Wednesday, November 04, 2015

Is Colorbar Cruelty-Free?



I had read in the past, one million times: Colorbar is cruelty-free. But I wasn't going to settle for that. So I dropped them an email, some long time back when I was considering purchasing cruelty-free, for the rest of my life. The girl gotta have options. ;-)


I never received a reply from them.
I copy and pasted the same email, again.
No reply.


This time I was raged with their insolent attitude towards an emptor. So I did what I should, I stated clearly that I would stop purchasing their products.

After 3 days, I got a reply from one of their representatives. I'm posting the reply here.


The Colorbar product line offers products which have been created with International experience, knowledge, passion, creativity and innovation. These facilities are spread across France, Greece, Germany and Italy. The products conform to all European Union and FDA Regulations and are benchmarked against the most prestigious brands available worldwide. Extensive R&D goes into bringing out a Colorbar product line, with new product categories and SKU’s within categories introduced month on month. Constant product innovations have ensured that Colorbar is a favorite with the modern working woman of today. We are socially responsible and do not test our products on animals. None of our vendors conducts animal testing.
No, we do not sell in China.Could you please specify what you mean by Vegan?


I explained her what exactly Vegan meant in terms of cosmetics/products. And I never received any reply from the representative again.
And I am compelled to disbelieve them on the grounds of the facts mentioned below.

1) Let us assume, Maybe the representative was a wrong choice or even unaware. I expected a confirmation from the brand, on either behalf.

2) Nowhere on their websites have mentions of the Brand or Company being against Animal Testing or Cruelty Free. Except for Few blogs, I came across claims Colorbar being Cruelty-Free without an in depth idea about the parent company.

3) Colorbar is manufactured in Thane. [That is exactly where I am located.]

4) Modi Enterprises is the Parent Company/Owner of Colorbar Cosmetics. Modi Enterprises is owned by K.K Modi of Modi Revlon while Colorbar Cosmetics is owned by Samir Modi [his youngest son]
Oriflame is also a part of their enterprise.
Revlon's animal testing policy is as and when required by regulatory authorities.

And here is what Revlon made an official Facebook status in June 2014:
Please be assured, Revlon does not test on animals and has not done so since 1989. We sympathize with your concerns, but, as a global brand, we must comply with the local rules and regulations of each market in which we sell our products. In a very limited number of countries, including China, these registration requirements may include the government conducting animal testing prior to approving registration. We support the advancement of non-animal testing alternatives globally, including in China, and we continue to work with other organizations to encourage the advancement of these cruelty-free alternatives.

But...
There are a handful of brands that DO NOT Test on animals but the Parent Company does. Even if we assume Colorbar being Cruelty-Free, they don't stand strong or are vocal about being Cruelty-Free.

The Indian Beauty and wellness market would double to Rs 80,370 crore by 2018. Do you see the influence of Makeup?
And just a handful of people are perceptive about Animal Testing & Cruelty.
It scares me, one more brand I perceived as Cruelty-Free turned out deceptive. I am unwilling to sit tight with their claims.
When I got a reply from them, I set out with joy to get their newly launched Lip Tints. But I am appalled at their ignorance of I wouldn't be serious about my homework.

9 comments

  1. Thank you so much for all the research and work you have done for this.. I was also in a state of dilemma when seller told me that the cosmetics are cruelty free , but as nothing was mentioned on the product I thought to go through google first. This article helped me in making my choice as not to buy the product. Thanks a lot!!

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    1. I'm glad my post helped you in decision making. You're welcome 😊

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    2. Colorbar cosmetics do their testing on animals. I suggest please go through there official site once again before jumping to any decision.

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  2. Love the detailed post and your research on Colorbar Cosmetics. I had emailed them too and what I felt after a couple of emails was that the emails go to employees who do not have much knowledge about these aspects of beauty. Till now no one has really given importance to the cosmetics being cruelty free and vegan. It is only now that this is coming up in India in a big way and I feel as we ask these questions more and more, the companies will train their employees better about the products. This is what was my experience while I initially tried to get responses from a lot of Indian Companies. However, I agree that the companies should make responsible people respond to such queries so people like us can get to proper conclusions.

    Also I still feel Colorbar is cruelty free. They are not vegan for sure. This is the response I got from them:

    "We are very much cruelty free and make sure all our third party suppliers are too. Whereas not all our products are Vegan , we do have ingredients like beeswax etc which are not animal derivative but are created to get the formulations right but at no cost we ever harm or test on animal for any of our products."

    And in subsequent emails, they also confirmed that they do not sell in China.

    Also, I support a brand if its cruelty free even though a group or parent company may not be as I feel the company is taking efforts to maintain its cruelty free status and I really appreciate that.

    I really appreciate the time and effort that you have put into this detailed research and such informative post! To know everything is the key to making the right decision! Cheers!

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  3. Great efforts. I need a foundation which can hold in heavy humid weather under 12dollors. Finding one is really a challenge for me. It's dam sweaty here I have combination skin. Can please suggest one which is available in india.?

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  4. Does this mean that if colorbar products at any point are "needed" to be tested, they would go for animal testing?

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  6. I wish I had read this post two days ago. Just yesterday I got a BB cream and eyeliner from Colorbar. The shop assistant assured me that their products are cruelty free; however, their packaging doesn't have the symbol that indicates it. After reading this post, I agree that it seems dodgy since there's no clear, confident statement.
    If you've bought other cruelty-free products, for example The body shop, you'll see a bold sign in their stores and shop assistants would show you the bunny symbol.
    I feel guilty now. :(

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