Sometimes the most important business decisions are the hardest ones. Today, we want to share a story about listening to our customers, confronting uncomfortable truths, and choosing integrity over inventory.
The Question That Changed Everything
It started with a simple customer inquiry. A thoughtful shopper reached out with a list of ingredients she was concerned about:
- Parabens
- Synthetic colorants (FD&C/D&C dyes)
- Mineral pigments and modifiers
She asked: "Do any of your makeup products contain these ingredients?"
We thought we knew the answer. After all, Cruisin Organics® is built on a foundation of organic, eco-friendly, clean beauty. We carefully curate our products. We read labels. We ask questions.
But when we actually audited our makeup catalog with her specific concerns in mind, we were shocked by what we found.
The Shocking Discovery
We conducted a thorough ingredient analysis of every makeup product in our store. The results were eye-opening—and humbling.
Products We Thought Were "Clean" But Weren't
BB Creams with Parabens: Two of our BB creams—products we marketed as
Sometimes the most important business decisions are the hardest ones. Today, we want to share a story about listening to our customers, confronting uncomfortable truths, and choosing integrity over inventory.
The Question That Changed Everything
It started with a simple customer inquiry. A thoughtful shopper reached out with a list of ingredients she was concerned about:
- Parabens
- Synthetic colorants (FD&C/D&C dyes)
- Mineral pigments and modifiers
She asked: "Do any of your makeup products contain these ingredients?"
We thought we knew the answer. After all, Cruisin Organics® is built on a foundation of organic, eco-friendly, clean beauty. We carefully curate our products. We read labels. We ask questions.
But when we actually audited our makeup catalog with her specific concerns in mind, we were shocked by what we found.
The Shocking Discovery
We conducted a thorough ingredient analysis of every makeup product in our store. The results were eye-opening—and humbling.
Products We Thought Were "Clean" But Weren't
BB Creams with Parabens: Two of our BB creams—products we marketed as natural alternatives to foundation—contained methylparaben and propylparaben.
Blushes Loaded with Synthetic Colorants: Our blush palettes (including multiple variants) contained a cocktail of FD&C and D&C synthetic dyes like FD&C Red 40 Al Lake, D&C Red 7 Ca Lake, and many more.
Lipsticks with Mineral Pigments: Every single lipstick in our catalog contained mica, iron oxides, titanium dioxide, and bismuth oxychloride—the very mineral pigments our customer was concerned about.
Eyeshadows, Highlighters, and Lip Liners: The pattern continued across our entire color cosmetics line.
The Complete List: 25 Products Removed
After our thorough audit, we removed 25 makeup products from our store:
BB Creams (2 products):
- Betula Birch BB Cream - Contains parabens
- Sienna Love BB Cream - Contains parabens
Blush Palettes (9 products):
- Cheek Blush Palette - Kissable
- Cheek Blush Palette - Squish
- Cheek Blush Palette - Pinch
- Pro Cheek Blush Palette - Pop
- Pro Cheek Blush Palette - Blushy
- Pro Cheek Blush Palette - Curious
- Peach Pop Cheek Blush Palette
- Raspberry Blush - Also contains parabens
- Propel Cheek Blush Palette
Single Blush (1 product):
- Warm Pink Single Pan Blush
Eyeshadow Palettes (3 products):
- 6 Palette Sweet Almond Eyeshadow
- 6 Palette Shimmy Shine Eyeshadow
- Dark Storm Eyeshadow Palette
Lipsticks (3 products):
- Red Fire Cracker Lipstick
- Misty Mauve Lipstick
- Beige Bare Lipstick
Lip Products (3 products):
- Cinna'mon Lip Liner
- My Treat Lip Oil
- Automatic Power Trip Lip Liner
Highlighter (1 product):
- Bronze Lights Highlighter Stick
Additional Products (3 products): 23-25. Additional palette variants containing synthetic colorants and mineral pigments
Why This Matters
Parabens: Synthetic preservatives that can mimic estrogen in the body.
Synthetic FD&C/D&C Colorants: Petroleum-derived dyes that many consumers prefer to avoid.
Mineral Pigments: While "natural," these mined minerals raise environmental and ethical concerns and aren't truly plant-based.
The Gap Between Marketing and Reality
Here's what we learned: "Natural" doesn't mean what most people think it means.
Products can be labeled "natural," "clean," or even "organic" and still contain synthetic preservatives, petroleum-derived dyes, and mined minerals.
We were guilty of this too—not intentionally, but through insufficient scrutiny. We trusted supplier claims without digging deep enough into ingredient lists.
That ends now.
What's Next?
Removing 25 products wasn't easy. But it was right. And that's what Cruisin Organics® stands for—doing what's right, even when it's hard.
We're continuing to audit our entire catalog, including all products from our suppliers like Blanka, to ensure every item meets our new clean beauty standards.
In our next post, we'll share our new clean beauty standards, how we're vetting suppliers, and our commitment to finding truly plant-based makeup alternatives.
Thank you for holding us accountable. Your questions make us better.
Ready to explore products that meet higher standards? Browse our curated collection at cruisinorganics.com/collections/all
Have questions? Email us at kathyt@cruisinorganics.com
isinorganics.com
