The Small Business Owner’s Guide To Minimalistic Beauty
The era of minimalistic beauty is here.
Consumers are stepping away from the time-consuming and costly 12-step skin care routines, and are downsizing large makeup collections back to the simple basics.
The benefits are clear for the beauty consumer - minimalism is sustainable, less expensive, and often better for their skin. With the right strategy in place, adopting a more minimalist approach can also do wonders for your small beauty business!
Our detailed guide below explains how you can tap into this minimalist market. We discuss the rise of minimalist beauty, how to align your brand with the minimalist approach, and how to develop minimalist beauty products that fit your budget and vision.
The Rise Of Minimalist Beauty
Part of the motivation behind this trend toward minimalism is the backlash against over-consumerism. Consumers began to seriously rethink their approach to shopping in the 2010s, in part thanks to Marie Kondo’s ‘Does it spark joy?’ approach to personal possessions.
The desire to downsize quickly became a topic of conversation within the beauty community, with challenges like ‘Project Pan’ and ‘no buy’ years, based around finishing up your existing products before purchasing anything new, continuing strong into 2024.
Speaking with Happi magazine, Lia Neophytou of GlobalData explained that the European market in particular is moving toward a more minimalist approach to cosmetics and grooming products. The trend is toward a focus on brand loyalty and repurchasing the same products in smaller amounts or smaller packaging sizes.
Part of this change is based on the advice of experts, with dermatologists and skin care formulators recommending shorter routines. In his book ‘The New Science Of Perfect Skin’, Dr. Daniel B. Yarosh, expert on skincare and dermatology, recommends multi-tasking products in place of a lengthy regimen.
Fewer products also give consumers the chance to properly test what truly works and what does not, and helps to prevent skin irritations and reactions.
In addition to following the advice of experts and reducing overconsumption, beauty consumers are increasingly aware of the impact of product waste on the environment, and it’s slowly changing the way we approach and purchase beauty.
An Indonesian research study found that sustainability concerns impact consumers’ purchasing decisions by up to 21.1%.
Not only is this shift to minimalism motivated by ethical and sustainability concerns, but the desire to save money in the wake of periods of high inflation is also contributing to the switch from elaborate beauty routines back to basic three-step skincare regimens.
Changing beauty trends are also having a large impact. Dramatic heavy makeup is out - the ‘clean girl’ aesthetic is in. Modern makeup looks revolve around natural beauty with minimal eyeshadow and fewer base products and that is de-influencing purchasing behavior even further.
How Minimalism Can Benefit Your Beauty Business
Minimalistic beauty doesn’t just benefit the consumer. Your beauty business can also thrive by adopting this rising trend.
Minimalism is particularly effective at the beginning stages of your business to build a solid core foundation of high-selling products that generate consistent revenue month-on-month and year-on-year. This consistent cash flow would allow your business to take more risks with newer product releases.
To succeed with the minimalist approach, you need to carefully plan your product creation and marketing processes with a clear strategy in place.
Aligning Your Brand With A Minimalistic Approach
Making the switch to become a minimalist brand? It’s important to understand how this move will impact your target market.
Consider the buyer persona of those who prioritize minimalist beauty routines.
As explained by Wilson and colleagues, ‘mindfully curated consumption’ is one of the three key pillars of the minimalist buyer. This consumer group is more likely to care deeply about the downsides of overconsumption and the ethical implications of purchasing new beauty products.
Minimalism is already naturally better for the environment, but your new consumer base expects brands to go above and beyond to make a genuine ethical stand. What commitments can you make to reduce the environmental impact of your business and create a more sustainable operation overall?
Secondly, the market for minimalist beauty cares deeply about the quality and health implications of every product they put on their skin. Prioritize simple formulas with ‘clean’ ingredients that exclude drying alcohols, petroleum derivatives, and silicones.
At Genie Supply, clean, sustainable, and ethical beauty is at the heart of our manufacturing business. Our skin care and color cosmetics are formulated without over 2,000 potentially harmful ingredients. We are proudly vegan and cruelty-free and place a strong focus on diversity and sustainability. Learn more about Genie Supply here.
