Tina Brodsky is a consultant with Beautycounter, a Santa Monica based manufacturer of high-performance personal care products and cosmetics that don’t use toxic ingredients linked with human health issues. She is a mother of three and has been passionate about health, wellness and the environment for many years. She holds a BA in Sociology from Tulane University, an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business and a certificate in Sustainability from the International Society of Sustainability Professionals. She is also a Partner at TAG Investors Group and invests in distressed properties around the country.
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Tina Takes The Questions:
What inspired you to become a consultant at Beautycounter?
If you would believe it, a single product did the job! I was an early customer of Beautycounter’s but the turning point for me was when I first started using the Face Oil #2, now known as Counter+ No. 2 Plumping Face Oil. I had come to realize that I believe in the company philosophy and couldn’t live without the products. There was a real trust factor there for me!
I was shocked to learn that The FDA does not require any pre-market safety testing on chemicals in cosmetics and body care products, with the exception of color additives. How is this possible?
It’s really all about money. The beauty and personal care market in the US is over $80 billion strong and, sadly, although the FDA “regulates” this industry, there isn’t much oversight. The space is basically a free for all, even with organic and natural products. 80-90% of ingredients on the market are never tested for safety and their effect on human health.
I also recently learned that the European Union bans or restricts close to 1,400 chemicals in their cosmetics alone, while the US only bans 9? This statistic blew me away!
Actually, the EU now bans more than 1,400 ingredients, and yes, it’s unbelievable but true. The US has one of the most loosely regulated personal care markets. This is a pressing issue because of the sheer number of chemicals in our products and food. Since World War II, approximately 12,000 chemicals have been introduced into commerce and the number is growing rapidly.
Tell me about Beautycounter’s Never List ™ and whether you think it’s a useful tool for consumers to use while shopping for clean beauty products?
The Never List ™ is a great tool! It’s made up of more than 1,500 questionable or harmful chemicals that we never use as ingredients in our products. This includes the over 1,400 chemicals banned or restricted in personal care products by the European Union, plus additional chemicals screened by Beautycounter and found to be of concern. Some examples of harmful ingredients include retinol (often found in anti-aging products) and formaldehyde.
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An easy guide, that you can take to the store with you, is the EWG’s Skin Deep app, providing a database of thousands of products and comprehensive safety ratings on each. This is far less daunting and much more manageable than carrying a long list around. An indispensable resource!
One of the things I love about Beautycounter is that it’s a purpose driven company that wants to do more than sell us safe personal care and beauty products. Gregg Renfrew, Founder of Beautycounter, wants to actually create regulation reform in the beauty industry, and has taken the cause to Washington! Can you tell us more about this?
Yes, of course! Gregg Renfrew launched Beautycounter in 2013 to address a pressing personal concern within the beauty and personal care market: the lack of safe and well performing products for her family. Her mission of getting safe products into the hands of everyone is really at the core of the business model. Beautycounter, as a B corp, is driven by a mission and, as a result, adheres to higher standards for social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. The company has really spearheaded a movement for change!
We continue to work on both the state and federal level to advocate for regulation and higher standards across the industry. The most notable reform that we’ve helped champion is The Personal Care Products Safety Act, which requires companies to make sure their products are safe before marketing them. Prior to this, it had been 80 years since Congress passed a cosmetic law!
Many people are trying to eat clean and organic when possible in order to lower their exposure to toxins, pesticides and unhealthy foods. The move to clean beauty and personal care product seems to lag behind. Why do you think that is?
I think that with every new mode of thinking, things take time. Regulation has only recently hit the food industry. While the FDA also is charged with oversight of the personal care products industry, it remains largely unchecked which means that companies are basically free to do whatever they’d like. Toxic ingredients, including known carcinogens and endocrine disruptors, are often less expensive and easier to source than organic ingredients. Beautycounter and other health focused companies are leading the charge to change the landscape so that soon all products on the shelves will be safe to use, with all ingredients fully disclosed.
What do you say to women who feel clean beauty will never be as effective or luxurious as their favorite conventional products?
Try Beautycounter! Our products are both safe to use and extremely effective. It’s the performance that initially grabs most clients and the trust factor that keeps them. In the 4 years that I have used the products, my skin has improved drastically. To me, using clean products is as important as eating clean food. Everything, that you expose yourself to affects your health, both negatively and positively.
It’s hard to get people to overhaul their products and start from scratch, especially if they think their products are working for them. Where should someone start if they want to begin switching over to clean beauty products?
Luckily, Beautycounter product lines are easy to navigate. While our makeup is fantastic, I’d start with skin care and in that category, we have several lines: Countercontrol for Oily or blemish prone skin, Countermatch which uses Bio-Mimic Technology to match the composition of skin, giving it precisely what it needs and nothing it doesn't. Countertime, (which I use) our premier anti-aging line that features our plant-derived Retinatural Complex, to visibly firm, brighten, and plump the skin and Nourishing, our basic line for normal skin featuring ingredients like hydrating coconut oil and soothing aloe. We also have Counterman, a line specifically tailored for men, because they have skin too:)
I’d also include our Body Lotion (either Hydrating or Melting Body Balm), Cleansing Balm (either Counter+Lotus Glow or Special Edition in a larger size) to remove eye makeup and to use as a nighttime moisturizing mask, and a Face Oil (either 1, 2 or 3)to mix in with your daily moisturizer.
If readers want to learn more, where can they find you?
It can be difficult to know what to choose, so I’d be happy to speak to your clients about their specific needs and concerns and recommend products that are best for them. Anyone interested in Beautycounter and our movement can find me here.
Thank you Tina for taking the time to talk with us about clean beauty and Beautycounter!
The Dirty Truth
Did You Know: Over 80,000 chemicals have been introduced into the marketplace since WWII.