Last Friday in New York City, Cosmetics Executive Women hosted its annual Beauty Awards luncheon, attracting hundreds of cosmetics, personal care, and fragrance industry insiders and filling the Midtown Hilton event space.
After a dynamic networking reception (replete with selfies and luminary pics in front of a step-and-repeat backdrop), the awards presentations and luncheon event got underway.
Industry endorsement
CEW received over 1000 entries from some 500+ brands for this year’s awards competition. The organization’s president, Carlotta Jacobson, explains why so many brands and products clamor to be recognized by CEW: “As innovation in the beauty space grows, so does the abundance of products for consumers to choose from. Now, more than ever, the CEW seal of approval helps consumers navigate the beauty space to make their purchase decisions.”
“That’s why the CEW Beauty Awards have become the industry’s most important recognition for brands and manufacturers,” adds Jacobson.
It may also be why the awards are so dynamic, with adjustments made nearly every year to reflect the current state of the market and the product categories consumers find themselves navigating.
All things indie and niche proliferate the beauty market now, especially when it comes to digital and local brands (though tech pros are working swiftly to make these niche brands global phenomena). So CEW added an indie hair category for 2018 as well as a niche fragrance category. And, there was also a nutricosmetic category on the roster this year as well, mirroring the rise in beauty-from-within products and functional foods making beauty claims.
Suppliers welcome
This year, CEW also added a couple of supply-side categories to its prestigious awards program. The Packaging Innovation and Formula Innovation awards were the first supplier awards given by the organization.
The Packaging Innovation award went to Derek Lam 10 Crosby Parfum Stick—a twist-up solid fragrance that comes, depending on the scent, with a colorful array of collars; the winning design is really a mix of product format, applicator, and packaging decoration.
Formula innovation of the year (which is really more of an ingredient innovation) went to Geltor Inc. for that company’s N-Collagen—an animal-free collagen for skincare.
Soojin Choung, the biotech company’s director of cosmetics and personal care, was in New York City last week and accepted the award. Since then, the company’s CEO, Alex Lorestani, has commented, “We are delighted to have Geltor’s first product recognized by the premier coalition of beauty industry leaders. N-Collage being the ‘Innovation of the Year’ in a highly competitive field validates the power of our ingredient design platform. We are excited to empower our customers to build iconic beauty products for customers seeking performance and sustainability.”
All the winners
The complete list of CEW Beauty Award winners (taken verbatim from the organization’s press release) follows:
Acne Treatment (Blemish Busters):
- philosophy Purity Made Simple Pore Extractor Exfoliating Clay Mask
Anti-Aging Mass (Turn Back Time)
- NEUTROGENA® Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream
Anti-Aging Prestige (Turn Back Time)
- LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask
Bath and Body Mass (Does A Body Good)
- Aquaphor Ointment Body Spray
Bath and Body Prestige (Does A Body Good)
- OUAI Haircare Rose Hair & Body Oil
Best Beauty App ((H)appy Beauty)
- Perfect Corp. YouCam Makeup
Best Seller – Mass
- Herbal Essences Bio: Renew
Best Seller - Prestige
- Philosophy Purity Made Simple Pore Extractor Exfoliating Clay Mask
Cleanser & Scrub (Keep It Clean)
- Shiseido Cosmetics America Waso Soft + Cushy Polisher
Eye Makeup Mass (All Eyes on Me)
- L'Oréal Paris Voluminous Lash Paradise
Eye Makeup Prestige (All Eyes on Me)
- Urban Decay Naked Heat Eyeshadow Palette
Eye Treatment (Eye on The Prize)
- Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Concentrate Matrix Synchronized Recovery
Face Makeup Mass (#NoFilter)
- NEUTROGENA® Hydro Boost Hydrating Tint
Face Makeup Prestige (#NoFilter)
- NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer
Hair Coloring Product (Dying for Color)
- L'Oréal Paris Colorista Semi-Permanent Hair Color
Hair Shampoo/Hair Conditioner (The Mane Attraction)
- Oribe Gold Lust Pre-Shampoo Intensive Treatment
Hair Style/Hair Care (Hair-spiration)
- Oribe Swept Up Volume Powder Spray
Hair Tools (DIY Style)
- Drybar Wrap Party Curling & Styling Wand
Iconic Beauty – Mass
- Dove White Beauty Bar
Iconic Beauty – Prestige
- Beautyblender The original beautyblender
Indie Brand (New Game in Town)
- Drunk Elephant
Indie Hair (New Game in Town)
- Briogeo Hair Care Scalp Revival Charcoal + Coconut Oil Micro-Exfoliating Shampoo
Indie Makeup (New Game in Town)
- The BrowGal The Weekender
Indie Skincare (New Game in Town)
- Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Sukari Babyfacial
Lip Product Mass (Seal It with A Kiss)
- PIXI by Petra Matte Last Liquid Lip
Lip Product Prestige (Seal It with A Kiss)
- NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment
Lip Treatment (Lip Service)
- Fresh Sugar Lip Caramel Hydrating Balm
Makeup Tools (Tools of The Trade)
- Beautyblender beautyblender Swirl
Men’s Grooming (Man Made)
- Tom Ford Beauty Shave Cream
Men’s Scent (Male Attraction)
- YSL Beauty Y Eau de Toilette
Men’s Scent Perfumer
- Dominique Ropion, IFF
Moisturizer Mass (S.O.S – Save Our Skin)
- Aveeno® Positively Radiant Overnight Hydrating Facial
Moisturizer Prestige (S.O.S – Save Our Skin)
- IT Cosmetics Secret Sauce™
Most Buzzed About Beauty Collaboration
- BECCA Cosmetics Becca x Chrissy Teigen Glow Face Palette
Nail Product (Nailed It)
- Essie Treat Love & Color in Sheers to You
Niche Fragrance
- Derek Lam 10 Crosby Parfum Stick
Niche Fragrance Perfumer Award
- Clément Gavarry, Pascal Gaurin, Yves Cassar and Laurent LeGuernec, IFF
Nutricosmetic Product
- Sakara Life Beauty Chocolates
Skincare Tools (Device Advice)
- Rodan + Fields Redefine Amp MD Micro-Exfoliating Roller
Sun Product (Bring on The Sun)
- Supergoop! Super Power Sunscreen Mousse SPF 50
Women’s Scent Mass (It Makes Sense)
- Pacifica Beauty Aromapower Hardcore Happy
Women’s Scent Prestige (It Makes Sense)
- Gucci Bloom
Women’s Scent Prestige Perfumer
- Alberto Morillas, Firmenich
Packaging of the Year
- Derek Lam 10 Crosby Parfum Stick
Innovation of the Year
- Geltor, Inc. N-Collage
Sustainability Excellence
- NaturaBrasil
QVC 2018 Beauty Quest
- Chuda
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Deanna Utroske, CosmeticsDesign.com Editor, covers beauty business news in the Americas region and publishes the weekly Indie Beauty Profile column, showcasing the inspiring work of entrepreneurs and innovative brands.