How Beauty Entrepreneurs’ And Execs’ Mothers Introduced Them To Beauty—And How They’re Introducing Their Kids To Beauty Differently (Or Not)

With Mother’s Day coming up on Sunday, for this edition of our ongoing series posing questions relevant to indie beauty, we asked 45 beauty entrepreneurs and executives the following questions: What role did your mother play in introducing you to beauty? What role did you play in introducing your children to beauty? What do the differences say about the beauty industry today?

Kenyata Gant Founder, Pink Lipps Cosmetics

My mother played a huge role in introducing me to beauty. She has been a cosmetologist my whole life. As a little girl, she took really care of my hair and did my hair every day. When I was 9 years old she, introduced me to my first haircut experience. She let me assist her at her hair salons and that’s where I got my knack for wanting to own my own business.

When she would go out on the weekends with my dad and her best friends, I would sit in a corner of their room trying not to be seen and watched her get dressed and dolled up with her makeup. When she would leave, I would put on her red and orange lipstick, and that’s when I knew I loved all things beauty.

The role I played in introducing my daughter was very similar to my upbringing. My daughter Kobe was in love with lip gloss and anything that would make her even more girly than she already is. Her love for lip gloss is what led us into my mom’s kitchen creating tons of formulas of lip products. I wanted to make her a pink lip gloss, and today still sell a variation of that original gloss we created at the kitchen table. My daughter is the inspiration behind my cosmetics brand Pink Lipps.

I honestly think one of the differences in today’s beauty industry as opposed to then would be that moms are more receptive to their daughters wearing makeup at a younger age then I was able to growing up. Parents then were strict, and we couldn’t wear makeup until we were at least 15. In today’s beauty industry, parents are allowing their children to wear makeup starting around 8 years old.

Jillian Dempsey Founder, Jillian Dempsey

I remember my mom using a custom, small, three-sided mirror to apply her individual lashes with tweezers and a clay pot with a sponge to apply bronzer. I was intrigued and inspired by how she would apply makeup using these tools. She always encouraged me to add more blush before heading out the door and definitely would ask me to tone down my use of eyeliner when I went too intense.

I am into each one of my kids exploring their individuality and style. They are very different. I don’t overstep. (NOTE: they may strongly disagree). All the tools for beauty, hair and makeup are everywhere, and haircuts and hair color are easy to get around this house. I offer all the beauty goods and they use what suits them.

Kids have more access to beauty through social media, and that is a huge step up from when I was their age. They are much more advanced now, with a skill set of knowledge and more options to choose from. I’m not sure if this is a good or bad thing. Creativity is sometimes discovered by a lack of options and being forced to create things on your own.

Jenny Patinkin Founder, Jenny Patinkin

Like a lot of kids, I used to love watching my mom apply her makeup. I don't remember her teaching me anything per se, but I was fascinated by a rouge she had that looked like a lollipop. She'd swirl it on her cheeks and then use her fingers to blend it out, and I thought that was very cool.

To this day, I like a nice pop of color on the cheek. I'll also always remember her taking off her makeup at night with Pond's Cold Cream and a tissue, which is what I used myself as a teenager and through college. It definitely made taking off my makeup before bedtime a habit I started young.

Because I am a professional makeup artist, makeup was and is a big conversation in our house. My daughters grew up with me seeing clients in our home, both to apply makeup and to teach about it, so they picked up an awful lot that way. I did their makeup for them for every event, their bat mitzvahs, parties, proms, graduations, etc., and I even used to volunteer at their school plays to do makeup for the cast, and being a makeup artist definitely gave me a lot of cred with them and their friends.

Social media makeup started to really blow up when my kids were in middle and high school, and they were certainly aware of it, but, in our house, the rebellion was to not wear makeup. Now as twentysomethings, two of my daughters are more playful and experimental with their makeup, and the other daughter almost never wears it at all.

Rekha Rao CEO, Hello Products

My mom heavily influenced my beauty regimen. I have clear memories of my mom using moisturizer every morning and night. At a young age, I remember trying to reach her dresser to look, smell and touch those pink jars. Since those early days, I always knew that moisturizer was going to be the critical part of my beauty regimen. She also used to use foundation, and this has also become a part of my regimen.

I have an almost 17-year-old daughter, so she certainly has entered the beauty category! I think, early on, she actually relied more on her friends and influencers to experiment with different makeup, especially focused on the eyes. More recently, I have been able to teach her to be more focused around her moisturizing regimen. She is now moisturizing her face twice a day. We also do masks together to really combat dry skin.

Certainly, friends and influencers play a much bigger role today, and tutorials on YouTube have really taken the role of teaching how to use makeup, but moms/parents/family can still play a role in teaching our kids on what to focus on.

Dawn Russell Founder, 8Greens

My mother was always applying masks to her face, working out and meditating. She was hugely involved in bringing the Dalai Lama and his monks to America, so I learned from a young age that mediation, spirituality and Buddhism were key elements to life. From there, I witnessed true beauty, really from the inside out. Some monks actually lived with us, so I was able to first hand observe Buddhism in real time.

I have two boys, so I showed them how beneficial, fun and easy it is to take care of themselves. From washing their faces well to knowing the difference between table salt and pink Himalayan salt to pouring flaxseed on top of their morning cereal, they enjoy looking after themselves.

Let’s be honest, getting them to bathe is a struggle, but, once they do it, they get into dry brushing, soaking in lavender bath or Epsom salts baths after sports. I have gotten them into acupuncture and cranial massage, which is the best sleeping aid I have found for my children. It is more about wellness rather than beauty in my household.

Today is obviously far, far more “medical” in terms of beauty than it was when I was a child. Botox, fillers and CoolSculpting have taken over “beauty.” I am a firm believer that looking after my wellness gives me far more beauty than any medical procedure. They scare to me to be honest. I want to age, but well.

My dream is that my hair is healthy enough to stay long, but go gray in a natural way. I do not want to be in my 20s again, so why would I want to look like I am? I have always loved wise old women. To me, that is true beauty.

Aishetu "Aisha" Fatmia Dozie Founder and CEO, Bossy Cosmetics

My grandma and mom were fiercely stylish women in their own way. My mom was the epitome of style and pizazz growing up. I learned to love bold lipsticks, amazing accessories and high heels from her.

I’m a mother of three boys who have no interest in dressing up. It’s quite sad, but I’m teaching boys that beauty is what you make of it. My boys love watching me get dolled up, and they never stop telling me that I look pretty, mostly because I’ve trained them to!

They are learning that beauty is confidence, and that can come in the form of a face full of makeup and beautiful gowns or just a smidge of lip gloss and a casual outfit with sneakers. It’s less about your outward appearance and more about how you feel. I want them to feel empowered to be themselves and that’s what beauty is about. It’s in your own interpretation.

Back in my mom’s and my grandma’s day, it was about showing up and showing out. There is a time for that, and there’s also a time to be chilled. Both work, and that’s what I demonstrate to my kids.

Kavi Moltz Co-Founder, D.S. & Durga

Watching my mother glam up for a night out—or more likely to host a party—was a typical weekend activity when I was younger. In the early ‘80s, Bollywood star Rekha reigned supreme as beauty inspiration for most Indian women.

