With natural beauty brands coming into the spotlight more and more, 2016 is going to be a great year for green beauty. In fact, one of the most highly anticipated events of the year for green, indie beauty brands is just around the corner! Indie Beauty Expo (iBE) was started last year to give independent beauty brands a platform to show their line and connect with consumers and retailers. Since a majority of the natural beauty brands out there happen to be indie brands, it only makes sense that this is a huge draw for that community. How often do you get to actually see, touch and experience all of these awesome green beauty brands in one place? This is the event for doing just that, along with discovering the latest and greatest in the indie beauty world. Quite possibly the best part is that there will be double the fun this year with two events, one in L.A. at The Shrine on May 4 + 5 and one in N.Y.C. at The Waterfront on Aug. 24+ 25. I wanted to get all the details on Indie Beauty Expo 2016 and what to expect at this year, so I had a quick Q+A with iBE co-founder Jillian Wright where she shares what it’s all about.
Q + A With Jillian Wright: iBE 2016
MP: As a business owner that also has a family, you must keep a very busy schedule, yet you’ve created this amazing event that keeps growing. What inspired you to take the plunge and create Indie Beauty Expo?
JW: iBE was born out of my frustration of not having somewhere to go 2-3x a year to do serious business with buyers and consumers who love niche or independent beauty brands. I wasn’t satisfied with what was out there. I did extensive research trying to decide what type of shows would enhance my brand and none of them spoke to me. They were either too small, spa-focused, or curated like a craft fair. Or they were the opposite extreme and too large and overwhelming. Just like Goldilocks, nothing felt quite right. The Indie Beauty Expo was born out of pure need, and clearly after iBE 2015, I recognized that other people felt the same way… a lot of them!
MP: I love that when you couldn’t find what you were looking for, you just created it yourself! This will be Indie Beauty Expo’s second year running and excitement is definitely building as we approach the not one, but two events you’ll host this time around. What are the benefits of bringing the event to both coasts this year?
JW: Last year, iBE validated two things: First, that the indie movement is large, highly relevant and growing. Second, that there is an unmet need in the market that is not addressed by the traditional trade or consumer beauty shows. Globally, New York and Los Angeles are ranked second and third in per capita GDP. New York is recognized as the center of beauty and lifestyle media, and Los Angeles includes a catchment area, which extends from San Diego to Santa Barbara. Together, these cities provide iBE exhibitors with access to two of the most valuable and commercially-meaningful “must win” markets in the world.
MP: What can we expect to see at this year’s events?
JW: This year, iBE is two days. We kick off iBE with a press/media event so they can peruse the floor and cherry pick their findings from the brands without any interruptions. This two hour block of time is very important for the brands. Then we will open our doors to the public for an epic shopping event in the afternoon. The event will go into the evening so people coming from work will get a chance to enjoy a cocktail, hear the speakers, participate in panels, make-up demonstrations, and fun workshops.
The cost of the ticket will be lower this year because we’d like to encourage people to take advantage of this event. We believe that consumers have a lot of power when it comes to the future of beauty. This is their opportunity to meet the brands, learn some new things about the industry, and, of course, there will be entertainment. Attendees will be able to create their own iBE swag bag to take home and there will be a lot of gift with purchases!
We’re also working on getting some fun people and like-minded organizations involved. 5 Gyres will be there, Marci Zaroff from Under the Canopy, Joanna Vargas will be sharing her celebrity skin tips, Kristen Arnett, Melisse Gelula from WELL+ good (at the NYC event), Paige Padgett will be talking about the new normal in naturals, Sian Richards… the list goes on and this is just the beginning!!
The second day of iBE is for professionals. It’s our B to B day. This is the day the brands will do their business with retail buyers, spa, salon, distributors, professionals, therapists, hotels, and basically all that love indie beauty and rely on our brands to separate their retail area from the competition. We are the brands that fill the white space and that people get excited about. Molly, I know what you are thinking, yes, beauty bloggers get to come both days!
MP: Jillian, that sounds pretty amazing! I can’t believe all this will be happening at one event! I’m so excited to hear the speakers and connect with the brands.
