If you’re a clean beauty fanatic, chances are you have a few Avvai Beauty products in your kit. Recently launched in Dubai, this indie makeup brand has taken the Emirate by (sand)storm with its signature products, the Brow Friend brow pencil and Lip Paste lipstick. We chatted with co-founder, Shivani Phulwani, to find out more about the creation of her beauty brand that supports a healthy n’ holistic lifestyle.
Cosmo ME: Tell us about your starting point. Have you always lived in Dubai?
Shivani Phulwani: I was born and brought up in Dubai. After graduating high school, I moved to Canada where I obtained a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Administration specialising in Strategy and Entrepreneurship.
C: Did you always plan on being a beauty entrepreneur?
SP: I didn’t plan on being a beauty entrepreneur initially, but as I gravitated towards living a cleaner and healthier lifestyle, I recognised the significance of what we apply to our skin as being just as important as what we consume. This realisation ultimately inspired me to become a beauty entrepreneur.
C: What has your career path been like leading up to Avvai Beauty?
SP: Before launching Avvai, I honed my logistics and international supply chain management skills in supporting my family’s enterprise.
via Instagram @avvaibeauty
C: What has been a pivotal moment for you in your career?
SP: The launch of Avvai’s Lip Paste was a game-changer for me. After four years of grit, passion and dedication, we finally hit the mark, even switching manufacturers and reformulating twice to deliver the best formula possible. Quite the milestone.
C: What was your inspo behind creating a clean beauty brand?
SP: When I started moving towards a cleaner lifestyle, I realized that all the clean beauty products I purchased were from when I was traveling. This inspired me to create a home-grown clean beauty brand alongside my sister, Mallika Kalwani.
The process of creating Avvai was very challenging but fulfilling. We attended numerous trade shows to identify the best manufacturers who could meet our strict requirements and create products that could withstand the heat of the Middle East
C: How did you come up with the concept of Avvai Beauty?
SP: We wanted to create a clean beauty brand with transparency at its heart. This means transparency from A to Z, whether that is our makeup formulation or our commitment to sustainability.
We decided to empower our customers with all the information about our ingredients on our website. We have an #AvvaiApproved list which explains how each ingredient is derived, and we also have an #AvvaiAvoids list of chemical substances and ingredients known to be unsafe, environmentally concerning, or non-vegan friendly. By offering this transparency, we ensure our customers have the knowledge and tools to make informed choices.
C: How important was inclusivity and sustainability when creating Avvai Beauty?
SP: Inclusivity and sustainability were two factors which were of paramount importance to us when creating Avvai Beauty. We had a simple goal- the shades should be suitable for a range of skin tones. We worked with makeup artists and daily makeup users and conducted focus groups to finalize the shades and achieve this goal.
Our eco-conscious ethos extends to our packaging too. Our mono-material lipstick holder is made from 100% PCR (post-consumer recycled) plastic. This means we don’t use any virgin plastic and give discarded plastic a new life as a lipstick holder. Ultimately, it reduces the plastic that ends up in landfills. You can easily recycle our entire holder without the fuss of disassembling the unrecyclable parts. Everything from our eyebrow pencil box to our luxury box is also recyclable.
C: How do you incorporate your heritage into Avvai Beauty?
SP: We incorporated our heritage in Avvai by naming the brand after a Sanskrit word. “Avvai” means “rare” in Sanskrit, a fitting descriptor for our unique brand!
via Instagram @avvaibeauty
C: What are you most proud of with your beauty brand?
SP: The rigorous research behind each and every ingredient hand-picked for our Avvai Beauty products is what we are most proud of. This helps us ensure the utmost customer safety and product integrity. We also share all of the ingredients we allow and avoid on our website for our customers to educate themselves.
C: Give us your three best tips for budding beauty entrepreneurs, plz.
SP: 1. Fuel your journey with passion. The beauty industry requires extensive study and research – ingredients, procedures, testing, and more. When passion drives you, learning becomes a joy.
2. Network at trade shows. When starting out, it can be challenging to find the right manufacturers. Trade shows are a treasure trove of contacts – a brilliant place to sample and select the best match for your needs.
3. Exercise patience. Building a beauty brand takes time – be it formula development, color matching, or product testing. It’s a meticulous process, so don’t rush, let your beauty brand blossom at its own pace.
via Instagram @avvaibeauty
C: What’s one thing you wish you knew at the beginning of your beauty entrepreneurial journey?
SP: At the beginning of my beauty entrepreneurial journey, I wish I knew how much patience would be required to launch our products. I did not realize how lengthy the process would be to transform an idea into a tangible, ready-to-launch product.
via Instagram @avvaibeauty
C: What’s your favorite Avvai Beauty product and why?
SP: My favorite Avvai Beauty product is our Lip Paste. We’ve put in so much time and research into developing it to perfection. They’re our most popular product too.
Shop Avvai Beauty products at www.avvaibeauty.com. You can also shop IRL at W boutique in W Mina Seyahi.