Indie Beauty Expo To Make Its European Debut, Feature Spark Beauty Collection With Feelunique At IBE London Next Week

Indie Beauty Expo is heading across the pond.

The trade show created by New York-based Indie Beauty Media Group is touching down in Europe with the inaugural edition of IBE London running from Oct. 24 to 25 at Old Truman Brewery in Shoreditch, a creative hub in London. At the consumer-oriented SHOP INDIE portion of the show, IBE will spotlight the Spark Beauty collection it collaborated on with Feelunique that’s been refreshed with a new array of emerging brands, 80% of which are from continental Europe.

“It’s important to have a physical presence when launching emerging brands to a new territory,” says Nigel Lawmon, commercial director at Feelunique. “It’s beneficial for the brand to tell stories and engage with customers, enabling them to test the products and absorb knowledge directly with the brand representatives.”

Describing Feelunique’s customers as “very savvy shoppers,” Lawmon explains the online shopping destination has seen an increase in searches around key ingredients and terms such as indie, new, natural and vegan. “With this in mind, we aim to deliver on launching the most exciting new brands under Spark Beauty by Feelunique in partnership with IBE,” he says. “This enables our shoppers to discover new brand drops approximately every two months, helping indie brands under IBE to be launched globally via our cross-border platform.”

Eight brands exhibiting at IBE London have been added to the dozen that previously made up the Spark Beauty assortment. Introduced in July, the updated Spark Beauty collection demonstrates Indie Beauty Media Group’s skill at quickly shepherding brands from exhibition to shelf space.

“It’s important to have a physical presence when launching emerging brands to a new territory. It’s beneficial for the brand to tell stories and engage with customers, enabling them to test the products and absorb knowledge directly with the brand representatives.”

Feelunique will have a presence on the floor at IBE London with a booth, the first of its kind for an e-tailer at IBE. Show attendees will be able to try merchandise from the 20 Spark Beauty brands at the booth and place online orders on Feelunique for products ranging from £8 to £158. Some of the brands that will be showcased at the booth are Pistache, Eleni & Chris, Clove + Hallow, Teadora, Ogee, Ikoo, Herbal Dynamics, Cannabliss, MILU, O’o Hawaii, Innersense, Reina Rebelde and RealHer. For attendees desiring immediate gratification, Antonym Cosmetics and Le Prunier, two brands involved in Spark Beauty, will be selling their products at the show.

“Having recently completed the EU registration process, the timing of the London show is perfect. Our expectation for London, as with all other IBE shows we attend, is to see old friends and start new relationships,” says Antonym founder Valerie Giraud. “The best thing about IBE is that everyone attending is genuinely interested in indie beauty, so it’s getting together with like-minded people. We have even made friends with our booth neighbors and have done joint brand promos.”

Among the 70 independent beauty brands presenting their wares at IBE London will be returning brands Max and Me, Glamcor, Andmetics, Love Sun Body and Olverum, and there will be exclusive launches from Verdant Alchemy, Adarci, Luly Gaudiano Sustainable Luxury and Bili Beauty. While skincare is the largest category at the trade show, attendees will discover brands across a range of verticals, including haircare, color cosmetics and fragrance. They’ll be privy to the latest in beauty trends whether delving into clean and green ingredients, crystals and precious stones, unisex options, stress relief or sleep aids. Women founders are behind nearly 60% of the brands exhibiting at IBE London.

“We’ve been working on this show since August of last year, identifying and building relationships with retailers and key players in the media. The caliber of these impressive brands coupled with the quality of press, influencers and buyers who will be a part of this launch is what makes this show special.”

“We’ve been working on this show since August of last year, identifying and building relationships with retailers and key players in the media,” says Indie Beauty Media Group co-founder Jillian Wright. “The caliber of these impressive brands coupled with the quality of press, influencers and buyers who will be a part of this launch is what makes this show special.”

Gitte Dalberg-Larsen, founder of feminine hygiene brand OrganiCup signed up for the London and Berlin shows following her experience exhibiting at IBE New York in August. She says, “Being a part of the IBE community and participating in New York exposed OrganiCup to buyers and press in the U.S. market in a really qualitative way.” Dalberg-Larsen, who closed three retail contracts immediately following IBE New York, adds, “It’s more than I had expected and happened much quicker than I had hoped for.” At IBE London, she anticipates OrganiCup will forge fruitful relationships. Dalberg-Larsen says, “We are more established as a brand in the U.K., but I expect IBE London to give us an opportunity to meet new buyers, press and consumers.”

IBE’s move abroad is crucial for retailers looking to differentiate selections by responding to the demands for indie offerings. “I love to support indie beauty, and it’s so exciting to discover small, niche brands who are making their mark on the industry. It’s great to see trends that are emerging and get more of an idea about what consumers are after,” says Mel Jenkinson, founder of and buyer for Glow Organic. She’s keen on discovering organic and natural brands at IBE London, noting that attending several IBE events gives her the change to chat with the brand founders in person. Jenkinson says, “I hope to discover more local, U.K.-based indie beauty brands as well as the international brands that attend the other IBE shows across the world. Meeting the founders and trying the products is the best way to get a feel for the brand to see if they will be a good fit for Glow Organic.”

“IBE London is an important launching pad for our Berlin show in March, and we have attendees and exhibitors coming from around the globe. These exhibitors are lucky to be a part of an inaugural show like London. A smaller show offers a really unique experience because of the favorable ratio of buyers and press to each brand.”

Indie Beauty Media Group co-founder Nader Naeymi-Rad says, “IBE London is an important launching pad for our Berlin show in March, and we have attendees and exhibitors coming from around the globe. These exhibitors are lucky to be a part of an inaugural show like London. A smaller show offers a really unique experience because of the favorable ratio of buyers and press to each brand.”

The public consumer shopping event SHOP INDIE will be held on Oct. 24 from 5 to 9 p.m. BST. Industry professionals are welcome to attend TRADE INDIE on Oct. 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. BST to network and conduct business.