Indie makeup brands continue to be a force to reckon with in the beauty world. The reason behind this recent increase in popularity of these independently owned companies is due to the fact that they offer unique products at a lower price than their competitors. Moreover, indie makeup brands pay attention to offering safe, vegan, and cruelty-free products.
Their customer service is also top-notch, and they have a lot of sample sizes to choose from when you want to test their products. Most indie makeup brands also offer individualized services that meet customer needs.
Despite the perks that come with buying from an Indie makeup brand, some companies under this category are not safe and must be avoided. Below we tell you everything you need to know about indie makeup brands and the companies to avoid.
What Is an Indie Makeup Brand?
An indie makeup brand refers to a cosmetic company that is independently owned and operated. These brands normally have unique ways of solving old age problems that other companies have been unable to address.
Some good examples of indie makeup brands include Aether beauty, MAKEUP Geek, Rosen Skincare, Ilia Beauty, MELT cosmetics, Kosas, Boss Cosmetics, and RMS beauty companies.
Advantages of Purchasing from Indie Makeup Brands
There are several advantages associated with getting your makeup products from these brands, as highlighted below.
Offer a Personal Touch with the Customer
One of the main reasons why indie makeup brands are very common among millennials and generation Z is their ability to have a personal relationship with their customers. These brands understand what their buyers want, and they move mountains to offer it in their websites, product packaging, designs, and delivery.
There is nothing as fulfilling to a customer than a brand that understands their feelings and needs and responds to them.
Variety of products to choose from
Most indie makeup brands will have whatever product you need irrespective of your gender, color, size, sexual orientation, shape, and age. This is very appealing to the millennials. You love getting what they need at a go.
Safe to Use Products
Customer safety is a top priority in most indie makeup brands. Besides offering vegan and cruelty-free products, these companies engage in research regularly to diversify and improve their production base in the safest way possible.
Quality Products
One outstanding thing about indie makeup brands is that they value their customers and are always doing their best to offer the best products. Indie makeup brands’ products are made using high-quality and useful ingredients that will leave your body and skin rejuvenated.
Shortcomings of Indie Makeup Brands
Like with any other product, Indie makeup brands are not perfect. They have their own shortcomings, as listed below.
Limited Reviews/Testing of Their Products
It’s common for indie makeup brands to have less testing of their products since they are mostly small companies that do everything possible to avoid unnecessary costs. Less testing of the product puts you as the customer in danger as you are unsure of how it will react with you.
When different people test a product and offer their reviews, one can make an informed decision during purchase and avoid negative reactions to a given product.
Hard To Track Down
As you may already have noted, most indie makeup brands operate online or at independent beauty stores. Worse still, some brands only host their sales on their own websites, making the product unavailable for testing before purchase.
These brands are also short in advertising budget, making them hard to locate on most platforms.
Most don’t offer a warranty or return policy.
Most Indie makeup brands are still trying to figure themselves out in the competitive beauty industry. For this reason, they are not in a position to offer some essential services such as warranty and return policy.
Don’t Offer Free Shipping.
Unlike their competitors, most indie makeup brands are still establishing themselves and are not able to offer free shipping to their customers. This makes it difficult to get products from them, especially if you are located outside the country, as the shipping fee is much more expensive.
Their Products Are Expensive
Indie makeup brands take their time to offer high-quality products to their customers. Because of the work involved in developing these products, they are many times way expensive than those offered by their competitors.
Indie Makeup Brands to Avoid
Some indie makeup brands are going astray and need to be avoided at all costs. Below we tell you some of the brands to avoid and why.
Lime Crime
Ever since its establishment in 2008, Lime Crime indie makeup brand has had a lot of controversies. Its troubles started in 2009 after its products appeared as repackaged and the owner denied the claims and, without giving satisfying explanations, made the YouTube video on the matter private.
This company also got in trouble in 2012 after launching a China doll pallet. Many termed this as cultural misappropriation and demanded that the brands offer an apology and recall the product. Doe Deere, the owner of the company, headed to the call and apologized but refused to do away with the doll.
It’s also important to note that this company has had cases of cyber insecurity in the recent past where its systems were hacked and private details of customers exposed to the outside world.
Lime crime indie makeup brand has also had problems with the FDA for including unapproved ingredients in some of its products.
Lemonhead LA
Lemonhead indie makeup brand specializes in making different glitters needed to make your eyes shine. Although it concentrates on vegan and cruelty-free products, it does not give much attention to the environment. Its products are harmful to the environment and contribute highly to climate change and the loss of ocean life.
Melt Cosmetics
Melt cosmetics is owned by Dana Bomar and Lora Arellano. It’s a provider of various beauty products ranging from lipsticks, eye shadows, highlighters, and Gemini palettes. One shortcoming of this brand is that it does not offer clean products.
Some products offered here are not vegans, and they contain fragrances and dyes that can cause irritation. Melt cosmetics powder brushes also contain talc, which may be dangerous when inhaled.
Sugarpill Cosmetics
Although 100% cruelty-free products from this company are not all vegan. As such, you risk investing in skincare products that contain animal-derived ingredients.
Conclusion
There you have everything you need to know about Indie Makeup and the brands to avoid. Skincare products will always play an essential role in your general well-being. As such, ensure to invest in safe and clean products for not only glowing skin but a healthy lifestyle.
