About us
Who is The Body Shop
The pioneer of ethical beauty
Created by Dame Anita Roddick, in a little green shop in Brighton, a joyful brand, a platform, a safe space for women and girls, a community, and a force for good. Driving change worldwide. From animal rights to human rights, gender rights and youth rights. Stopping the Burning, Stopping the War, but fighting for bodies, communities, and a fairer world. Changing legislation and protecting people. With passion and spirit.
Vivacious. Energetic. Courageous. Outrageous. We have been doing what we do since 1976. That’s 50 years. Half a century. And what we do is beauty done right. What makes us different? We stand up for what believe in. We don’t just say – although we’re not shy of speaking up. We do. The enemy of fear is action. And we have never been afraid to move. Others have followed, but we led. And we will keep leading. We have a unique place in culture, earned by that action, and we will fight to protect it. Because we are the rebellious beauty pioneers who see the potential in what we do to change the world, whether through the tools that we sell – joyfully sensorial products powered by nature – or what we stand for. We do it with love. We do it with joy. There is no one like us… for 50 years, now. And for 50 more.
Our values?
Helping empower, for generations
From changing perceptions of body image to a Self-Love Uprising, the politics of aging, to spotlighting issues on self-esteem, and standing up to domestic violence. Minds, bodies and souls are not transactional spaces to be stolen, possessed and carved up by others. They are empowered, autonomous and beautiful vessels for love, kindness and change.
Persuasive and passionate, we defy the rules. We see that beauty culture can be toxic, pitching women into a war with their own bodies, and with each other. Across every stage of life. So, we advocate for and celebrate action that stands against submission, empowers people to reclaim their agency, and serves their needs rather than suppressing and defining them.
Our products are designed not to perpetuate toxic beauty myths, but to help create a confidence that challenges and threatens the structures calculated to keep them down. This is strength. This is beauty.
How do we do it?
We craft ethical products that work, so people can thrive throughout their lives
Community Fair Trade partnerships, such as Shea Women’s Association in Ghana, Get Paper Industries in Nepal, and Plastics for Change in India. All around the world our ingredients and materials are crafted with kindness and wrapped in love. They have real purpose, for communities and people, from the root to the fruit, from the farm, forest, factory or freehold, all the way on to beautiful bodies, everywhere.
For women, for girls, young, old, or somewhere in between, we have products that bring joy, trust, care, and help meet a real need. So everyone must not simply manage and survive but can truly thrive. Ethically sourced, natural-origin ingredients enrich our products - handcrafted, harvested and shaped by collectives of female artisans around the world - meaning that no-one puts onto their body what we would not put onto our own. These are products that work. These are products that we evolve, by listening. That do what they say. And in the right way. This is true, joyful sensorality, built from communities, crafted by communities, and shaped for communities.
Why do we do it?
To be a force for good
Pioneering education and outreach for initiatives, such as GPI. Fighting for fairness – ethical, financial, structural - in communities around the world. Tackling issues and championing causes that matter to women and girls, such as period poverty, eating disorders and body dysmorphia. And celebrating a deeper beauty… whoever it is, wherever it lives, and whenever in life.
Everything we do is done with purpose. And with conviction and empowerment at its heart. We believe that now, more than ever, the world needs kindness and hope. And that dark times demand a special variety of wilful passion to prevent the lights going out. We are a beacon in the dark. When we stand up and speak out, we are standing on the shoulders of giants, but we are, too, creating a safe space for the heroes to come. A platform for diverse voices, a community space - global, local, and hyperlocal - a vehicle for change, creating tools for generations, we celebrate the potential for a better world, in the most beautifully joyful and rebellious way we know.
