VOYA – Natural Beauty Yearbook

The Soil Association event will continue to build on the Campaign for Clarity, calling on brands to ‘stop the greenwash’ to enable consumers to be sure that what they are buying is genuinely organic or natural.

The campaign has been given a new look this year, with a fresh logo and creative, as well as a dedicated beauty Instagram. “We are completely revamping the creative and the materials around Organic Beauty Week,” says Clare McDermott, business development director, Soil Association Certification, “and we are taking it national – as well as hosting events in London for beauty buyers we will be holding events in Bristol and Glasgow, primarily to educate but also to allow people to sample brands.”

For retailers, the Soil Association will be offering a digital toolkit available to download, including free POS materials highlighting Organic Beauty Week with the sub-heading – ‘look for the logo’ and ‘we have the logo’. Retailers can place these over certified products to promote Organic Beauty Week and make the most of their offers.

Kim Allan of Botanical Brands, which is running a special promotion for retailers during the month, commented: “Awareness for natural and organic beauty is at an all-time high. More and more consumers are looking for natural and organic skincare but products they can trust and rely upon to deliver results. Certification provides that reassurance and that’s why the Soil Association is focusing on looking for the logo during Organic Beauty Week this year.”

Organic beauty brands partnering the Soil Association during the event include Neal’s Yard Remedies, Herbfarmacy, Spiezia, Natracare, Voya, Therapi, Bamford, Skin and Tonic and Terre Verdi.

Health, wellness and fitness blogger Niomi Smart is the ambassador for this year’s event.

Organic skincare brand VOYA is releasing four new luxury Essentials Collections for Christmas wrapped in contemporary, winter-inspired packaging.

Available from the end of October, the collections comprise: Sensitive; Dry; Tranquil; and Muscle Recovery.

Sensitive is a trio of products to kick-off a winter protective skincare routine, comprising a limited edition Cleanse & Mend, with lavender and camomile to leave the skin clear and soft; Ritzy Spritzy toner to refresh and hydrate; and Me Time soothing facial moisturizer containing pro-collagen and antioxidant-rich ingredients.

Tranquil aims to evoke a feeling of calm and serenity through a True Tranquil Relaxing Body Wash, enhanced with evening primrose and argan oils to promote relaxation and a good night’s sleep, and Mindful Moments Relaxing Body Oil.

Muscle Recover comprises Feel the Heat Muscle Warming Gel and Serenergise Body Oil; and Dry includes Pearlesque Hydrating Moisturizer; Cleanse and Mend Cleanser and Ritzy Spritzy toner.

In addition, the brand is launching three Essential Stocking Fillers: Essential Mitts comprising a 50ml Hand Cream; and Essential Lips with either a Lemon & Lime Lip Balm or a Vanilla & Peppermint Lip Balm.

Green People has introduced two new products ready for the summer: Scent Free Sun Lotion SPF 30 and Organic Children Scent Free Sun Lotion SPF 30 to offer natural broad spectrum UVA/UVB protection for sensitive skin.

Swiss deluxe skincare brand ananne? has appointed Greenhouse PR to help establish it within the UK natural beauty market.

Rebecca Goodyear Health & Beauty has launched Biteable Beautique, an online shop specializing in natural and organic beauty products. The site also includes a weekly blog series.

Living Nature has introduced its new and improved Thickening Mascara which is now completely free from natural fragrance, making it suitable for those with sen- sitivities. It comes in Jet Black or Blackened Brown.

Green Energy Organics has formulated a range of natural sun care and sunscreen products that employs a triple performance system for skin protection. The range comprises Anti-Ageing Sun Cream SPF 30; Baby & Toddler Sun Cream SPF 50; and Anti-Ageing After Sun.

The Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) has launched its Wake up – don’t fake up awareness cam- paign in a bid to warn people about the risks posed by counterfeit beauty products.

During their recent historic trip to County Sligo, HRH Prince Charles and Camilla received a special gift hamper from Sligo-based organic beauty specialists, VOYA. Already a fan of the brand, Camilla commented that she was looking forward to taking her new VOYA organic skincare products home.

During their recent historic trip to County Sligo, HRH Prince Charles and Camilla received a special gift hamper from Sligo-based organic beauty specialists, VOYA.

Neil Walton from VOYA’s sister company, VOYA Seaweed Baths, was introduced to Prince Charles at Sligo Institute of Technology where they spoke about VOYA, the company’s products and the 300-year-old tradition of seaweed bathing in Ireland.