There was an understanding of the specific beauty rituals done by brown-skinned women then like using Jolen bleach on your face and seeking out the rare eyebrow threader in a certain neighborhood lady's basement. I still use some of them today, and they carry the symbolism for me of being a Desi woman.

I put on the same show of doing my elaborate makeup and skin prep rituals for my own 9-year-old daughter. I love how it transforms me from house mom to sophisticated mom. I love how the act of transformation ties me to all the women like me with darker skin and plenty of body hair.

But my daughter's views are radically different from mine, and she sees nearly any process as artifice. She thinks coloring my hair is fake, makeup is unnatural. I respect her principles and encourage her convictions, but I also explain how it's not fake, but rather just enhancing. Sometimes, I see a hint of interest from her in trying something on, and if she ever asks me to help her with makeup, I'll be excited to!

Shari Siadat Founder, TooD Beauty

Growing up in the ‘80s and ‘90s, I learned about beauty by observing my mother and grandmother. Being beautiful was tied to Eurocentric ideals and so were the grooming habits that led to conformity. When there is one way to be, my beauty lessons and “tutorials” were born from quiet observation and internalization versus YouTube and influencer marketing.

Two decades later, the binary is breaking open. I actively have conversations with my three daughters about beauty, who makeup is for, where it can be worn (anywhere), and how we can use makeup to express our creativity. Discussing consent about our grooming choices and individual expression is at the core of our discussions. There is a spirit of curiosity, exploration, creativity and joy in a way that replaced the looming shame that was inherent in the messages I received as a child.

I see in my children that their connection to beauty is rooted in authenticity, individualism and expression. They write their own beauty rules. They are their own muse. They color themselves free, and in this generation, we are shifting the paradigm to reclaim and rewrite the beauty narrative. What a time to be alive, bear witness and help my daughters usher in a new way of thinking about and relating to beauty.

Anne Nguyen Oliver Founder, House of M Beauty

My mom played a big part in my obsession with beauty products. Growing up in Vietnam during the ‘90s, our family didn't have much. My mom had one lipstick, which happens to be a bright red color, that she would use for everything (as a lipstick, as a blush and to add some color to her eyelids). She would only use it on special occasions, and I would be allowed to use it on my birthdays. Looking back at my baby photos, I can still see the signature red lip look.

She also introduced me to the tradition of using rice water to wash my face, pieces of turmeric to put on my pimples, and thinly sliced cucumbers to calm my sunburn. Because we didn't have disposable income, she would use the ingredients she could find in her kitchen as her beauty/skincare rituals. At a very young age, I witnessed the skincare benefits of plant based ingredients.

Growing up in the Vietnamese culture (conservative), back then the beauty regimes would be passed down to girls only. I would say that was the sad part I had to witness. My guy friends cannot use or express their curiosity/love for makeup without being bullied or judged by society.

My son is now 5 years old, he loves to watch me do my makeup and get ready. I would let him play with my makeup (with supervision) and apply it on me. Because I witnessed my guy friends struggle with bullies and not show their excitement for beauty products, I wanted to teach my son very young that he can be and can do what his heart desires.

It is also much easier for a mom like me to do so because I do see a much more diverse group of people being represented in the beauty industry and witnessing our generation is much more accepting of people for who they are.

Tisha Thompson Founder, LYS Beauty

Throughout my childhood, my mother served in the military, so I grew up with a busy and active mom who prioritized finding products that were quick and easy to use, while still performing well. She set a beautiful example of a mother who carves out time for herself, and although that time was limited, I witnessed the benefits of self-care at an early age.

Not only was she a hard worker, but she took care of our entire household, so she always reminded me that regardless of how busy you are, you always need to find time to take care of yourself first so you can show up in other areas as the best version of yourself.

My love for beauty products definitely expands beyond cosmetics and into skin, body and haircare, which has influenced my two sons to be into all things self-care, too. My boys are obsessed with hair products, and they like to try new formulas and test how they improve the overall styling of their hair. They even give me their own feedback and ask for me to leave a review on their favorite brand’s website to share their thoughts.

As athletes, they both lead active lifestyles and have grown to love body washes, lotions and oils that smell good and help massage away the soreness. Having watched me geek out on ingredients, my oldest is now getting an understanding of labels and which ingredients do and don’t work with his sensitive skin. Right now, body washes that smell like the ones “mom and dad” use instead of the baby washes are all the rave because he wants it to be clear he’s not a baby anymore. I’m sure pre-teen’s mother can relate!

The love for beauty products and self-care has been passed down in my family from generation to generation. I’ve taken the love that my mother instilled in me to take pride in how I present myself and passed that along to my own children.

The most noticeable difference is the freedom in choice nowadays. While my mom gravitated towards products that were quick and efficient, there were still considerable limitations in shade tone offerings and ingredient innovation to give her skin what it truly deserved. There are much stricter standards in which clean beauty products are brought to market, and I have more confidence in the options we have today for the products that sit on our skin all day.

Back in the day, there was almost always a tradeoff when it comes to finding the best products, and that’s what I strive to eliminate in my work as a product creator. Everyone deserves access to their proper shade selection, clean ingredients and fair pricing for their products.

Michelle Ramos Co-Founder, Rituel de Fille

My mom grew up in an era where makeup was expected and relatively formal, more about obligation than creativity. I know she found joy in her routine, and I always thought she looked put together and beautiful, but self-expression was not part of it. She would never leave the house without lipstick and rouge. Even though she never told me that I would need to do the same when I grew up, this set an example when I was young of what makeup was supposed to be.

Over the years, my personal relationship with makeup has evolved, and that has had a big effect on what I want to pass on to my daughters. They are learning that makeup is a form of self-expression and creativity, and that there are no rules or expectations. I encourage them to experiment and play, to follow what inspires them. Importantly, I want them to know that it is never an obligation, and makeup is not what makes them beautiful. Though I truly love makeup as an artistic medium, there are many times in my everyday life when my daughters see me without any at all.

Since my mom first learned to apply lipstick, the beauty industry has expanded to include a joyful, expressive and playful side that continues to grow. Kaleidoscopic colors, finishes and textures bring creativity to the forefront. I see so much less pressure to be seen made up in a particular way at all times. You can choose to wear makeup in whatever fashion you want or to wear none at all. When free of expectations or restrictions, makeup exploration can be a beautiful way to explore and affirm identity, challenge past social norms, and shift outdated beauty standards.

Rachel James Founder and CEO, Pear Nova

Growing up with an Italian/Irish mother who was never fussy about outside appearance and an African American father, hair was my main concern relating to beauty. My mother didn’t know what to do with it, so my father was assigned to wash and style my hair. I had to quickly learn how to figure out my tresses because the daddy hairstyles were just not it.

In my DIY research, I learned how to do my own hair, nails and makeup, and would actually introduce beauty tips to my mother while also giving her services. The role my mom played allowed for me to explore what outside beauty really meant to me and how my definition had differences and similarities to both sides of my family.

