16 Asian American and Pacific Islander Owned Beauty Brands to Know
Highlighting AAPI owned brands making efforts towards safety, efficacy, sustainability and social impact in the beauty industry.
The brands on this list are ones that many beauty savants will already be familiar with, but we don’t always get to see who’s responsible for the magic. With AAPI Heritage Month coming to a close soon, we want to highlight 16 fearless founders that have revolutionized the beauty industry, each in their own right. Whether it’s creating heritage inspired formulas, addressing taboo skin concerns, or offering solutions for melanated skin, these brands deserve a spotlight for creating a space in beauty for everyone. While it’s especially relevant to support these brands this month, it’s honestly no issue to open your wallet for them all year long.
U Beauty: Tina Chen Craig is an OG influencer and blogger, launching one of the first fashion/ beauty sites in 2005, BagSnob. Now the founder of a powerful, multifunctional, scientifically proven line of skin and body products, Tina is revolutionizing luxury beauty with her SIREN patent-pending technology infused into ever product she drops.
Resurfacing Body Compound ($128)
Tower28: May Liu founded clean beauty brand Tower28 out of a need for a makeup line that wouldn’t negatively impact her eczema. Tower28 is the only makeup brand that is 100% compliant with all of the ingredients approved by the National Eczema Association, making it safe for sensitive skin - and most everything is under $28.
Shine On Lip Jelly ($16)
Tatcha: After graduating from Harvard Business School, Vicky Tsai found herself in Kyoto where she was inspired by the rituals and natural ingredients employed by Japanese women. She quickly quit her corporate job to work with a team of scientists and geishas to develop her Japanese inspired skincare range, Tatcha, all starting with blotting papers.
Violet-C Radiance Mask ($70)
CocoKind: What started as a side project in her home, Priscilla Tsai created CocoKind, an affordable superfood-based clean skincare line, out of necessity following her years of troubling health concerns triggered by toxic ingredients. Coconut was a foundation ingredient in the first 7 products she launched, hence the name - Cocokind.
Ceramide Barrier Serum ($22)
Youthforia: As seen on SharkTank, Fiona Co Chan’s Youthforia is a relatively new makeup brand on the scene. She founded the brand coming out of COVID with a goal of creating skin loving makeup so clean you could sleep in it.
BYO Blush ($36)
LiveTinted: After going viral in 2015 for sharing how she covers dark under eyes with red lipstick on YouTube, influencer Deepica Mutyala started LiveTinted as a way to celebrate all complexions and skin tone, address concerns specific to deeper tones, and create products with skin benefitting ingredients.
Huestick Color Corrector ($24)
Skylar Fragrance: Hypoallergenic and sensitive skin safe perfume brand Skylar was created by Cat Chen when she realized her traditional perfumes were giving her daughter allergenic reactions. Inspired by the nature of California, every scent is fresh and dreamy like the landscape of the west coast state.
Vanilla Sky Perfume ($90)
Glow Recipe: What was once a buzzy marketplace for all of the best Korean skincare, Glow Recipe has evolved into its own line of cult-worthy fruit powered clean beauty products. Christine Chang and Sarah Lee have grown the brand exponentially since, and is now one of the most popular brands at Sephora.
Watermelon Glow Niacinamide Drew Drops ($35)
Ranavat: Michelle Ranavat founded Ranavat as a way to integrate Indian and Ayurvedic beauty rituals into western beauty routines with clinically proven formulations for skin and hair.
Resurfacing AHA Saffron Masque ($75)
Eadem: Named Fast Company’s #1 innovative beauty startup in 2022, Eadem is a relatively new skincare brand started by co-founder Alice Lin Glover. Created around their hero product, Milk Marvel Dark Spot Serum, this line is tailored to the specific skin concerns related to melanated skin such as uneven skin tone and hyperpigmentation.
Milk Marvel Dark Spot Serum ($68)
IOTA: Having just won a Cosmo Award for best new body care brand, IOTA is a new brand to look out for. Founded on the concept of protecting the whole skin microbiome, Monique Meneses believes that all over skin health is just as important to our overall health as diet, sleep, and exercise are.
Superplant Body Serum+ w/ 2% Niacinamide ($39)
Fur: Co-founder Lillian Tung started Fur, a line of body care products meant to help with issues associated with body hair (think ingrowns, razor bumps, stubble). Whether you prefer to go bare or full on, their products are designed to nourish the hair and skin all the same.
Fur Oil ($52)
Phlur: After buying the brand in 2021, long time influencer Christelle Lim is now the owner of Phlur, a fragrance brand that has been stocked in Sephora for some time now. Moving away from the clean label to focus on what’s in their product at rather than what’s not, Phlur is still a mindfully crafted and sustainability sourced fragrance brand. Their most popular fragrance, Missing Person, went viral on TikTok earlier this year.
Missing Person Eau de Parfum ($96)
Soft Services: Offering real solutions to common body care concerns, Glossier alum and co-founder Rebecca Zhou launched Soft Services when she realized there was a gap in the market addressing taboo concerns like body acne and chicken skin.
Buffing Bar Microcrystal Exfoliant ($30)
Summer Fridays: Marianna Hewitt is one half of the cult-favorite, influencer-made brand Summer Fridays, a lineup of beautiful, simple skincare and makeup staples ranging from the very popular lip butters to the milky, whitecast-free sunscreen.
Lip Butter Balm ($24)
Typology: French brand Typology was founded by Ning Li as a way to stand out amongst the many legacy French cosmetics brands. With a modern, fresh approach, her brand focuses on minimal, simple products and formulas for a high-quality, pared down skincare and makeup routine (Ã la French girl vibes, of course).
