Clean Makeup Line Saie Doubles Down on Sustainability Focus With Climate Initiative

James Manso

September 23, 2024 at 10:00 a.m.·3 min read

Saie is upleveling its commitments to the planet, starting with a deepened partnership with RePurpose Global.

The brand, founded in 2019 by Laney Crowell, is strengthening ties with RePurpose to collect 5 million pounds of plastic over the partnership’s three-year duration. “We are collecting plastic in over four countries across five coastlines,” Crowell said, adding that it will provide jobs to more than 2,000 women and impact more than 50,000 people in those areas.

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“We’ve chosen to have these projects be women-led, so those 2,000 women will have increased income, social security and health insurance,” she continued. That jibes with another previous cause Saie was involved in. In 2022, Crowell teamed up with 36 other brands on the Every Body Campaign, which raised money for SisterSong, an organization that aided women impacted by abortion bans in the U.S.

Saie is also committing to eliminating and offsetting its greenhouse gas emissions by 2039. As it turns out, Crowell’s philanthropic focus isn’t mutually exclusive from commercial success. Though she didn’t comment on sales, industry sources expect the brand to reach $100 million in sales this year.

“Every brand that tries to do the responsible thing for the environment knows it’s also more expensive. We have the highest amount of PCR [plastic] possible in every single component, and that resin is more expensive. Our formulas are biodegradable, so the ingredients we use are all more expensive,” Crowell said.

Saie also works closely with 1% for the Planet, the organization created by the founder of Patagonia in which participating companies give 1 percent of sales back to the environment. “He’s an inspiration for me,” Crowell said. “That brand is a leading example of making the right choice and being at the top of your game.”

Saie has appointed an all-female board to help maintain and scale the broader initiative, which includes Sephora’s director of clean makeup, Sydney Feeter, and Svanika Balasubramanian, cofounder and chief executive officer of RePurpose.

Given the many facets of Saie’s efforts, Crowell is also laser focused on how to effectively communicate them to both existing and potential shoppers.

“We launched a climate docuseries on Earth Day of this year, and we have a new episode launching in October with the RePurpose announcement,” Crowell said. “We have a ton of social content we’re doing live at launch, and we also have our first Saie Sustainability Report going live.”

Crowell describes it as a “report card,” and said that the brand spent a year creating it. It will be disseminated on Saie’s website and via newsletter and will be updated annually.

“Our Saie community loves making a choice in the products they buy and what those products do for their skin,” Crowell said, “but they also love the fact that we take action on the causes they’re passionate about as well.”

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