Environment-friendly beauty: Organic, vegan treatment is buzzword at Bengaluru salons now

BENGALURU: The husband-wife duo Nithin Kamath and Seema Patil of online brokerage firm Zerodha are fitness freaks. Not only do they practise high-intensity training such as boxing and yoga, they have also switched to eco-conscious living with an almost plastic-free household, organic food and timely ewaste disposal. Patil also swears by organic and vegan skin and hair treatments during her salon visits.

“I have switched to organic manicures and pedicures and vegan hair care treatments. The idea is to make a contribution that can positively impact our health and preserve the environment for future generations,” says Patil, adding that motherhood played a significant role in making this lifestyle change.

Like Patil, quite a few beauty-conscious Bengalureans are turning environment-conscious. Aeisha Sahni, business head at spirit company John Distilleries, indulges in organic manicures and pedicures with house-made activated charcoal masks, vegan nail polishes and hair care treatments. “I shifted to organic living a year ago. I like to eat as clean as possible. I buy natural soaps. Switching to eco-conscious salon treatments was an organic progression,” she says, attributing the rising environment-consciousness to the awareness caused by social media.



Like their ‘clean’ households, many Bengalureans want their skin and hair services at salons, too, to be organic and cruelty-free. Salons are moving towards such ingredients to cater to this growing demand. Maude Abraham, founder of Get Gorgeous salon on Lavelle Road, saw bookings for organic manicures and pedicures using cold-pressed oils like olive oil, argon oil and almond oil double in the last six months. She notes that her customers are switching to vegan nail polish options, cruelty-free products that use only ecoingredients like honey and aloe vera to organic hair care treatments at her salon. “Working women, expecting mothers and new mothers have become extremely conscious about their health and the environment. They have the disposable income and are willing to pay extra to make an impact,” says Abraham.

The Wink Salon and Spa in Ulsoor has been sourcing organic and cruelty-free beauty products over the last one year. Dead Sea salt skin treatments, organic body scrubs with coffee, sugar and honey and vegan hair treatments have made it to the salon menu. “It’s a win-win situation. The conscious customers are content. Organic and vegan treatments work as a good marketing tool for the salon,” says the salon’s operating partner Joerique Kith Abhishai.

Bodycraft Spa and Salon chain has a vegan hair-colour support treatment but its director Swati Gupta says, “It is not that the non-organic market is not good, but awareness for organic and vegan among women is increasing. Once the market evolves with more products, we want to be pro eco-conscious, too.”