As the creator of your own successful line of skincare, I’m sure you know first hand how challenging it can be for independent brands to connect with retailers and customers. Why is it important to have an event solely focused on these kind of brands?
JW: iBE is based on the three most valuable components to the success of an indie brand: Press, Buyers and Consumers. It’s a multi-faceted entity that requires time, guidance and the business platform so indie brands can grow. There are very successful indie brands such as Farmaesthetics and Kahina Giving Beauty. They are well respected in the industry. They are living the dream due to their hard work and rock solid backgrounds. But, even successful indie brands, like younger brands such as Girl Undiscovered, Max and Me, Helan Beauty, Lyeska, Thorn and Bloom, Emmaus, HAN Skincare Cosmetics and Native Atlas could benefit from coming together as a community and sharing. Sharing means growth and validation. By offering a platform like iBE, we all benefit.
MP: For those interested in only natural beauty brands, will there be a way to easily find the cleaner brands at this year’s events?
JW: YES! All the true green/clean beauty brands will get a seal or display that says they are green/clean. They will be noted in the brochure as well as a display on in their booth. We will also give them something to share on social.
We follow Jeannie Jarnot’s Beauty Hero Villain list as a guide to determine who the clean beauty brands are. She is our expert!
MP: I’m a pretty big fan of Jeannie Jarnot too ;). What’s next for iBE? Do you have plans for it to keep growing?
JW: Ooooh, yeeeees! We are strengthening our team to bring vital improvements and new ways of doing business to the market. We can save this for another interview!
———————————
What a great interview! Jillian’s passion for bringing these brands into the spotlight is incredible. I can’t wait to hear about what’s next for iBE and I can’t wait for this year’s events! For those interested in going, tickets will go on sale by mid-March. Be sure to check out their website and register for the newsletter and follow along on Instagram to stay updated. Also, I have something very exciting just for my readers. After tickets go on sale, I’ll be hosting a ticket giveaway for iBE 2016!! I hope to see some of you there! xo
Thank you so much for this interview! I am so excited to attend this year’s iBe now. Last year was amazing but very difficult navigating between the green beauty brands and the Indie brands. Of course wanting only the best in green beauty you do have to read every ingredients label including those from already established “green” brands. But knowing this year there will be a display seal to more easily identify the more natural brands will make the navigation that much more easy. Of course I will still be reading those labels but I will know who I can skip altogether. And having two separate days will allow the brands I feel to be able to focus on the consumer in front of them more instead of looking for the retailer who may be interested in carrying and promoting their product. As for the price I was lucky enough to win a ticket from Beauty By Britanie but was a bit hesitant about the price of the ticket for just maybe 3 hours after I got out of work for the day. Like I said this interview eased all my reservations about attending this year and now I can’t wait. Thank you!
Well I really cant wait expo like this
I came from out of usa and really excited to attending this expo
What i would to know is im a buyer and really hope that there is huge discount /special price when i buy the products in there. Is it possible?
I really hope it will be like imats
Thank you so much for this interview! I am so excited to attend this year’s iBe now. Last year was amazing but very difficult navigating between the green beauty brands and the Indie brands. Of course wanting only the best in green beauty you do have to read every ingredients label including those from already established “green” brands. But knowing this year there will be a display seal to more easily identify the more natural brands will make the navigation that much more easy. Of course I will still be reading those labels but I will know who I can skip altogether. And having two separate days will allow the brands I feel to be able to focus on the consumer in front of them more instead of looking for the retailer who may be interested in carrying and promoting their product. As for the price I was lucky enough to win a ticket from Beauty By Britanie but was a bit hesitant about the price of the ticket for just maybe 3 hours after I got out of work for the day. Like I said this interview eased all my reservations about attending this year and now I can’t wait. Thank you!
Well I really cant wait expo like this
I came from out of usa and really excited to attending this expo
What i would to know is im a buyer and really hope that there is huge discount /special price when i buy the products in there. Is it possible?
I really hope it will be like imats