Using Vegan Products Is More Popular Than Actually Being Vegan

A recent study into the buying habits around vegan products has concluded that just under one-tenth of British women exclusively buy vegan beauty products. The study also found that almost half of UK females that buy cosmetics have increased their purchases of vegan products. Of the ten percent that only use vegan products, thirty-nine percent of these women do not follow a vegan lifestyle.

Almost all British women (90%) that buy beauty products will occasionally check the label before purchasing. The reason? They want to make sure that the product they buy is as environmentally-friendly as possible. Moreover, around sixty-six percent stated that their motivation for buying 'green' beauty products had increased in the past five years, with half being prepared to pay more for beauty products that were 'clean & conscious.'

Cosmetify is an ongoing study looking into women's beauty habits. It studies the patterns of over 2,200 women who regularly use cosmetic products and are aged between eighteen and forty-five.
The study's initial findings were that the proportion of women who always check the label before purchasing was only 15%. However, this compares to a mere 10% of women who said they never check the labels. Those that check labels frequently were 28%, and 13% stated they were occasional label-checkers. Significantly, thirty-four percent of women surveyed said that they check beauty product labels more regularly now than previously.

Avoiding allergic reactions is the driver for around one-fifth (18%) of women to check a product's label. Another fifteen percent do it so they can choose products with the least harmful ingredients. Just under one-third of women (29%) checked because of their vegan or vegetarian lifestyle choices. Environmental protection, however, compelled one in every three women (34%) to review a product's label.
Within the 'clean & conscious' category of beauty products, the study discovered that organic products were most sought after (68%). These were closely followed by natural products (62%), with vegan products ranked third in popularity (49%).

Further investigation into this category showed 22% only buying organic beauty products, and 38% of those surveyed claiming that they buy more organic products than before. Exclusive buyers of natural products turned out to be one-fifth, with almost 30% having increased their buying habits recently. Just under one-in-ten of respondents claimed to be exclusive buyers of vegan beauty products, and nearly half of these said they are more so now than before. This trend turned out to be the highest, followed by plastic-free products, which had 39% of respondents claim an increase in buying habits.

Significantly, from the 56% of women who claimed to be exclusive users of vegan beauty products, or that use them more frequently now than before, 39% stated that they do not adhere to a vegan lifestyle.
The clean products purchased the most related to skincare, and 49% of respondents claimed that these were the products they bought most often. This figure compared to 35% who most often bought clean makeup products and a mere 10% who mostly bought clean hair care products. The proportion of women who claimed to own an equal amount of 'clean & conscious' product types was 6%.

The study concluded that there has been a significant change in 'clean & conscious' beauty product buying habits over the past decade, with sixty percent of women claiming they now look for these products. This trend compares to only fifteen percent who say their habits have not changed in this timescale, and the remaining 23% stated to have somewhat changed their habits.

Even though a product does not have to be 100% organic to be labelled as such, the majority of respondents (63%) stated that they trust the labelling used by cosmetic brands. Despite knowing a product is not as claimed, 54% said they would still buy a product labelled as vegan, organic, or natural.
A clear shift towards buying 'clean & conscious' beauty products is evident from the study's findings. This claim is backed up by 44% of respondents stating they would be prepared to pay more for clean and conscious products.

Isa Lavahun, from Cosmetify, stated that 'clean & conscious' product demand was driving many trends in the cosmetic industry. She thought that consumers are becoming more aware of the ingredients that they are using on their skin and hair. Ida concluded that this trend will continue and that more brands will offer more 'clean & conscious' beauty products.