Ever questioned where the ingredients in your beauty products come from? I test a lot of beauty products for a living as a beauty journalist and self-described hair, cosmetics, scent, and skincare enthusiast.
The beauty desk at Who What Wear UK receives a lot of items. But after looking closely at the packaging of my beauty products, I began to notice that some of my favorite purchases all share one thing in common: the nations in which they were made.
For instance, the nicest eye pencils I’ve tested are all German-made, while some of my favorite foundations are all made in Italy.
You see, some of our preferred manufacturers, labs, and factories—both high-end and mass—will race to work with them to build. As a result, several nations have developed a reputation for being the forerunners of high-performing items in their category—think of the greatest mascaras, effective skincare products, and hair products that deliver results. Each nation has a distinct specialty in producing beauty products and game-changing formulas, similar to how each is famed for its cuisine.
You can often tell how effective a formulation is by looking at where a product is made. Consider Beauty Pie, a beauty buyers club that gives members access to products from the best labs worldwide (without the exorbitant costs associated with retailer markups). Many times, its products are created in the same facilities as the high-end cosmetics brands that we all know and love.
