These homegrown brands have a new approach to beauty and wellness
From accessible personal care to a wide range of complementary lip shades for Filipinos, beauty in the Philippine landscape has changed for the better. With gender-neutral beauty and sustainable practices, brands are becoming more in tune with their consumers and creating the best possible experience for them.
In bringing inclusivity, diversity, and sustainability to the table, these brands demonstrate that these ideals can work hand in hand. Here are 15 Filipino beauty and wellness brands that are at the forefront of this shift:
Skin Poem
The idea of Skin Poem began after founder Chin Simpson witnessed the ordeal that her younger brother had to go through with psoriasis. Through this, Simpson began to work with dermatologists and chemists in order to provide accessible skincare products, especially for those with dry, sensitive, and inflamed skin.
With hopes to let the world experience their top rated products such as the Hydrating and Brightening Mist and Collagen and Colloidal Oatmeal Soap, to name some, Skin Poem plans to expand internationally as soon as the brand establishes a stronger base.
Strokes Eye Beauty Studio
For Strokes Eye Beauty Studio founder Momoi Supe, the eyes make quite the first impression when you meet someone. With this philosophy, it built a beauty studio that wants to create natural-looking brows for men and women that accentuate their appearance with just one session. Through their brow artists and lash technicians’ precision and expertise, the premier eye beauty studio offers a range of services such as Brow Sculpting, Bespoke Lashes, and Keralift that are designed to add definition and lift your eye area.
Teviant
Created by makeup artist Albert Kurniawan, Téviant is a local makeup brand that is a spin on the name of Kurniawan’s mother, Tevianty. Formulated in Italy, the cosmetics line is mostly known for its Mon Cheri mascara, liquid eyeliner, and previous collaborations with Heart Evangelista for the Love Marie for Teviant Eyeshadow Palettes, and with Pia Wurtzbach for the Lipspell Matte Bullet Lipstick. Teviant released its newest collection: the Velvet Drop, a multi-use mousse, which Kurniawan believes will be his brand’s hero product. Based in Manila, Indonesian-born Kurniawan is known for his expertise in bridal and celebrity makeup with clients such as Heart Evangelista, Ara Mina, and Ariella Arida.
Gratitude Bar
A brand that specializes in providing clean, high-performance, and affordable skincare solutions designed to meet the diverse needs for all skin types, age groups and genders. With a licensed chemist at the helm of Gratitude Bar, their product line is meticulously formulated to promote simplified skincare routines by developing products that combine three or more actives in a single bottle to address multiple skin concerns simultaneously. Bright Drops brightening serum is their hero product that combines Alpha Arbutin, Niacinamide and seven types of Hyaluronic Acid and its derivatives
Vice Cosmetics
Five years since its launch, Vice Cosmetics has expanded its portfolio of products to cater every type of individual through its “Ganda for All” (Beauty for all) movement. According to the brand, they are “committed to inclusivity and diversity through their wide range of accessible and high-performance products, allowing individuals to express their authentic selves.”
From lush lipstick shades to shimmering eyeshadows, Vice Cosmetics products are accessible to everyone, “no matter the skin color, gender, shape or class.”
Onelife Studio
As the first and only clinical Pilates studio chain in the country, founder Tanya Maria Aguila envisioned a venue for women to explore and enjoy personalized health and fitness programs in a comfortable and safe space. This idea brought to life their three locations: Little Baguio in San Juan, Estancia Mall in Pasig, and Legaspi Village in Makati. They offer personal training sessions with highly trained physical therapists and certified Pilates coaches in all their studios, with virtual sessions also available. Onelife Studio recently celebrated their tenth anniversary with the tagline #MovementForHer, a commitment to being a positive, supportive part of a woman’s journey through her different seasons.
Kindred
Dubbed as the first hybrid women’s health clinic in the country, Kindred is a health center where women can receive holistic healthcare services tailored to their specific needs. Whether it’s addressing PCOS, dermatological concerns, fertility issues, receiving IV drips, vaccinations, or seeking support for mental health, the women’s health clinic wants to provide a full spectrum of services from in-person consultations to online help via the Kindred website and their newly-launched app.
