The Body Shop Doubles Down on ESG with 100% Vegan Certification

On February 12, The Body Shop will launch new peppermint range body care products, Peppermint Shower Gel and Peppermint Body Lotion.CNW Group/The Body Shop North AmericaThe Vegan Society has named The Body Shop as the first global beauty brand to achieve 100% certified vegan product formulations, excluding old, discontinued formulations that may still be present in the market as late as fall 2024 as they are being sold through.

The certification reportedly marks the first time a beauty brand has received such a full validation from The Vegan Society. In 2021, 60% of The Body Shop's products carried The Vegan Society trademark. At the time, the brand aimed to achieve the marks for all products, which has now been accomplished.

To do so, The Vegan Society assessed every supplier and manufacturer of raw materials within the brand's product catalogue, comprising 4,000 ingredients for more than 1,000 products.

The news follows the brand's November 2023 acquisition by private equity group Aurelius for an enterprise value of GBP 207 million. At the time, Aurelius said it sought to focus on the brand's legacy ESG elements, including the brand's legacy of cruelty-free beauty.

This year, The Body Shop will launch new vegan certified products, including a new Full Flowers fragrance, dubbed Full Magnolia. 

On sale online and in-store beginning January 15, 2024, Full Magnolia will be joined on February 12 by new peppermint range body care products, Peppermint Shower Gel and Peppermint Body Lotion.

"This accomplishment is an expression of our changemaking ethos, and goes back to our roots of championing animal welfare," said Hilary Lloyd, VP of brand and activism, The Body Shop North America. "Offering a 100% vegan certified product portfolio is an achievement we have been working towards for years, and is not one we take lightly. Our hope is that more global beauty brands follow suit and realize the ways in which natural-origin, vegan, cruelty-free beauty can benefit our people and our planet without compromising product efficacy."

Director of business development at The Vegan Society, Chantelle Adkins, noted, "Today we are extending a massive congratulations to The Body Shop for achieving 100% of their product formulations being vegan and certified with The Vegan Society's Vegan Trademark. This has been a massive project for them and showcases their commitment and dedication to vegan beauty. We hope that this significant step sets a global standard for other beauty brands to follow and inspires further change to reduce animal use and exploitation across the industry."