Brianne West, creator of Ethique

It wasn’t the ‘what’ that inspired Brianne West to develop Ethique, it was the ‘why.’ In 2012 Brianne devised a new way of packaging beauty products. She developed shampoo, hair conditioner and body wash in solid, concentrated form, as effective alternatives to traditional, bottled products. But although Brianne was a biochemist student at the time and describes science as her first love, it was her passion for the environment that sparked the birth of Ethique. 

Brianne West, founder of Ethique.

By taking water out of the recipes, these standard bathroom products no longer needed to be delivered in plastic; they were no longer contributing to the planet’s significant problem with waste.

Ten years on, the world’s first zero-waste beauty brand is sold in 8,000 stores in 22 countries; Ethique’s founder and CEO has won numerous accolades, including being named a top 100 Global Thinker by Foreign Policy magazine, the 2019 New Zealand EY Young Entrepreneur of the Year and One Young World’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2020.

Most important to Brianne is the major environmental win, with an estimated 20 million plastic bottles effectively removed from the consumer cycle. The solid bar idea has been picked up by many other brands, too, adding to the win for the planet.

And Ethique does more than be environmentally sustainable: it incorporates other socially responsible initiatives in its business plan, such as empowering local communities, paying living wages and contributing to charities. “We use business as a means to solve some of the social and environmental problems that we have globally,” says Brianne, talking to AA Directions from Ethique’s head office in Christchurch. “We believe that business is the way to solve many problems. Governments take a long time to do anything and they’re beholden to lobbyists – and non-profit organisations do a lot of good work, but they’re beholden to grants. With the right leadership team, businesses can do a lot of good.” 

She is leading by example on many levels, demonstrating the direct impact good business practice can have on the planet and on society. 

“Businesses need to be nett positive to the planet otherwise there is no point. It’s not to say that profit is a dirty word, but you shouldn’t be destroying things in order to make that profit.” Ethique’s point of difference is to consider all phases in the production and life of the product and apply ethical values wherever possible.

“We are raising the bar by thinking of everything from transparent supply chain to the end-of-use; the consumer doesn’t have to think about recycling or throwing in the bin – there is no waste at that end. Big brands are jumping on the trend, it’s seen as an easy way of helping the environment – but they haven’t gone to the other values in terms of being palm oil-free or paying a living wage. It’s great that they’re doing what they are, but hopefully (our approach) will inspire businesses to do the other things, too.

“I hope so. If you see businesses doing well or a business like ours growing, you’ll see it is totally doable to run a sustainable business across all aspects, environmentally and financially.” While Ethique’s success can be attributed to Brianne’s passion for science, the environment and business, there is also a healthy dose of creativity in the mix. She taught herself cosmetic science and had even established and sold another – albeit much smaller – cosmetics business before deciding, as an under-stretched student at Canterbury University, to find a new challenge. Having identified the problem, Brianne turned her creative focus to finding the solution. She gave herself a goal of saving the world from a million plastic bottles by 2020.

“We actually saved the world from 10 million plastic bottles by 2020. By now, it’s 20 million. So, it’s gone a lot faster…”

Ethique employs 36 staff – mostly in New Zealand, with some in the United States and the UK. Operating globally from this end of the Earth has its challenges, related to isolation, distance and distribution logistics. The product is manufactured in New Zealand but, by design, Ethique has a significantly lower carbon footprint in terms of shipping, compared to bottled products. And Brianne agrees it’s easier these days to establish connections globally, thanks to the internet. Not all relationships can be managed remotely, though. “Networking is so important. When we go to the States, it’s nonstop meetings and interviews!  

People find it interesting that we’re a New Zealand company and want to write about us. “We also have a reputation for being kind, fun, friendly, laidback people – and with a more environmental bent, too.” Another Kiwi advantage is the place itself. “The fact we’re surrounded by New Zealand’s incredible scenery inspires us as a team.”