I have two sons who both have tons of hair like me. Their first introduction to beauty/grooming had a lot to do with sitting still for wash and braid day while I figured out what products work best for them since all three of us have different curl patterns. I went to beauty school and had an aesthetician’s license, so both of my sons have skincare routines that I’ve given to them appropriate for their ages, 14 and 9.

My oldest receives monthly facials from me, and he no longer complains. Besides hair and skincare, I’ve taught them how important it is to smell good, so their small collection of fragrances grow each year.

[The beauty industry] has grown tremendously. There are so many more resources, products and inspiration to learn new and old ways of beauty/grooming for us and others that don’t look like us.

Melanie Simon Founder,  ZIIP Beauty and Melanie Simon Skincare

My mother is the inspiration for my beauty philosophy. She was always reiterating the importance of moisturizing my skin and wearing sun protection. I am grateful she did cause my skin has so little sun damage, and I am in my mid-40s.

She also encouraged me to always brush and detangle my hair after a bath. It was embedded in me like brushing my teeth. With regards to makeup, my mom always told me less is more.  In my teens, I didn’t quite believe that, but she was absolutely right!

I think I had an impact on how my daughter approaches her regimen and how she cares for her skin on a daily basis. She witnessed me build my business around beauty, so naturally she is exposed to my rituals and beliefs, the products I swear by, and my devotion to using electrical currents daily (ZIIP) on my skin.

Over the years and especially into her teens, she has adopted her own beauty routine for her generation. She has a very specific way that she approaches beauty. She cuts and colors her own hair, mixes products to get the right texture and also really gravitates toward essential oils. As I always told her, do what works for you.

Beauty is more of a priority for younger people today. With the impact of social media and being more exposed than ever, the younger generation are investing so much more in all of these indie brands at places that did not exist for my generation, including Sephora, Ulta and all the online retailers.

The younger generation also cares more about sun protection and the damages of UVA/UVB. Also, younger people today pay more attention to ingredients, sustainability and brand mission.

Jeannell Darden Founder, Moisture Love

My mother is the entire reason that I am in the beauty industry today. As a licensed cosmetologist, she taught me how to style hair at 9. Soon after, it became my Saturday chore to do her and my sister’s hair for church! You couldn’t tell me that I wasn’t a pro.

Consequently, in high school, just two weeks after she gave me a relaxer, I colored my own hair and quickly learned I didn’t know much at all. My hair broke off and struggled to recover for years. And after three years of living with damaged hair, I cut it off and went natural, which led to me launching my own brand Moisture Love. Thank you, mom!

It’s funny, I haven’t let my daughters (9 and 11) do their own hair much, LOL. Maybe I am still recovering from what I did to mine. Instead, they’ve had the experience of having our own personal braider come to the house and install some of their favorite protective styles like box braids, faux and butterfly locs, and cornrows. That’s a stark difference from my childhood. I never had my hair done outside of the family until high school! If we knew how to do it, we would save the money.

What my mother always taught me and that I’m teaching my girls is to always show up looking my best no matter what’s going on personally. Additionally, I’m teaching my kids to love themselves deeply and authentically understanding that everyone’s beauty is unique and to be celebrated.

I think things are all the same and different all at the same rime. Beauty is so cyclical. Some of the styles we are loving today were around in the ‘70s.

One of the key differences between my mother and I is valuing that rest is a part of our beauty regimen. My mother would work herself to the bone and didn’t want to pay for things that she knew how to do. Although I know how to style hair, I tag in my team for support when I need, showing my daughters that loving yourself enough to get help is OK!

Sally Mueller Co-Founder and CEO, Womaness

When I was in sixth grade, my mother opened her own Merle Norman Cosmetic Studio, so you can imagine what a huge influence she had on me when it came to all things beauty. During high school, I worked part-time at her shop, which really immersed me in the beauty industry.

Mom taught me about the importance of ingredients as well as how to take care of my skin using a cleanser, toner, moisturizer and weekly masking. Back then, it was rare for a girl my age to use so much skincare and wear a foundation! Since I was an active tennis player and in the sun for hours a day, it really saved my skin, a fact I’m especially thankful for now at age 57.

I taught my daughter to use clean and organic skincare and color cosmetics at a very early age. During her teenage years, I was working on incubating Versed Skincare, which naturally influenced her choice in brands and her focus on the health of her skin. Her teen beauty experience versus my Merle Norman-influenced one was definitely different: She really wanted to look natural and not appear too made up.

The beauty industry is evolving in a smart, thoughtful direction, with a stronger emphasis on clean products and celebrating a woman’s natural beauty, no matter what life stage she’s in.

Jamyla Bennu Founder and CEO, Oyin Handmade

A natural beauty, my mother's most enduring legacy in introducing me to beauty was to be complementary and affirming of my natural hair and its texture all through my life. My parents were early adherents to the natural food movement and kept our personal care routine super simple when we were children. They belonged to natural food co-ops, where we got Dr. Bronner's liquid soap, and natural oils like coconut and olive to use as our body moisturizers.

It's because of this early exposure to pure ingredients that I felt empowered to create my own products when I began looking for moisture rich solutions for my highly-textured hair in my early adulthood, and such products in the marketplace were super scarce to nonexistent. I knew there was power in the supermarket ingredients I'd grown up with, and I just needed to figure out how to mix them up properly.

By contrast, my children have grown up with their baby pictures on bottles of conditioner that were invented for their hair type. and by their mother! They 100% take it for granted that they can walk into any store and find products with both nontoxic ingredients and the moisture that they need. It's a huge shift and to me it represents the ways that the marketplace has expanded to provide a much wider range of products than I grew up with.

Christine Chang Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Glow Recipe

I grew up watching my mom deliberately carve out time for her skincare routine, very often incorporating ingredients straight from the fridge and pantry, and taking a gentle, hydration-first approach to treat her skin needs day by day.

A lot of these early moments still inspire me today, and our formulation philosophy is to create clinically effective products like our serums with technologies like multi-molecular weight hyaluronic acid and encapsulated vitamin C, but is also focused on making formulas that are barrier-fortifying and gentle on skin. Because skincare isn’t an overnight, instant fix, it’s an ongoing dialogue you have with your skin, and it’s a journey.

I loved watching my mother do her skincare routine when I was growing up. I also want to show my own daughter that I’m taking the time for myself every day in whatever form that takes, whether it’s a long, pampering routine or quickly slathering on a sleeping mask right before bed.

My daughter also uses a sunscreen every day as she’s often outdoors and then moisturizes after cleansing each night. I want to help her understand the importance of sun protection, prevention and consistent yet simple skincare habits early on.

While there aren’t marked differences between the holistic skincare approach I grew up with and the one I’m trying to teach my own daughter, one thing I’m hopeful about with regards to current beauty industry is the more active, purposeful conversations around real skin acceptance and inclusivity of different skin tones, textures, types and concerns.

In addition to never retouching skin, Glow Recipe has also committed not to use language like perfection, pore less or flawless because we don’t believe it helps to support skin positivity and skin neutrality. My hope is that my daughter will be able learn about beauty and her own skin in an environment where she can also welcome to accept and embrace her skin the way it is.

So Young Cho Co-Founder, leVerden

When I was a child in Korea, it was very conservative at the time, so there were a lot of things I could and couldn't do at any age, and there were restrictions on beauty. For example, before going to college at that time, young children were taught that putting makeup on their faces was a big deal, and it was also taboo to cut their eyebrows or paint on a manicure.