Prince Charles and Camilla also paid a visit to Mullaghmore where Gayle Kelly, VOYA’s International business development manager, presented the Duchess with a personalised gift from the company’s organic skincare range. The hamper contained an aromatic VOYA candle, the new Angelicus Serratus nourishing body oil and the new Invigorating Seaweed Soap from VOYA’s 2015 body range. Already a fan of the brand, Camilla commented that she was looking forward to taking her new VOYA organic skincare products home.

For the second year running VOYA has been chosen as a gift for America’s First Lady, Michelle Obama, to be presented on St Patrick’s Day.

Today (17 March) Taoiseach Enda Kenny will make his traditional journey to the White House to meet the President and will present a bespoke VOYA White Gift Box specifically designed for Michelle Obama as a gift from the shores of Sligo.

The gift box, presented to Kenny by TD for Sligo-Leitrim, Tony McLoughlin, contains a variety of VOYA’s organic seaweed-based spa products adorned with the brand’s newly designed packaging – part of the company’s 2015 ‘branding evolution.’

The bodycare products included in the gift box comprise VOYA’s new Invigorating Seaweed Soap; Handy to Have Reparative Hand Crème; Angelicus Serratus Nourishing Body Oil; and Softly Does It body moisturizer.

“It’s an honour and a privilege to be once again Ireland’s gift of choice for the First Lady,” said Mark Walton, founder of VOYA. “Last year we gifted a selection of our facial products so we are looking forward to Michelle Obama receiving some of our beautiful, newly designed body range products.”

VOYA is launching what it claims to be the world’s first organic seaweed oil for retail – Angelicus Serratus.

The Soil Association-certified hydrating body oil takes its name from its main ingredient, the mineral rich seaweed known as ‘the angel’s kiss from the ocean’.

With VOYA’s signature notes of citrus and the sea, the new oil aims to improve the suppleness and elasticity of the skin while purifying and cleansing.

Angelicus Serratus is enhanced with rosehip to slow the signs of ageing, evening primrose oil to help improve cell structure and skin elasticity, vitamin E and sunflower oil and has notes of lime and mandarin to rejuvenate and boost skin renewal.

The body oil will be launched in October and is the first of a range of upcoming new bodycare products from the company.

Organic skincare brand VOYA has launched a skincare travel kit following a vox pop survey which revealed that 90% of women compromise on facial products when travelling.

When abroad, extra attention needs to be paid to skin in order to avoid an array of problems including sensitivity, dehydration and flare-ups. “The number of women needing to ‘repair’ post-holiday skin is always at an all-time high after the summer months and each year we see a huge rise in those opting for facials that help to fix problems caused by poorly neglected skin,” explains VOYA’s Lucy Herring.

VOYA’s travel kit in a bag aims to solve the problem of what to pack without sacrificing the essentials and contains Me Time anti-ageing face moisturiser, Cleanse & Mend cleansing crème, Ritzy Spritzy botanical toner, Maskerade hydrating facial mask.

A number of natural and organic brands received recognition at the inaugural Sustainable Beauty Awards launched by Organic Monitor.

Weleda won the award for Sustainability Leadership due to its ‘value-creation business model’. The judges referred to the fact that the company’s business model creates economic value in a way that also creates value for society by addressing its needs and challenges.

Andreas Sommer, Weleda Group’s chief commercial officer, commented on the win: “This latest award is especially important to us because of our unique roots. Economic, social and environmental responsibility have been at the heart of our business since 1921, and we are constantly looking for new ways to improve what we do. To have our efforts recognised in this way has been tremendously rewarding.”

Dublin-based You Organic was the runner-up in the Sustainable Packaging category for the low environmental footprint of its novel packaging, which uses aluminium pouches to package its bodycare range.

Australian Jasmin Aromatique won the Green Formulations award with its range of organic beauty products, and Bulgaria-based Alteya Organics was runner-up in this category with its selection of rose-based organic skincare products.

Amarjit Sahota, founder and president of Organic Monitor, commented on the launch of the awards: “As well as giving industry recognition, we hope the awards will inspire others in the beauty industry to take the green road.”

These wins for the natural beauty sector follow the Pure Beauty Awards which saw JooMo 100% Truly Natural Facewash with SaponinJ won Gold in the Best Natural Launch, with the MooGoo brand getting Silver, Antipodes Joyful Hand and Body Cream Bronze and Melvita Rose Nectar Milky Cleansing Oil being Highly Commended.