International Women’s Day (IWD) has long been a day to demonstrate that you stand in solidarity with women. The global event is a key date on the women’s rights calendar, but it’s so much more than that: it’s a chance to celebrate women everywhere, take a moment to acknowledge our achievements and look forward to how we can further progress. That’s why we’re taking the opportunity to highlight six of the female-founded beauty brands that blow our minds and the success of the incredible women that own them.

“People say that you shouldn’t own a business if you don’t want a boss because you end up with lots of different bosses anyway—from customers to investors, and everyone in between. However, I quite like being accountable to lots of stakeholders—including myself,” says Maeva Haim, the founder of Bread Beauty Supply, a haircare brand that is out to hero natural texture. “You take on a huge amount of responsibility, but at the end of the day, I’ll gladly take that on if it means the decisions for the business are ultimately down to me.”

Heim not only launched Bread Beauty Supply during the pandemic but managed to get Sephora  on board before she’d even launched a product. That’s no mean feat, but it also took some serious hard work and of course, Heim’s genuinity to find a gap in the market—like many Black women, Heim had spent years relaxing her hair before she created efficacious products that would help with growing out her own natural texture.

As she embarks on IWD this year, she tells us: “To me, International Women’s Day is about recognising how far we’ve come, and acknowledging how far we still have to go—especially when it comes to the intersectionality of womanhood. It’s about celebrating the womxn who have helped us along the way, and taking stock of the ways we have helped others so far, and what more we can still do.” We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.

Shop Bread Beauty Supply.

Knowing that 65 per cent of the world’s population has wavy, curly or afro hair, Rumbie Mutsiwa couldn’t help but notice these hair types were not being catered for in the salon experience—particularly so in Australia, where she relocated to from Zimbabwe 15 years ago. Rumbie is now part of the change, breaking down boundaries by launching her Chippendale salon Rumbie and Co and an innovative product line to boot.

“I would like to think I try to celebrate women’s day everyday!” says Rumbie of her IWD plans. “Celebrating International Women’s Day for me is about taking time out to listen to the stories of other wonderful women and learning how they succeed in their everyday lives. I also make a special effort to text women in my life and let them know why I admire them. Basically, spread the love!”

For Rumbie, mentorship is key and when it comes to her own mentors and the women she looks up to, Rumbie names her late mother as her biggest inspiration. “She loved hard, worked hard and fought hard for our family to live well. She was tenacious, and a no-nonsense kinda gal yet she impacted people positively. The values she taught me were to be kind, fair, honest and, when you can, be generous. As a leader I try to ensure these values guide me.”

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Nancy Twine has hit some seriously impressive milestones in her career. She not only created her own “green” beauty brand, Briogeo Hair Care, but in doing so, she became the youngest African-American founder to launch a product line at Sephora and recently hit an annual turnover of $40 million dollars. Here in Australia, she has conquered Mecca too, but her career path was forged by tragedy, after losing one of the most important women in her life: her mum. 

“I started my career in finance, and halfway through my career, I actually lost my mom in a car accident. It was a very profound moment for me, in a lot of different ways. But I think the biggest way was that, you know, life could be short. And it’s so important that we align our careers with our passions.” 

That’s now her best piece of career advice to other women and she tells Gritty Pretty she sometimes feels like a “broken record” saying it, but she insists: “You do your best work when you align your passion with your career.”

That and backing yourself. “One of the things that I feel like men do is they really have no fear about asking for what they want. I have so many girlfriends that will call me like, ‘Nancy, I’ve been working so hard, and I feel like I deserve a promotion. I’m doing more than anyone else on my team.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, you’ve got to speak up and say something!’”

Shop Briogeo Hair Care.

“We know now more than ever that beauty lies in championing a diverse group of women, as well as those who identify as women,” says Nicole Eckels, the clever entrepreneur who turned a shopping trip to buy a candle into a business which employs more than 100 people and brings in more than $50 million a year. If you’re not familiar with Eckels, she’s the founder of your favourite candle brand, Glasshouse Fragrances.

“I’ve always looked up to Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel as CHANEL was the first brand I worked with as a make-up artist,” she explains. “I’ve loved how she had the power to transcend the everyday as a fearless and independent woman while paving the way for other female leaders within fashion and beauty for years to follow.”

As for how the brand will be celebrating other women this IWD and beyond? “At GLASSHOUSE FRAGRANCES, we always look to work with new and international artists to celebrate them and bring their talent to a broader audience.”

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“Before I launched Clemence Organics someone said to me ‘just start’—which was in relation to my products being ‘ready’ to launch. If it was up to me (a major perfectionist) I would still be tweaking and making my products and packaging that little bit better even today. You really just have to get it out there..,” says Bridget Carmady, founder of Clemence organics.

It’s this perfectionism that saw Carmady pioneer a results-driven, 100 percent natural and certified organic skincare line. A brand which found its roots when she decided to take matters into her own hands, creating a balm for her father who had been journeying through radiation treatment for cancer at the time. “I was in the final year of my naturopathy degree at university by then and so thoroughly researched the most beneficial ingredients to use [in the balm]. It worked wonders and this inspired me to continue making skincare products for clients as I began my naturopathic practice.”