My mom was a person who liked to be elegant and decorative, but, because of the conservative things in Korea, she didn't let me use makeup or perfume.

My mom used to apply lots of lotion and sunscreen to my face to ensure I kept a hydrated, natural look. And, at that time, there weren't many brands in Korea for adult use, so my mom remembers using only one or two brands for a decade, I remember applying Johnson & Johnson baby lotion to my face until high school.

Maybe it's because of the childhood restrictions I didn't like, especially as someone interested in beauty in fashion, but now as a mother of two daughters, I love to take them to the salon for manicures and help them apply light blush or lip gloss when we go out to a good restaurant. My daughters and I share some of the beauty products with each other like friendly girlfriends.

My older daughter, Chloe, even goes to Sephora with me to buy the most popular eyelash curlers to make our lashes look perfectly curved and beautiful. As a mother, I also check the cosmetic ingredients more thoroughly and always recommend that my daughters seek out products with organic natural ingredients.

When my mom was growing up, she didn't learn that sunscreen was required to protect her skin by blocking UV rays. It was only later that we learned that cosmetics contain a lot of chemicals, and there weren't as many brands or types of cosmetics as there are now. Now, in the flood of social media, magazines, TV and so much more, consumers have become a lot smarter.

Products have become more diversified and segmented because brands are used differently, offer different benefits and use unique ingredients that set them apart from each other. As a child, I mainly used lotions, but now the dressing table is stocked with a variety of products like essences, eye creams, lip products and more for both my daytime and nighttime routines.

The beauty industry is filled with brands competing to capture the eye of a new consumer, and this makes it so that they are constantly creating new, innovative products that weren't available in the past. There's also more of an emphasis on what goes into the products and how bad chemicals can affect our bodies and more importance placed on the impact on the environment in a way that was never addressed in the past.

Courtney Baber Co-Founder, The Route Beauty

I have been in the beauty industry for over 30 years, and it really is all because of my mom! She recommended this as a path I explore after college, introduced me to some of her friends who were executives in beauty and the rest is history.

My mom also always encouraged me to take care of my skin and really taught me how. I vividly remember being around 15, and the two of us going and buying all of my skincare basics consistently at the Clinique counter in the local department store. We purchased makeup at the drugstore—there were no Ultas or Sephoras back then—and I remember the frostier the shadow and lipstick were the better.

My daughter, Bel, is 13 and has been very exposed to beauty as a result of my career. Most of her life I was with Urban Decay, so she loves makeup. I allow her to be creative and experiment. She owned her first James Charles palette at age 10 and regularly wears false eyelashes to school for fun now.

She is so much better at it than I am and now gets ready for school on TikTok Live with her own makeup tutorial or watching someone else do theirs. Ulta and Sephora and the rise of social media completely changed the landscape of beauty from when I was a teen to now by offering more choices, accessibility and education.

Nancy Pellegrino Co-Founder and Nurse, The Route Beauty

My nickname growing up was “Fancy Nancy,” so when the book by the same name launched, naturally I received 25 copies! I mention that because my mom is the opposite of me. She calls herself plain Jane. She is very simple, fresh faced with no makeup except for barely a hint of lipstick, maybe. Not at all a glamour girl, but nevertheless so lovely and so kind.

How did she raise me, a self-proclaimed glamour nurse who lives for and loves all things beauty? I have no clue except for the fact she let me be me fully and unconditionally. As a child, she sewed my clothes so we would pick out material and patterns, and she made the bows bigger and the taffeta brighter at my request. She allowed me to buy makeup with my own babysitting money, when she deemed me old enough to do so. First purchases: white eyeshadow and roller ball lip gloss. Ha!

I learned makeup on my own, and my mom would marvel at the transformation. A highlight from my teen years was watching "Style with Elsa Klensch" every Friday night with my mom. I know she wasn’t that interested in it, but did it for me anyway I loved the show and the time I got to spend just with my mom.

When my own darling daughter was born, just about 16 years ago, I secretly wished for a girly girl, but would love any and all sides of her obviously, and I wanted to share my love of skincare, makeup and fashion as well as education, finding your passion and spreading love and kindness (because kind is the most beautiful thing to be).

I encourage her to be open-minded and explore all interests, and I nurture her independence. She is welcome to experiment with any beauty products I own as long as she does so with cleanliness and respect, with the exception of lipsticks and eyeliners, those she must personally own. The nurse in me cannot fail to teach her about avoiding infections from products that touch our mucous membranes, the mouth and eyes?

Suzannah Raff Founder, Cleo+Coco

My mother always took care of her skin. She always told me to never rub under my eyes since that is the most delicate skin and to use a buff puff to exfoliate regularly to keep skin looking young. She always cleansed and moisturized and used natural, light makeup, never foundation because it was drying, much like what’s popular today.

That extends to personal care as well. It was my mother who taught me to not use aluminum antiperspirant under my arms and reminded me when I got pregnant, which led to my search to find an aluminum-free deodorant that I liked and to ultimately creating my own and founding Cleo+Coco. Thanks, mom!

I teach my kids to read ingredients and to make sure they wear sunscreen and not get burned. I also tell them not to rub under their eyes like my mother taught me. Since I know the industry so well, when they have a personal care or skincare need, they will come to me, and I’ll research products and find the cleanest, best one for them.

If I can’t find it, I might work with my manufacturers to create it since that tells me there’s a white space. That’s how my first cleansing bar was created. I wanted a bar gentle enough for my kids who have really dry eczema skin that also had charcoal to help the underarm detox, and worked with my manufacturer to develop our Charcoal Cleanse. It has kept my kids skin soft and eczema free ever since.

I recently walked through a beauty store with my young teen daughter (doing research), and she really internalized some of the marketing messaging she was seeing. She said to me, “I have blonde hair. I have to use that product or it won’t stay shiny.” Our kids are so innocent. I have a dream to add a new teen line to Cleo+Coco with our trademark clean, healthy ingredients, but adding empowering, educational messages for our kids.

I think that the message to take care of your skin has always been there, but today we have a much better understanding of how to do that in the most healthful way. Today, consumers are more educated and well read on ingredients and are seeking clean. I think now it’s also time to start to add more emotionally empowering messaging to our beauty products as well.

Kirsten Aguilar EVP of Marketing and SeneCare, SeneGence

My mother didn’t play a role in introducing me to beauty! I discovered products and a passion for all things beauty on my own. I used to save babysitting money for drugstore shopping trips.

I have a young daughter that is very influenced by trends and social media. As I work in skincare, I am elated to see when the trends are around self-care and skin health. I keep her loaded up with the best products made from incredible ingredients and work with her to implement a daily routine to build habits now. I wish I had the routine she does when I was her age.

She is aware of the consistent need for sunscreen when out in the sun and washes her face ritually. It makes me very proud, and I am also seeing her impart her habits on her friends. This is a trend I can get behind and hope we continue to find ways to reach younger and younger generations. The challenge now is appealing to them long-term and finding the right product offering to encourage brand loyalty.

