch to batch.

The best part? By replicating natural ingredients within the walls of a lab, REOME is creating effective skincare without depleting forests or natural resources. It’s a more ethical approach.

A revolution in sustainable packaging

You cannot have an event centred around sustainable beauty without talking about packaging. Fittingly, we heard about it from Shellworks, which created Vivomer - a packaging solution for brands that want to end plastic pollution. It’s shelf-stable, mass-producible and home-compostable.

According to Inés Cid Blasco, the Commercial Lead at Shellworks, the use of plastic packaging isn’t going down, so we need to pause and think about how we tackle this issue. "There’s a way for beauty to cut through the noise, and that’s by talking about toxicity. Plastic isn’t just hurting the environment, it’s also damaging to our health," said Cid Blasco.

The hurdles to eliminating plastic include higher costs, functionality and aesthetics. To address this, Shellworks set out to create a sustainable, toxic-free alternative to plastic.

Wild, the refillable deodorant brand, was an early adopter of Shellworks’ sustainable packaging. Anna Williamson, Head of NPD at Wild, said: "We launched a plastic-free bottle for our body wash made from bamboo, but its biggest flaw was its nine-month shelf life. This became a challenge in a retail setting." Wild then turned to Shellworks to adopt Vivomer.

Amir Afshar, co-founder of Shellworks, added: "There’s been a lot of harm caused by so-called sustainable packaging in the past, such as polluting streams or damaging equipment. But we’ve conducted tests to prove that’s not the case with our materials. It takes companies like Wild to keep pushing forward and staying true to their principles."

Transforming beauty supply chains for a greener future

The global fashion and beauty industries are facing an unprecedented level of supply chain disruption. Rising production costs, geopolitical uncertainty, shifting trade policies, and sustainability pressures are challenging even the most established brands. At the same time, evolving consumer expectations demand faster, more transparent, and ethically responsible operations.

However, brands that invest in supply chain resilience - through diversification, smarter forecasting, and agile logistics - will be better positioned to protect margins, meet demand, and thrive in a volatile market. That’s according to Noatum, whose Business Development Director, Matt Fullard, joined us for the next session.

This insightful session explored why sustainability truly begins with the supply chain. While much attention is often given to ingredients and product claims, Fullard noted that the majority of environmental impact occurs upstream - through sourcing, packaging, production, and freight.

He went on to discuss the importance of ingredient traceability and innovations in packaging, before highlighting the advantages of reducing your carbon footprint through smarter shipping strategies. This includes relocating production closer to key markets and optimising inventory flows, which not only helps lower emissions but also cuts costs for brands.

"Sustainability starts with knowledge. You need to understand your ingredients, emissions, and risks - and having the right tools at your disposal to support that is vital," said Fullard. "We don't just act as a supplier; we provide a transparent, data-driven approach to help brands gain visibility across the whole supply chain."

Brands built on purpose

We later heard from brands built with a purpose. First up was UpCircle, an ethical skincare brand that gives natural ingredients a new lease of life. Each product in its range sources and rescues by-products from other industries - particularly the food and drink industry.

Anna Brightman, co-founder, Upcircle, said: "When we first started, UpCircle was perceived as crazy. Now, all our ingredient suppliers are all upcyclers. In the first three years, it was wonderful to see how many businesses approached us to supply their byproducts.

"It’s a win-win - the companies supplying our ingredients gain a sustainability credential, and the cost (aside from logistics) is free." Looking ahead, as the company scales, its business is future-proofed thanks to suppliers like Heathrow, which donates coffee used in its skincare products.

Next up, we heard from The Inkey List - a responsible brand that empowers people with knowledge about skincare. The brand prides itself on challenging the often complicated world of beauty, helping consumers better understand their skin so they can make the right decisions. This philosophy is at the heart of everything it does.

Azin Tehrani-Kafai, Head of Social Impact & Sustainability, The Inkey List, said: "We still have a long way to go on our sustainable journey. But brands like ours show that you don’t have to be inherently green to make improvements and have an impact. We’re constantly evolving, from ingredients to packaging to suppliers.

"It’s difficult when you’re a brand with accessible price points. We can’t always move at the pace we’d like to move to make changes, but when you work with suppliers that align with your ethos, it makes a difference. We’re having conversations to push forward; we’re not just resting on our laurels."

Finally, we heard from S’Able Labs, which was founded by Sabrina and Idris Elba. It is a melanin-inclusive skincare range rooted in African ancestral rituals, rich in antioxidants.

Emma Bates, COO of S’Able Labs, said: "We want to highlight African botanicals, so we source them from small farmers who are custodians of those ingredients. We go to the continent, to the very source of the product."

Fireside chat with Oriele Frank

With over 30 years of research and development, Elemis - a globally recognised British skincare brand - remains committed to unlocking the secrets of skin longevity, empowering consumers with the knowledge and products to achieve skin health.

Guided by a strong commitment to sustainability, this process is overseen by co-founder and Chief Product & Sustainability Officer, Oriele Frank, ensuring Elemis remains both innovative and environmentally responsible. For the final session of the day, Frank explored the skincare brand’s ongoing initiatives across its four sustainability pillars: biodiversity, climate, people, and philanthropy.

Since stepping into the role of Chief Product & Sustainability Officer in 2020, Frank has been at the forefront of driving a new era of sustainability for the brand - challenging themselves to do things in a better way.

The goal? To become the most sustainable premium British skincare and treatment brand - defined by its heritage of British excellence, proven treatment expertise, transformative results, and a deep commitment to caring for both people and the planet.

"We’re deeply passionate about both people and the planet. Over recent years we’ve taken a step back to reflect on our purpose - we believe it’s not enough to simply drive profit; we have a responsibility to use our business as a force for good. There’s a great deal of meaningful work happening behind the scenes to ensure we live up to that commitment," said Frank.