I guess it was just a case of the grass looking greener. Since spending yesterday bemoaning the international beauty brands not at my fingertips, I’ve had some time to reflect upon the little Aussie beauties that girls from London to New York are queuing at counters for. Plus I remembered that we Australian girls have voted ourselves the most gorgeous in the globe.
So, what do you know, I’m feeling much better…
Everyone from New York to the Middle East loves ModelCo, Napoleon Perdis is launching a suitably Napoleonic takeover of counters across the sea, Al’chemy natural haircare won a UK New Woman Beauty Award this year, and UK design bible Wallpaper* named Megan Gale’s Invisible Zinc the World’s Best New Beauty Product in 2006. Indeed, Austrade, the Australian government trade commission, says beauty exports have exploded from $23 million to $282 million in the past 20 years and that the boom shows no signs of slowing.
The rest of the world wants what we’ve got, girls. But what is that exactly?
Austrade chalks some of the allure up to Australia’s unique native environment. But while that might explain the attraction to Al’chemy, brands like Jurlique, which trades on hand-harvested botanicals from biodynamic farms in South Australia, or Li’Tya, which brings Indigenous ingredients and Dreamtime stories to beauty, what of the tearaway success of ModelCo and Napoleon?
Maybe it’s just that our brands are plain good. Local skincare line Alpha-H is in the hallowed halls of Harrods, has clinics in the celebrity-spotting territory of Primrose Hill and sells 65 per cent of its AHA-soaked skincare in the UK. The brand’s director, Michelle Doherty, says, “People in London will spend hundreds of pounds on the latest buzz products, but we’ve got a loyal following because the results are real and you don’t have to wait months and months to see them.”
Results always speak for themselves, but I can’t help but wonder if the eternal images of the bronzed beach babe and natural Aussie beauty have something to do with it. In a global Truth in Beauty survey conducted by Clinique earlier this year, Australian women voted women from our own country the most beautiful in the world. And in a recent Bh poll, 63 per cent of readers said they prefer Australian-made products. If we believe it, why wouldn’t everyone else?
Do you think we’re the prettiest people on the planet?