Carmady has since continued to honour the legacy of her father and her sister who both battled with cancer. It’s their stories that continue to fortify her passion for health and reducing cancer risk where possible. “The role that skincare plays in health may seem small and insignificant for some, but when the body absorbs around 80% of what we put on it, I don’t feel we can take it too lightly.” On what she’s grateful for this IWD “Having the support of strong, successful women has been an absolute game-changer for both my personal and professional life. I am grateful to be a part of a dynamic women’s business group, where we consistently connect and offer guidance to one another.” 

Shop Clémence Organics.

“Womxn’s shame and discomfort about sex and pleasure has been static for way too long. We knew it was time for quality, beautiful sex products to be readily available and covetable,” Eloise O’Sullivan and Eloise McCullough describe when asked what propelled them to create an intimacy line that launched this year with their very first product, a personal lubricant. “The majority of lubricants stocked at your local supermarket have a pH 7 (this includes trusty ol’ coconut oil!) which is fine for someone with a penis, but can cause problems down the line for your vulva (as our pH sits 3.5-4),” they describe. 

While they acknowledge the number of womxn in the sexual wellness space is growing rapidly—and yes, they’re part of this growth—and say it’s something to be celebrated, they insist there’s still plenty of work to do. “Womxn’s nipples are still being censored on Instagram, womxn’s genitals are being mutilated in 30 countries around the globe, womxn are being scrutinised in the media when speaking up against a sexual assaulter, blue liquid represents blood in period product advertisements, and there’s still so much shame and confusion wrought with what it means to be a womxn. These are just some of thousands of hurdles womxn must overcome from the day they exit the womb. We made a conscious decision from the beginning of FIGR to collaborate with people who identity as womxn and non-binary, as a staggering 70% of sex product companies are run by men.”

Instead, FIGR is for everyone. “When we lift one another up, our possibilities are endless.”

Shop FIGR.

“I always remain teachable and the main thing that I’ve learned is to always trust my gut,” explains Sonya Driver when asked about what she wished she grasped before starting out in business. Taking this ethos into her everyday life, Driver’s commitment to organic formulations began about 14 years ago.“My youngest sister was diagnosed with Melanoma and she had a nasty cut on her arm. She was going to have a spray tan however we were concerned about ingredients seeping through her nasty scar. After I started researching the tan that was on the market, I was shocked with the ingredients I found.” 

It was not long before Eco Tan landed their certified organic certificate in 2011 making the brand Australia’s first organic tanning range. However, her success is not only attributed to mindfulness, but the philanthropy that runs through the core of the brand. In 2020 Driver launched a not-for-profit known as The Miracle Made Foundation. With a purpose to lift others up and create immediate impact, the grass-roots foundation provides those who find themselves homeless with safe shelter, clothing, food, medical and education, and assists those fleeing domestic violence.

In celebration of IWD, Driver and her team are fostering lightness, laughter and relief through community. “Anybody that is a bucket filler that digs dip, feels the pain, and pushes forward is inspiring. The people that do the hard stuff. It’s in the grind and uncomfort that we find the gold.”

Shop Eco Tan.

Ever since British makeup artist Charlotte Tilbury launched her namesake skincare and makeup line in 2013, she’s basically made it her job description to shatter glass ceilings. In fact, the brand has clocked up more than 300 global awards since and in 2018, she was crowned with  The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for her services to the beauty industry. 

How’d she do it? “ There’s a powerful, positive chain reaction when women embrace our magic, and that moment of self-belief has an empowering ripple effect, spreading LOVE and JOY from one person to another, and to the world!” says Tilbury, who, each IWD, does her best to remind women to “always have self-belief and harness what makes you unique!”

Tilbury is also a Global Ambassador and long-time supporter of Women for Women International, so IWD means quite a deal to her. “I am incredibly proud to be a Global Ambassador and long-time supporter of Women for Women International. Playing a part in helping women survivors of war to rebuild their lives and define their own destinies is truly inspiring, and we are committed to raising awareness for this incredible, world-changing charity every day—but especially on International Women’s Day.” 

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With a mission to bring sustainably sourced Indian sandalwood to our everyday lives, Alex Wilson found herself dreaming up Heartwood and launching in October 2019. Her family owned farm not only sustainably grows Indian Sandalwood—no mean feat considering it is almost extinct in its native home, India—but harvests, distils and offers this precious wellness ingredient in skincare, fragrance and in the Heartwood Spa.

With such a unique offering, Wilson highlights the importance of empowering and fostering her team, ensuring that those she works alongside capture the purity of Heartwood’s provenance and process. “Hiring and nurturing an incredible team who bring our sandalwood brand to life on a daily basis has been one of my biggest challenges,” notes Wilson. 

Designed to inspire peace and reveal outer radiance, Wilson tells Gritty Pretty: “my favourite product we offer is The Royal Treatment Sheet Masks. They calm and brighten the mind and the skin with potent Indian sandalwood, Australian native antioxidants, hyaluronic acid and niacinamide.

Shop Heartwood Natural Harmony.