Success in kind: Local vegan makeup lines prove popular
GOLD Coast skincare companies are looking to milk growing demand for vegan products by expanding their lines and seeking new international markets for their natural cosmetics.
Dusty Girls, a spin-off from cult Burleigh Heads skincare brand MooGoo, has grown 106 per cent since it launched in 2014, and the business is gain- ing traction with health and wellness influencers who have taken to the 29 products, which include highlighters, eye shadows and even vegan makeup brushes.
Meanwhile, fellow Gold Coast company Neek Skin Organics is also kicking goals with its vegan makeup, landing stockist deals with UK online shopping giant Ocado and global beauty giant Look Fantastic.
Neek’s vegan lipstick was the first vegan cosmetic product stocked by Ocado, while Neek has also signed on as a supplier to Amazon.
MooGoo founder Craig Jones said the brand’s most popular product, a tinted moisturiser called Earth Cream, sold 8500 bottles in 2018, a rate of a bottle per hour.
“We are always trying to develop new products that our customers will like to have in
their makeup kit,” he said.
“Right now we are trying to develop our lip liner, eyebrow pencil and eye liner.”
In the past two years, MooGoo has expanded its operations to the UK, US and New Zealand, with its range of natural products for eczema and psoriasis creams drawing fans worldwide.
MooGoo began after Mr Jones, a former pilot, developed a cream in his Gold Coast kitchen to help his mother with her psoriasis.
The company’s name comes from the cream used by farmers to heal the udders of dairy cows, which contains allantoin, and was the starting point for MooGoo’s range of products.
Mr Jones said makeup was a natural progression.
“We had so many stories from people who felt the need to hide their skin problems with makeup but it was like adding fuel to a fire,” he said.
“That’s why we have developed an entirely natural foundation that provides both coverage and protection for healthy skin.
“Our mineral makeup is designed for women of all ages and skin types. I think the key to its success is that all our cosmetics contain quality, effective, natural actives, extracts, oils, vitamins and minerals.”