Today, everything is up front and in your face. What’s not in products is right on the label. A brand promise needs to be heavily pushed in ads and online campaigns and a solid social media strategy is paramount. What’s different is what’s cool and desired. Products need a story more than ever before and the choices are incredibly vast. It’s a competitive market out there.

At SeneGence, we are always on the hunt for new ingredients and technologies, and will continue to introduce revolutionary products that create new experiences to keep our users coming back for more.

Margarita Arriagada Founder, Valdé Beauty

My mother loved playing with beauty, skincare, fragrance and makeup. It was a ritual. A special personal time that she enjoyed, especially when it came to lipstick. It was armor to her and she never left the house without it.

My introduction of beauty to my children was a bit deeper and allowing them to explore their own journey in beauty was important to me. I placed more emphasis on taking care of their skin from a preventative standpoint and from nutrition for an inside-out perspective. The importance of sun protection, for example, and staying hydrated yet not ever pressuring them (other than with sun protection) or influencing in any way beyond the fundamentals.

Definitely, the approach to beauty today is far more holistic and individualized. We also have a lot more access to educate ourselves when it comes to beauty such as with sun protection as I mentioned previously. Beauty is an individual journey, and I feel the community is much more inclusive when it comes to respecting an individual's choice to not wear makeup (or wear a ton of it!) and celebrate their individual beauty.

We have a deeper appreciation for the fact that beauty is so much more than cosmetic makeup. What's most important is the individual's well-being and what makes them feel good.

Cindy Crawford Co-Founder, Meaningful Beauty

My mother didn’t wear makeup. She used soap and water on her face and maybe a cold cream at night. She was and continues to be very low maintenance. She’s fortunate to be a natural beauty, and whenever she would set her hair and put her fall in for a night out, I thought she was the most glamorous woman ever.

Because I’ve been in the fashion industry since I was 17, beauty and self-care have been a big part of my life. My children saw me making time for exercise as well as getting glammed up to go to events. At home, I’m very natural and, in fact, whenever I come home from a shoot, I wash my face first thing as that is the way my family likes me.

My daughter liked playing dress-up in my closet, and I would do quick little hair and makeup on her for “photoshoots.” Of course, as both my children became teenagers and developed skin that needed a little extra cleaning or grooming, I would help guide them, but I will say Kaia has learned way more from YouTube than from me.

When I think about the beauty industry today, I notice there are way more brands and options to choose from versus when I was growing up. There are even brands that cater to the younger generation, and that generation is learning to take better care of their skin at an earlier age.

Between social media, DTC and retail, there is an abundance of information, from types of products to use, ingredient transparency and efficacy. These channels also provide consumers with direct access to professional makeup, skincare and haircare techniques. The younger generations are no longer reliant on their parents’ beauty and grooming advice alone. All that said, I think it’s important for brands to have an omni-channel approach in order to get in front of today's consumer.

Emma Peters Founder, Aleph Beauty

I remember coveting my mother's blue eyeshadow and pink pearlescent lipsticks in the ‘80s. She worked in television, so I’d visit the makeup room regularly.

My kids know the difference between clean beauty and otherwise, so they’ve always had access to clean products for dance and drama productions, unlike the norm that circulates backstage at that age, usually pretty cheap and contain a raft of hormone-disrupting chemicals that have no place being absorbed by growing bodies. My youngest has a particular interest in makeup artistry and creates looks on an old hairdressing dummy I have had for 30-odd years!

I came to love makeup as a form of expression, art and creativity, and that is certainly translating through to my daughters. The main difference I see between my intro to makeup and theirs is that there is now a focus on well-being tied into beauty which was never considered in the past.

Katina Mountanos Founder, Kosterina

I learned my lipstick habits from my mom. My mother always wore lipstick and carried it with her everywhere. I’ve also been known to do the same and a former teammate of mine told me that the title of my memoir will have to be “Pen, Paper and Lipstick” because that’s what I bring with me to every meeting. I reapply 10-plustimes a day. It’s an addiction!

My mom also always taught me to care for my skin and that moisture is always key. Her beauty secret was always extra virgin olive oil. She used to put a few drops into her Estée Lauder night creams daily. There was always olive oil in our bathroom in addition to the kitchen. This was the inspiration for Kosterina Skincare.

My children are still very young, so we are still focused on the basics of brushing our hair and teeth, but my two girls (4 and 5 years old) are very interested in my skincare and makeup. They know never to leave the house without fixing their hair and wearing a bow. I try to teach them to respect themselves and to care about their appearance, but not too much.

When it comes to what they put on their face and body, I am very focused on making sure it’s clean and natural. They always ask whether something is OK for kids before they put it on. They are obsessed with our Kosterina Oil Balm. They keep one next to their bed and one in their backpacks. My older daughter sometimes gets eczema on her hands and arms and our Oil Balm heals it.

I also teach them that what they eat affects how they look and feel. Despite a weekend mac and cheese habit, they generally eat very healthy.

I think children of all generations are watching what their parents do, so we must lead by example. I try to eat healthy and use clean ingredients, very much in line with a Mediterranean lifestyle, because I know they see what I do.

Consumers are now beginning to understand that health and beauty come from both the inside and the outside. They are concerned about health and wellness and their beauty routine is a key part of that. We see lots of beauty brands launching with superfood ingredients at their core and are excited to be a part of this movement.

Sumana Jayanth Founder, Damn Gina

Growing up in rural India, my concept of beauty was completely different to what it is today. My mother taught me how to incorporate beauty rituals with what was accessible to us.

She introduced me to homemade face and hair masks that helped with brightening, hydrating and stimulating hair growth. My mother practiced Ayurveda which believes that beauty comes from the inside. Because of this, she would regularly give me concoctions for my gut health.

As a new mother, I intend to instill this concept of self-care in my daughter, but my reasoning differs from my mother's. When I was growing up, most of the beauty rituals had an underlying notion of how it would make the skin "fairer,” even though it wasn't explicitly spelled out, that was the desired outcome. The beauty industry has come a long way from the Eurocentric of beauty.

While I want to share some of the same cultural beauty practices that I grew up with, I also want her to be confident in her skin and the way that she looks.

Whitney Eaddy Founder, Juices & Botanics

My mother played a major role in introducing me to beauty at an early age through her attention to self-care and her own natural beauty. Whether watching her take long bubble baths or completing her skincare routine frequently, I saw her practice her own self-care rituals.

She would purchase from beauty brands like Fashion Fair in the ‘80s that celebrated her complexion. My mother actually rocked a low short natural hairstyle for many years, which prompted me to do my very first big chop and start my own natural journey as well. Looking back on my journey to discovering my own beauty and appreciating myself, my mother played a large part and has had an impactful role in who I’ve become.

My two girls are constantly watching everything I do. At ages 10 and 4, they are so impressionable. It’s been amazing to see them mirror all of my self-care and self-love activities, whether it’s completing their haircare and skincare routines or wanting to take a long bubble bath with their own bath blends. It’s such a beautiful experience to have daughters and impart my own knowledge and experience to help them navigate how to properly care for, love and respect their own beauty.