Finding The Right Manufacturing Method For Minimalist Beauty
Minimalism is all about prioritizing quality over quantity. Focus your approach on selecting a narrow range of high-quality products instead of adopting a scatter-gun approach.
Product Selection
Before you hire a beauty manufacturer, you need a clear vision of the type of products you want in your line.
When it comes to skincare, stick to the basics.
Your brand’s minimalist line is not the place for fancy red algae or snail slime serums. A quality minimalist skin care range can be as simple as four products: an effective cleanser, moisturizer, vitamin C serum, and retinoid product. Where possible, hybrid 2-in-1 or 3-in-1 products are particularly ideal for minimalist skin care routines.
A similar approach is needed for the makeup product selection process.
One lightweight foundation with buildable coverage paired with an effective under eye and blemish concealer is sufficient for the base product category.
Hybrid 2-in-1 lip and cheek products are ideal to add color. Contour and bronzer shades can also double as eyeshadow when formulated and packaged correctly. Always select popular everyday shades for color cosmetics. A minimalist line is not the place for blue lipstick!
At Genie Supply, many of our preformulated skin care and color cosmetics fit perfectly in a minimalist range. We offer a number of products with 2-in-1 uses, including our dry body/hair oil, and our rich retinol cream that offers both anti-aging and soothing/moisturizing benefits in one formula. Plus, we can create a brand new minimalist line for your brand from scratch.
Now that you have a clear idea of the products you want in your range, it’s time to decide if you will purchase prefromulated cosmetics or custom formulate your own.
Custom Formulating Minimalist Products From Scratch
Custom formulating involves collaborating with professional chemists to create brand new cosmetics from scratch. Although this process is expensive and not as fast as other options, the result is highly unique products that your customers won’t be able to find elsewhere.
Minimalism can be an especially effective and cost-effective approach if you plan to custom formulate your entire beauty business line. Thanks to economies of scale, formulating just a small number of products from scratch in bulk is cheaper compared to custom formulating a larger product range in smaller quantities.
At Genie Supply, we’re experts at creating new-to-market formulations, novel chemical research, clean skin care, and hybrid products. Learn more about our custom formulating process here.
3 Options For Preformulated Minimalist Cosmetics
If you don’t have the budget or patience to create a brand new minimalist skin care or makeup line from scratch, it’s possible to find preformulated cosmetics that fit your minimalist approach.
Minimalist consumers are looking for highly effective and clean formulas at a reasonable price. Focusing on the type of preformulated products that fit into a minimalist skincare routine is key, but it’s equally important to vet the product quality and ingredients closely. Order and test plenty of samples before making any final decisions on your product range.
There are three main types of preformulated manufacturing:
Private labeling involves using a manufacturer’s preformulated cosmetics and adding your own unique branding. Some suppliers (including Genie Supply) offer private label on a turnkey basis. This includes customized packaging to suit your minimalist branding, along with packing and filling services post-formulation.
Bulk is similar to private label. This method involves buying large quantities of preformulated cosmetics in bulk quantities in large unbranded drums. We recommend bulk if you already have an arrangement in place for your packaging and filling services.
Custom product creation is a semi-customized manufacturing process that involves adding a limited number of customizations on top of a beauty lab’s base formula. This method can be useful to create 2-in-1 products that work well for minimalist brands.
At Genie Supply, we offer over 60 private label or bulk preformulated skin care and color cosmetics products to choose from. Our catalog showcases numerous options for cleansers, moisturizers, and highly effective serums to fit a minimalist skin care line.
In sum, creating a successful minimalist beauty brand includes:
Understanding the context behind the rise in minimalist beauty trends and routines
Adjusting your product creation and marketing approach to appeal to the ‘minimalist consumer’
Collaborating with a beauty lab that formulates simple, clean, sustainable, and hybrid products for the minimalist market
Carefully developing your minimalist product range to suit a 3-step skin care or 5-step makeup routine
Selecting between custom formulating or preformulated products to maximize your business's profit potential
Ready to create or purchase preformulated products for your minimalist product range? Genie Supply would love to collaborate with your business. Get in touch via email: customerservice@geniesupply.com or call: (812) 329-1105 to learn more.
