Aveda is 100% Vegan. Aveda, the high performance, plant-powered haircare brand with a mission of care, has today announced a new milestone in the brand’s sustainability journey: all of its hair care, hair colour, body care, makeup and aroma products are now 100% vegan. Aveda has been cruelty-free since the brand was founded in 1978 and was largely vegan with the exception of some products that contained honey, beeswax and beeswax-derived ingredients. Today, all products, globally, available on their website, in Aveda partner salons and in Aveda Experience Centers are now 100% vegan!
Eliminating animal ingredients
Vegan products are defined as those that are created without any animal or animal-derived ingredients. Many such ingredients are used in beauty including the aforementioned beeswax and honey, as well as silk, keratin, glycerin, non-vegetal squalene, lanolin, collagen and carmine. Though Aveda only used honey and beeswax-derived ingredients in a limited number of products, it was no easy task to remove them.
Beeswax can also have an impact on aroma and is often found in products containing fragrance. Kate Rosso, Aveda’s Principle Perfumer explained, “we used an ingredient called beeswax absolute in some of our aromas. It is extracted from honeycomb or from cakes of beeswax. It provided a sweet, warm, complex note and helped increase its ‘staying power.’ We have worked hard to recreate these formulas using only non-animal derived ingredients to ensure that our iconic aromas would not be affected.”
Decades in the making
In accordance with Aveda’s founding mission to care for the world we live in, the brand has pioneered new benchmarks of environmental responsibility in beauty for decades. Aveda was the first company to sign the Ceres Principles for corporate responsibility, which calls for the safeguarding of the Earth and its inhabitants. While this was in 1989, Aveda’s commitment remains strong; protecting the Earth’s inhabitants by eliminating animal and animal-derived ingredients from its products was vitally important to the brand.
High-performance hair care
With more than 9,000 partner salons around the globe, there are 50,000 Artists — and their clients — that depend on the performance of Aveda’s hair care, hair colour and hair styling products. In addition to being cruelty-free, vegan and 90% naturally derived on average, the products deliver the most competitive results for all hair types and textures.
● Botanical Repair: It is a high-performing, vegan, 93% naturally derived collection of both retail and professional products powered by an innovative 3-layer hair repair technology that transforms hair with the power of plants. Plant-powered molecules help repair hair by multiplying bonds critical to reinforcing hair’s strength and integrity at the core, while a nourishing macro green blend detangles and smooths the cuticle to prevent breakage. The result is visibly revived hair that’s shinier and full of life.
● Nutriplenish: Aveda’s Nutriplenish collection is an advanced hydration system from Aveda that offers high-performance, nutrient-powered hydration through our Superfood Complex. This collection, which is silicone-free, vegan, cruelty-free and 94% naturally derived, was specifically formulated to address hydration needs for all hair types and textures and provides 72 hours of nutrient-powered hydration.
● Invati Advanced: Using the Invati Advanced system strengthens and instantly thickens hair, reducing hair loss by 53%. This system features a powerful blend of Ayurvedic herbs including ginseng and certified organic turmeric that helps invigorate the scalp when massaged in, and certified organic amla instantly thickens the hair from roots to ends.
A more sustainable future
Aveda’s headquarters are situated on a 58-acre campus in Blaine, Minnesota alongside honeybee colonies, an employee-curated vegetable garden, electric vehicle charging stations and miles of running trails. The land is National Wildlife Federation Certified, and employees enjoy frequent sightings of a variety of wildlife including turkeys, deer, turtles and groundhogs. The main office building has an emphasis on sustainability: it is powered by solar and wind energy, is carpeted with recycled fibres, has composting and recycling bins throughout the building and an organic cafe on the first floor.
This year, Aveda launched its online Ingredient Glossary, which details what the brand’s key ingredients do and what they are sourced from. Additionally, Aveda “flipped the switch” on a new 3.6 acre, 900kW ground-mounted solar array at its headquarters in June 2020. The solar panels collect sunlight throughout the day, converting the light into electricity and supplying it to the manufacturing facility on campus, sending excess energy back to the grid. The new array is part of the brand’s vision to be a renewable energy generator.