I see far more inclusivity in the beauty industry today, and I’m excited about so many options that we have whether that be the different range of products, including complexions, to the advertising that we see now. Growing up in the ‘80s, I didn’t really see myself represented as much as my children are able to see now in the industry. As the industry expands, it's great to see so many different options available.

Rachel Roff Founder, Urban Skin Rx

My mother wasn't beauty product or beauty routine obsessed, but she was a great mother and very solution-oriented. So, when I dealt with severe acne and a large nevus mole on my face, she really worked to find solutions such as taking me to dermatologists, plastic surgeons to remove and even invested in regular acne facials and home-care products from a medical spa.

She taught me that, if there's truly something that you really don't like about your appearance, you don't always have to just embrace it you can look for solutions to improve it.

I am obviously beauty obsessed. My daughter at 9 years old started to show signs of puberty so, for the last 1.5 years, I have been very diligent about getting her in a routine of washing her face every night and applying moisturizer. I also tried to set the routine of applying body lotion to her full body every night.

She is only 10, so sometimes it irritates her, but I say it's about taking pride in yourself as well as properly caring for your body and skin. My daughter clearly has been subjected to me being a skincare and makeup junkie, and loves to look at my makeup and pressure me to teach her how to do her own makeup, which I have dabbled in.

I have told her in middle school she can do lip gloss and in high school we can add on mascara and blush, probably by 16 it's a wrap, and she can go full force.

[When I was growing up], there certainly wasn't the amount of choices we have now when it comes to skincare and beauty products. I also just don't remember it being this much in your face. From retailers to social media, it seems like it's practically bigger than fashion.

Randi Shinder Founder, SBLA

It was more my grandmothers that played a role in introducing me to beauty. My paternal grandmother would look after my siblings and I as children when my parents traveled. She had a full regimen of skincare that she would bring with her when she would come to stay with us.

My grandmother taught me how to cleanse properly, to never use a towel to dry my face, but just a clean tissue and that I had to use a toner before I apply moisturizer. I never even wore makeup at the time, but we went through the whole nightly regime together every night.

I can still remember her bottles. It was Orlane, which was at the time considered a very prestigious brand. She had every single product available. Her skin was like porcelain, and she never exposed her skin to the sun.

My maternal grandmother just had a very innate sense of style. She worked at Holt Renfrew, which at the time was owned by Neiman Marcus, and is a prestige department store in Canada. She always dressed well and was well put together. Her makeup and her hair would always be perfect. Interestingly, both of my grandmothers, up until the very end, had perfectly manicured nails. Always! I never saw a chip!

My mother collected perfume bottles and that I know played a role to some degree with my foray into the world of fragrance. When I used to babysit my younger siblings, I would sit at my mother’s vanity and reassemble her perfume jars. She had a huge selection of fragrances. I remember the original Estée Lauder blue bottle and many others. These wonderful women introduced me to beauty.

My son gets very basic skincare from me: how to cleanse, what to put on his face to make sure he doesn’t have a breakout and to look after his skin, but he has zero interest in beauty. My daughter Sami, on the other hand, has become a full-blown beauty junkie hoarder. She has more product in her bathroom than I do and raids my bathroom pretty often.

So, I have definitely had an impact on her. She will send me videos of new products that she finds and vice versa. Sami is open and willing to try every single brand. She is actually a marine biologist, environmental and atmospheric scientist who will be starting her Ph.D. It has nothing to do with cosmetics, but she is interested in certain aspects of algae and corals that can be harvested and used in beauty products and has been researching that. She is a beauty junkie through and through.

I repeat this pretty often, especially to my business partner, but I have never seen so many launches in the beauty space. There are some very interesting things that are happening, and it is probably a more innovative time than ever.  It is not just another version of another moisturizer.

We are seeing interesting peptides. We are using them in our own brand and seeing them come out of other brands. There are inner beauty products with people taking care of themselves from the inside out as far as their skin is concerned. CBD oils and all kinds of raw materials are being utilized and harnessed in a way that I never imagined.

I think it is that intersection where science meets beauty that is extremely interesting. I actually think leave the harmful ingredients out, but offer people real solutions to aging that empower them to age beautifully at home.

Ildi Pekar Founder, Ildi Pekar Wellness Studio

My mother has the most beautiful, glowing skin. Growing up, I remember her always using products, but they were never harsh acids or strong chemicals. Everything was natural, organic botanicals that gently cleansed and hydrated the skin, and she regularly would give herself facial massages.

She had facials once a month for as long as I can remember, and she started taking me for monthly facials once I hit 12 or 13 years old. Spa culture was and still is a regular routine part of life in Budapest, so from an early age the importance of a European style cleansing facial—with exfoliation, massage, steam and manual extractions—was instilled in me by my mother’s example.

I truly see skincare as a daily act of selfcare that helps you feel your best. Like my mother did to me, I raised my two children understanding the importance of keeping their skin clean and healthy, and now that my daughter is a teenager, the results of these early lessons are palpable. I also introduced them early to monthly facials—it is my job in more than one sense!

The biggest difference I see is the introduction of increasingly advanced technology into the skincare industry. Seeing strong, noticeable results is expected immediately in many treatments, and that desire for instant gratification will continue to rise with technology. Now many people expect instant results from their products and that can only be achieved through scientific intervention.

However, buzzwords like “clean beauty” and “sustainable beauty” in addition to the large fraction of the industry making and promoting products as such does show the desire for a return to simple, natural ingredients with proven track records of providing results. Like anything, I think it is all about balance, which is what I practice in my studio through combining my natural product line and traditional massage with the most current and advanced techniques and tools.

Elena Severin Senior Director of Merchandising, The Detox Market

My mother taught me from an early age that taking care of your skin early will pay off later in life, which always begins with cleansing.  To this day, I always check out the cleanser in a brand first.

Now that I have a teenage son, I find myself guiding him on the same principle that taking care of his skin now will pay off in the future. It's a challenge getting teenagers to wash their faces, but it's a challenge worth tackling.

When I was a child, the effects of sun damage were not really known, much less talked about. We now know the importance of protecting skin from UV damage and wearing sunscreen daily, which I stress to anyone who will listen, especially my son!

Barb Stegemann Founder, The 7 Virtues

My mom, Dorothy Jane, loved the wax perfume in those pretty silver compacts, such an elegant, discreet way to carry your trademark scent and apply any time. She also loved Manuka honey long before anyone knew about the antibacterial benefits. She swore by it as a deep healing facial mask, so natural.

We loved putting makeup on her and brushing her hair. We were not that talented at it, and she would laugh and smile and let us play. Then, she bought us those dolls you could apply makeup to, maybe she was trying to give us a hint. LOL.

I think by osmosis my children learned about fragrance at a young age. I launched The 7 Virtues when they were 10 and 15, so they began meeting people in the industry at a young age. They treat The 7 Virtues like a sibling. They grew up with it.

My mother used natural beauty in her regime—and so do I, so that's consistent. The big change would be that I am creating beauty products, and my children are being exposed to the wonderful world of the business of clean beauty. Both of them work in the family business, so it's really a huge part of our lives.

Erin Kleinberg Founder and Owner, Sidia and Métier Creative

My mom Mindy played a huge part in introducing me to beauty. I was always a fashion girl, putting together outfits was all I cared about in high school, but my mom was always trying to get me into makeup.