Katinko
A hallmark of Filipino alternative treatment, Katinko—to the common folk—is known to ease many ailments such as body pain, muscle pain, and headaches. Aside from being a go-to ointment used by children and adults, they also have various initiatives to support indigenous communities, artists, livelihood groups, people with disabilities and those deprived of liberty, among many others.
Strokes Beauty Lab
Because of the success of his Beauty Studio, Supe was also encouraged to expand with Strokes Beauty Lab, a cosmetics line meant for makeup aficionados. One of the brand’s products, the always sold-out Microblade Pen Perfector gives impeccable hair-like strokes on your brow area. Strokes Beauty Lab also offers cruelty-free buildable creme sticks, blush, and highlighters.
NEW Lounge
NEW Lounge uses techniques, technology, and innovation that are unique to lash design: longer, darker, and fuller eyelashes while still being lightweight—an expertise of their homegrown educators and specialists. According to the brand, they believe in the philosophy of accentuating individual beauty by giving them a choice on what services will suit their needs. Lifestyle influencers Camille Co and Bryan Boy, and artist-actress Heart Evangelista are among the celebrities that use their services. The eyelash services brand also recently launched PH Exclusive Volume Lash, an approach to lash design by enhancing Filipino features and eye shape with a natural, mascara-like finish, adding depth and elegance to a subtle eye look.
For Keeps Clean Beauty
As a body care brand, For Keeps Clean Beauty offers a range of what it promises as non-toxic and cruelty-free products that cater to day-to-day needs while also focusing on sustainability in formula and packaging. The brand’s commitment to the environment can be seen through its initiatives like the For Keeps Recycling Program, Green Antz Partnership, and My Basurero Partnership.
Buffed Nail Lounge
Buffed Nail Lounge emerges as a beauty service and wellness brand that is challenging the norm through self-care services that also extend to men with spa and hair removal services. With serene interiors and expert nail technicians, Buffed Nail Lounge encourages everyone to “immerse themselves in self-care rituals without limitations or societal expectations in a non-intimidating and inclusive environment.”
As a beauty and wellness service, the brand also commits itself to using non-toxic, clean, and organic materials and a sustainable and eco-friendly approach in their facilities across Manila.
Nuwhite
Used by celebrities Marian Rivera and KC Concepcion, Nuwhite is a beauty supplement that harnesses the power of bioavailable S-Acetyl Glutathione, a potent alternative to IV glutathione. As a type of tripeptide, the main ingredient of the supplement increases the available GSH (glutathione) in the body and can fortify your immune system while giving you health benefits such as improved skin texture, detoxifying and protection of the liver, and improved sleep quality.
Nuwhite also has a patented formulation enriched with Marine Collagen, Vitamin E, and Sodium Ascorbate. It is specifically designed to overcome absorption issues commonly associated with other forms of glutathione.
AcneCare
Vida Nutriscience’s acne line offers a range of beauty solutions and supplements that combat the common skin condition, acne. The brand has a lineup of capsules, soaps, ointments, and creams that can be used in your skincare routine. Their hero products, the AcneCare Drying Lotion and Soap, are formulated to address skin concerns in order to reduce skin inflammation, acne scars, and sebum production.
Through AcneCare’s social media platform, the skincare brand also gives guidance to their customers about their products’ ingredients and how to properly manage their skin.
Beautéderm
A beauty brand that initially catered to women has now evolved into appealing to a larger market that now includes men in their late teens to senior adults, Beautéderm has produced products that “became the foundation of skincare regimen for Filipinos who are looking for an affordable and reliable alternative.” More than a decade since it was founded by businesswoman Rhea Tan, Beautéderm has grown exponentially across the country with 84 physical stores in malls nationwide, and even in Singapore with retail stores and kiosks carrying their signature products.
SnowCaps
Through their campaign “Maganda Within” (Beautiful Within), the oral supplement brand says that it approaches skincare by enhancing your body’s glutathione, a natural antioxidant present in the liver that can be depleted over time. SnowCaps also contains additional antioxidant ingredients such as Vitamin C and Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) that can aid and regenerate glutathione in the body, detoxify the liver, improve metabolism, and refine skin texture and appearance.
