AntiBeauty was created by Founder, Benjamyn Gardner, who has over fifteen years experience working as a makeup artist and skin specialist. Prior to creating the brand, Benjamyn was also known as the top-ranking salesperson in Australia for one of the largest beauty companies in the world, before realising the industry's pitfalls.
The beauty industry is known to be extremely limited in its vision of equality, and this is what inspired Benjamyn to create AntiBeauty; to destroy the stereotypes that the industry and general population have conditioned us to see as being “beautiful”.
When asked how his startup journey began, Benjamyn shared that he has previous experience in growing a viral company, HauntCult, but this is the first time he’s gone on to create a company on his own.
“My experience with Haunt gave me the confidence and business knowledge needed to create my own brand that exists to disrupt an industry, and change lives at the same time. After I returned to Australia following Haunt, I decided to go back into the beauty industry for a while to gain some insight into where the industry currently stood, as it had been a few years since I had been a part of it. This provided me with the overwhelming drive to create AntiBeauty, which I’ve designed to counteract all of the negative parts of the beauty industry, and its destruction of the human psyche and self image.”
“Benjamyn states that this list is growing as they discover more ways to make AntiBeauty the perfect beauty brand for those who want to see the industry be held accountable for its actions, and forced to change its ways.
When asked what the ‘wow’ factor of AntiBeauty is, Benjamyn states that it’s their utmost total authenticity. There have been other brands in the past who have had a "similar" message or value proposition, but then they find out that it’s easier to join them than beat them, so they cave and alter their values.
“I think one of the most important things to us is that consumers look into who actually owns the "ethical" brands that they support, and based on polling, the majority of consumers believe brands that were once ethical, are still ethical, and that's often not the case.”
"We have been highly recognised for our efforts so far, we have only 5-star reviews, we have a super loyal client base, and we have won 27 awards in just under two years. Essentially our clients know that when they shop with us, they will be getting the products and services that they have been looking for in the industry but have been disappointed by. Our customer base actually mainly consists of people who have given up on following a "beauty" routine, as they were sick of the industry's false promises and lies,” he continued.
AntiBeauty was also recently announced as a finalist in two categories of the Wanneroo Business Awards for 2022, including "Innovator of the Year" and "Best Owner-Operator". The brand has also recently won a Prevention Beauty Award 2022, fro Best Hyaluronic Acid Serum.
When asked about his experience within Plus Eight programs, Benjamyn goes on to say that the programs he’s been a part of have been an amazing experience. He started out by participating in the City of Canning Plus Eight Sprint program in 2021, which gave him a good overview of the foundations of the business, and helped solidify the plans he had for the future of AntiBeauty. From there, he went on to apply and be selected for Phase One of the 2022 Plus Eight Accelerator cohort.
“Attending the Plus Eight Accelerator Bootcamp and then making it through to Phase One has been a blessing. It has given me the ability to take a more in-depth look into what is necessary to propel my business to the next level and has really accelerated the growth of my brand.”
“It's amazing to be surrounded by other business owners and founders who are working with the same growth mindset as myself, and it's a really encouraging and supportive team. I've really enjoyed the meetings with all of the mentors and love the help that Kylie and Derek have given to me.” he continued.
Benjamyn goes on to express how refreshing it is to be told what needs to be fixed in the business, as well as what you are currently doing well.
When asked if there’s anything else he wants to discuss, Benjamyn goes on to state that he would love for anyone who wants to help drive change in the industry to reach out.
“We are looking to create real social change and would love to partner with anyone who has the same values or mindset as us. And of course, if you or anyone that you know, has skin, please join the #AntiBeautyMovement and help us change the face of the beauty industry for the future generations.” he goes on to conclude.
You can learn more about the AntiBeauty brand and movement by checking out their socials on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok.
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