The “3” in W3LL PEOPLE represents the beauty brand’s three founders—a unique trio made up of an elite makeup artist, a board certified dermatologist, and a tree-hugging entrepreneur who joined forces to change the beauty biz for the better.
Let us set the scene for you. The new millennium has arrived. James Walker has moved back to Austin, TX from Manhattan to start up a strategic marketing firm focused on the new cultural zeitgeist: sustainable living. You may have heard about one of his first Texas clients making big waves in wellness: Whole Foods Market. In the process of getting smarter about ingredient health and safety for Whole Foods, James listened to discerning customers seeking healthier choices, particularly in beauty. It quickly became apparent that the natural beauty playing field was lackluster...at best.
The information James learned in his research regarding common ingredients going into conventional personal care products was disturbing. This revelation regarding the ugly side of beauty, amplified by the lack of any real government oversight, compelled James. And a big, beautiful idea was born. Imagine a cosmetic line with all the sex appeal and performance of conventional brands, but with authentic quality and virtuous intentions.
James quickly enlisted the support of his two besties from college, Shirley Pinkson and Renee Snyder. Now the trio consisted of an eco-friendly marketing expert, a celebrity makeup artist who was conducting global training for the cosmetic giant, NARS, and Renee Snyder, MD, a board certified dermatologist with A-list clientele and a finger on the pulse of cutting-edge dermatological research. This beauty dream team knew that they had the education, experience, and credentials to make beautiful things happen, but they also knew that developing products that would meet their high standards for ingredients, environmental impact, and performance would be a challenge. And boy were they right.
The ambitious trio found that the ‘good for you’ cosmetics available in health stores left a lot to be desired. A beautiful ingredient story does not always deliver performance that can go toe-to-toe with its conventional competitors. After two years of painstaking research, countless hours in development, and investing virtually their entire savings, these three soon-to-be green beauty innovators launched their very own beauty brand in 2008. And that, my friends, is the story of how W3LL PEOPLE was born!
Fast forward to July, 2008, and James, Renee, and Shirley are standing in front of the doors to W3LL PEOPLE’s first flagship store in Austin, Texas, about to unleash a new era of green beauty, one in which performance isn’t sacrificed for clean ingredients, and high-quality, luxurious products come without the health risks of conventional products. Their initial collection is small, but the impact of their healthy, multi-tasking products is immediate. Austin fell in love with W3LL PEOPLE and knew they could trust the products to not only be safe, but to perform. James, Shirley, and Renee couldn’t have anticipated back then that the three of them would be at the forefront of a revolution that would turn the beauty industry upside down.
Now we find ourselves in 2018, celebrating W3LL PEOPLE’s 10 Year Anniversary. Suffice to say, our green beauty dream team has come a long way since their days at the University of Texas at Austin (Hook ‘em Horns!). Today, you’ll find W3LL PEOPLE’s expansive collection of innovative cosmetics coast to coast, sitting on the shelves of prestigious stockists like Anthropologie, Credo and Detox Market, national giants like Target and Whole Foods, and in their own gallery-like Studio in Austin, Texas. At their central headquarters in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the W3LL PEOPLE team is developing powerful, non-toxic products with beautiful pigments, long-lasting wear, and organic plant-based formulas that their toxic competition can’t hold a fragrance-free soy candle to. We can't wait to share more exciting innovations with you this year!
The past decade has been quite the trip, and the best is yet to come! We want to thank you, our fans and informed consumers, for all of your support. Please enjoy 10% off and FREE SHIPPING on all orders through the month of July! No code required. If you're curious why so many people love us, check out the 7 Reasons So Many Women Switch to W3LL PEOPLE. Keep an eye on our blog and social media feeds for peeks at the past, interviews with our team, and some sneak peeks at new W3LL PEOPLE products!