WHEN I was growing up, recycling and sustainability weren't words we normally used but we practised an ethical lifestyle all the same.
The use of plastic was rare. Glass bottles were the norm and these were always reused.
People brought baskets to wet markets to carry their purchases and I recall neighbours using ingredients from the garden such as hibiscus, henna and aloe vera to make skin and hair care solutions.
Over the years, beauty products evolved to become complex formulas housed in beautiful, elegant bottles with packaging as attractive as the results they promised.
But today's consumer is yearning to go back to their roots. They look for that clean, simple, fuss-free approach to beauty with ingredients that won't harm them or the environment.
One beauty brand already took this approach 50 years ago and is now making its presence felt in Asia and the rest of the world.
Natura, the largest Brazilian cosmetics multinational, which began in 1969 and has a strong presence in Latin America, officially launched its store at Mid Valley Megamall, Kuala Lumpur in Sept.
It is Natura's first store in Asia and signals the beginning of its international roll-out. The brand is known for crafting formulas made from renewable natural ingredients and elements of biodiversity .
GOOD FOR EARTH
All products are 100 per cent vegan and cruelty-free. Its priority is to use recycled materials and raw materials of renewable origin.
Consumers today want to know the source of things — how they are made, where it comes from, the story of their consumption — and this is the main reason why a brand like Natura is very appealing, explains InNature Berhad managing director Datin Mina Cheah-Foong.
InNature, through its subsidiary, Ola Beleza Sdn Bhd, operates the Natura brand in Malaysia.
Natura, she adds, works closely with local communities in the Amazon to source its natural ingredients.
"What is significantly different about our products is that we use a unique combination of Amazonian biodiversity with cutting-edge science to deliver high-performance results.
"Natura also uses ecological packaging that is either from recycled materials or from renewable origin, as well as providing refills."
Malaysians are also now, more than ever, looking for products of natural origin and plant-based, while being conscious about their impact to the environment.
THE CONSCIOUS CONSUMER
Cheah-Foong explains that Malaysian beauty consumers are sophisticated in their knowledge and ask questions about what goes into the products they use and how they are made.
This trend, she adds, is in line with the growing awareness of general health and well-being, which is now even bigger because of the pandemic.
Natura in Malaysia currently offers close to 200 products under the brands Ekos, Chronos, Lumina, Mamae e Bebe, and Natura Homem – as well as fragrances from Natura Perfumery House.
To empower customers and consultants to actively practise sustainability, Natura offers lower cost refills on many products, saving the amount of packaging used.
It also incentivises customers to bring back empty packaging for recycling and has achieved circularity by recycling returned packaging into soap dishes.
Cheah-Foong says it's high time consumers start taking stock of consumption habits because "what we do on a daily basis is going to come back to us multiple ways".
"You may not care where your plastic bottles end up, but in reality they come back to you. We are now finding micro plastic in seafood, including ikan bilis, which is something we consume regularly."
There is a better way of doing things and it's heartening to note that more consumers are embracing an ethical and eco-friendly approach, she adds.
Making ourselves beautiful or caring for our skin and hair, should not be at the expense of harming our natural resources or even ourselves.
SUSTAINABLE SOURCES
Natura, she explains, doesn't just use natural ingredients but ingredients from a renewable or sustainable source.
"It's never about exotic ingredients like some very rare flower that, once harvested, no one else can get. Some people may find that appealing but it's not Natura's philosophy. We always take natural ingredients from a sustainable source."
These ingredients, used widely in its range of hair and skin formulations include fevillea, a plant from the Amazon that stimulates natural mechanisms of hyaluronic acid production which is used in its face cream. It also includes castanha, a chestnut from the Amazon forest with the power to nourish skin.
There is also acai oil, which is rich in vitamins and antioxidants which revitalises skin, and oil extracted from the fruit of the patua palm, traditionally used by women of the forest, which makes hair thicker and promotes hair growth.
Cheah-Foong says consumers no longer have to choose between formulas that are natural or those which are effective, because they can have both.
Grab vegan & cruelty free beauty products with extra discounts using Shopee Promo Code.