Hourglass

A luxury make-up brand launched in 2004, committed to vegan formulations a decade before the rest of the prestige industry took cruelty-free seriously. Unilever acquired the brand in 2017 for a reported figure close to $200 million. Carissa Jaynes founded the company in Los Angeles after 10 years in cosmetics product development, initially positioned as a skin care forward make-up line with buildable pigments. The brand committed early to eliminating animal derived ingredients from every product, and by 2017, had completed the transition to full vegan status across the range. Customers willing to pay a premium for cruelty-free assurance have historically bought from smaller niche brands because the major houses were slow to reformulate.