In grade 10, I started to work as an assistant to a wedding planner, and I needed to look the part, so she taught me how to do my eyes with a winged liner. I distinctly remember her showing me I could use blush as shadow, vice versa and basically do what I wanted as a form of creative expression. Until this day, my friends are always complaining how hard it is to do a winged liner, but because she taught me so long ago, it’s become second nature to me.

In my career from fashion into beauty [and] with the launch of my creative agency Métier Creative, where we now build and launch beauty brands with founders, we were able to connect even more, and regular trips to Sephora together are true bonding experiences as we explore, discover and learn.

I am hopeful I can impart the same curiosity with Parker. Because I am in the beauty industry, I have a lot of samples, makeup, etc., in my bathroom and, from a young age, Parker would ask me if she could create art with my old makeup. She would sit on my floor for hours, and I loved that her self-expression through makeup began.

I adore teaching her tips and tricks, and she loves wearing some of my cleaner shadows like Ilia or Gucci Westman for a dinner out or a Lipsmacker for good measure. It's cool that Parker will grow up with so many new key players in the clean space, which is a very different story than how I came up.

When asked her fav looks, she says, for an eye look, it’s always silver, pink, purple, turquoise. She also loves scent, which makes me happy given she can weigh in on the process with fragrance at Sidia when creating new candles and products.

She's always testing scents for me and appreciates how fragrance can transport you. Lastly, she's learned that being hydrated is life. She loves to do a little spa night in her robe with some cucumbers and put on her Aveeno moisturizer.

Misty Reich Founder, 35 Thousand

My mother is absolutely beautiful inside and out, and I remember so vividly being a little girl and climbing up to sit on the vanity to watch her put on makeup for a night out. She was, without question, the most beautiful woman in the world, still is at 72.

I also recall the way she seemed to relish the feeling of slathering her Mary Kay cleansing balm all over her face and massaging it in to remove makeup and cleanse at the end of the day. My mom never seemed overly preoccupied with beauty or worried about leaving the house without make up—most of my friends’ moms would never dare!—and I certainly don't recall her ever keeping makeup with her or “touching up” her face throughout the day. All of that together probably left me with a real balance of caring but not obsessing about beauty.

I can also remember summertime pool days and river trips where sunscreen was always around, but not a huge deal. I definitely had regular sunburns and peeling skin as a kid who would happily spend all day at the neighborhood pool and, aside from the discomfort it caused, I don’t think I understood the damage and risk of that until I was an adult.

My more focused lessons from my mom started when I was probably 10/11 years old and at the very beginning of what would be my lifelong battle with cystic acne. My mom was not one to run to the doctor on a whim and yet she did take me to see a doctor for my acne. That told me my skin was a priority and worth investment. She also took real care in showing me how to cleanse and care for my skin and was very firm about me never ever sleeping in makeup (still haven’t to this day).

Fast forward to me becoming a mother and having the opportunity to shape my own kids views of beauty. I have a 21-year-old son and 19-year-old daughter, and both would most certainly say that I am a broken record about daily SPF use.

Actually, they would probably offer some fantastic examples of me using scare-mongering tactics, showing them graphic images of skin cancer to ensure my point was appropriately driven home. I may end up paying for some counselling for those moves, but at least they will sit with their therapist cancer free as they describe the nightmares that ensued from seeing those images!

I had the opportunity to ask my daughter how I have shaped her view of beauty, and she said that I have really taught them to focus on skin health (external and internal via nutrition) and to pay attention to what is happening for your skin and respond accordingly rather than blindly sticking to a routine. She also said I impressed upon her the importance of never ever sleeping in makeup, so clearly that one is enduring in our family.

Contrasting then and now is, in some ways, very stark. The internet and social media have completely blown open the points of influence and information access around beauty. When I was growing up, our perspectives on beauty would have been narrowly shaped by the glossy mags (Vogue, Glamour, Seventeen) as well as TV and movies.

I love that we can now research deeply and dive into specific niches of interest, be that aesthetic trends (cosmetics, hair) or health (skin, hair, etc.) and find the angle that fits our wants and needs.

This has certainly led to a world where today we are far more knowledgeable about a myriad of beauty topics than we were in my childhood and thankfully we have more diversity in role models for standards of beauty. I can only imagine how different it will be for my children’s children, aside from advice on sleeping in makeup, that, it seems is timeless.

Allison Tryk Founder, Floramye

My mother was (and is) a very low maintenance hippie. She actually sent me to one of the cheesy modeling schools to learn about beauty when I was young since I was so interested, and she didn't have the answers.

Today, I try to teach my kids about healthy living, which helps with clear, glowing skin. Some of what I learned in my classes has stood the test of time (drink lots of water), and some has not (does anyone brush their hair 100 times a day?).

I also have an easy skincare routine for my kids already, with an emphasis on organic products, including our line. I loved lots of makeup when I was younger, but our kids are much more natural. I'm happy to see the generational shift to keeping it clean and simple!

The kids do somehow listen to me (about skincare anyway). They have a few friends with acne and they're trying to avoid it, so far so good thanks to CBD and the Evening Primrose in our facial oils.

Nadiyah Spencer Founder and CEO, TinkyPoo

My mom believed in expressing your natural beauty. She wasn’t a makeup girl at all. She was into smooth, supple moisturized skin. Both my mother and I have always received compliments on our smooth complexion and blemish-free skin.

I have an 8-year-old old son, and I share the importance of clean, moisturized skin as well. I also make sure he takes pride in his curly afro with a weekly wash and deep condition routine to keep his hair healthy and shiny. We’ve recently bought a brand that was formulated solely for young black males, and we love it!

There are definitely more brands today that cater to afro-textured and melanin-rich skin than there was, and it’s great to have more options for my son so we can find what works and what doesn’t. In our family, we have always stressed using clean products that are safe yet effective.

Mindy McKnight Founder, Hairitage by Mindy

Some of my favorite family memories are tied to hair! When I first started CuteGirlsHairstyles, my girls were my models, so I’d say I played a pretty big role in their introduction to beauty. They’d sit up on my bathroom counter, and we’d film videos as I styled their hair before they went off to school.

It was even an unspoken rule in my house that my kids couldn’t get cell phones until they learned how to braid! Even when I think back to my childhood memories with my mom, I remember her teaching me different styles of braids, all techniques I’ve passed to my kids.

The biggest difference I see in the industry today is the internet and social media. My Cute Girl Hairstyles blog turned YouTube channel was at the forefront of the age of [beauty] information, but I don't know that I could have ever dreamed up having millions of people sharing tips, hairstyle hacks, tutorials and product recommendations at the touch of a button.

Kelly Bensimon Brand Partner, One Ocean Beauty

My mother introduced me to Indian Earth at a young age. She wasn’t a big proponent of me wearing makeup, but she did want me to have a healthy glow.

I’ve always been obsessed with beauty products, and even more so when Jean Godfrey-June and Sarah Brown, who were beauty editors at Elle, introduced me to the latest products. I was totally spoiled with being exposed to the best of the best at such a young age. They also taught me that less is more, and they showed me how to keep my skin clean and clear, which was troublesome from modeling. I try to instill confidence in my girls to highlight their natural beauty.

There has been so much movement in the beauty industry, and I love how clean beauty is now in style. The products from One Ocean Beauty like the Marine Collagen and Ultra Hydrating Algae Oil are an important part of my daily regimen. My skin is the first thing people see. It shows how healthy you live your life—and healthy living is my elixir.

Dana Stewart Co-Founder, Mad Hippie

My mother has always prioritized a healthy lifestyle and a clean diet, but never really had a skincare routine when I was a child and tended to eschew even sunscreen, a choice she would later regret as the Texas sun that she's always lived in is no joke.

When I was little, she had vast vegetable gardens that she made spectacular feasts from all summer and would take long daily walks through the hill country that surrounded my childhood home. All this clean living, fresh air and exercise did a lot to keep her healthy and radiant. In her mid-70s she is still living this way, making her own bread, tending her flock of chickens and gardening, taking long walks in the hill country.

She is an inspiration to me in so many ways and has certainly inspired my love of nature and the outdoors and clean living, but her skincare routine has luckily changed dramatically. After having several precancerous skin lesions removed, she had to begin taking care of her skin diligently.

My mother is a big believer in sunscreen at this point in her life. She wears her hat in the garden every day along with her Vitamin C Serum and her favorite Mad Hippie sunscreen. At night, she slathers her skin in Triple C NIght Cream, which she swears by. My mother and all those who enjoy the outdoors, clean living and the feeling of the sunshine on their faces, continue to be an inspiration for us at Mad Hippie.

My husband and I started Mad Hippie when I was pregnant with my daughter. We were living abroad in Central America at the time. My husband is a surfer and we had decided to create a skincare line that would serve our fellow community of surfers and adventure seekers, a simple, easy to use, approachable set of products that incorporated clean ingredients, specifically selected to heal and prevent sun damage. Sun damage also happens to be the root cause of 90% to 95% of what we consider to be skin aging so our products quickly gained popularity outside of the surf community as well.

Our daughter was born as we launched Mad Hippie and has always been immersed in conversations about clean, safe ingredients and the importance of protecting one's skin from the sun. She is now almost a teenager, and I couldn't be more proud when I see her put on her sunscreen every morning without me even asking. Mad Hippie zinc-only sunscreen, of course!

People are armed with much more information these days to make informed decisions about their skincare. We have sites like Think Dirty that allow customers to search products and ingredients to view their safety profiles, we have the internet, which allows customers to look up scholarly articles about almost any ingredient out there, and we have dermatologists with platforms on Instagram or YouTube sharing insights with anyone who has a computer and an internet connection.

With all of this information that is so widely available, customers are asking more of the brands they shop from and, as a result, we have seen major shifts in the industry towards cleaner, safer ingredients. At Mad Hippie, our hope is that what follows is a movement toward better corporate responsibility, not just omitting a few of the no-no ingredients, but being more careful in sourcing ingredients to ensure that people who produce those ingredients (like shea butter, for instance) receive a fair wage, and that those carefully sourced ingredients are packaged in carefully considered packaging that incorporates more renewable resources and creates less downstream waste.

We are inspired by our customers who offer encouragement as we continue to put our energy into creating better, cleaner, more sustainable options!

Charlotte Knight Founder, Ciate, Lottie London and Skin Proud

It was actually my grandmother who introduced me to beauty. She was always so glamorous when I was growing up. I used to watch her get ready for a night out with my granddad, and she would never be without her bright bold red lipstick and perfectly matched red manicure.

When she was getting ready and that time she would take to glam up and treat it as a real moment was my first insight into the transformative power of make-up and beauty. How it made her feel and the confidence it gave her was wonderful. It was super inspiring.

When I had my daughter Gracie, I had already been a firm part of the beauty industry for a number of years as a nail artist and technician working on fashion shows and celebrities and was working on bringing my vision to life with Ciate London. So, it’s always been in her line of sight, and she’s heard about my work and how we created the brands as she’s grown up, so it’s been a very natural synergy.

Now, she’s one of the first people I go to when we are working on new products to test, get her opinion and stylize. It’s really fantastic, and I’m so glad that I can share this part of my life with her.

Now, the beauty industry is about collaboration, working together, being affordable and attainable to all. All opinions and expression are welcome, it’s not an exclusive club. I love how it’s more everyday and inclusive to all, something that I am super passionate about and ensure all products we create and launch are affordable, efficacious and suitable for all skin types and tones.

Jaleh Bisharat Co-Founder and CEO, NakedPoppy

I grew up in Iran, where I was raised to prize modesty as a young girl, so I hardly wore any makeup in high school. My mom was very forward-thinking about the sun and always insisted I wear a large hat and sunscreen. To this day, I thank her for that.

My mom was very beautiful and believed in investing in top-quality skincare and makeup, so by the time I was in my 20s, I'd started to invest in fancy European beauty brands. Well into my 30s, I thought only about what would flatter me. Pretty packaging, complete with the crinkle of plastic as I unwrapped my products, was a source of joy.

By the time my daughter came of age, a lot had changed. I'd survived breast cancer and delved into environmental toxins. I didn't want the same thing to happen to her—or to anyone else. So, my message to her was that she should enjoy beauty products, but that she should pay attention to the ingredients.

I'd also become conscious of our increasingly fragile planet and have encouraged her to be conscious of the entire ecosystem from seed to beauty bag. She's taken it to heart, and often even teaches me new things about our industry.

I think the differences say more about our changing world than they do about beauty. I was uninformed about clean and sustainable products when I was growing up, but this is partly because our planet was in fact more resilient, and my lifestyle in Iran was simpler.

I do think genuinely clean beauty—that is products that are better for your health, for the environment and for the communities that produce them—is an idea whose time has come. We can't move forward in any other way.

Karina Perez Marconi Co-Founder and CEO, Antedotum

My mother always had a simplified skincare routine: one face cream, a bright jewel-toned lipstick and her monthly facial. Without fail, she would reapply her lipstick all day, even if she was just staying home.

When it was time for her monthly facials, she would occasionally take me and one of my two sisters along, and that was a special treat we all look forward to!

My 9-year old daughter Havana sees me wearing masks, experimenting with different products and hears me talking about beauty all the time. Just like me, she loves all things beauty!

I’m trying to teach her that beautiful skin requires minimal products, but most importantly they must protect and hydrate the skin. I don’t want her to make the same mistake I made as a teen growing up in sunny Puerto Rico not using sunscreen.

There are so many products on the market today, it can be overwhelming. I believe in a simplified holistic approach. Minimal products that are clean, plant-powered and that yield real results. Sometimes, less is more.

Audrey Kirdar Co-Founder, Winnow Skincare

Like many women her age, my mother felt strongly about two things when it came to beauty—tanning and electric blue eyeliner. Luckily, I steered clear of blue eyeliner, but it took me longer to learn about the importance of sunscreen and sun damage.

Things have changed since I was a kid, and we now know a lot more about skincare. Consumers are not only focused on what they put in their body, but also what they put on their body.

My teenage daughter knows more about makeup than I ever will. She is often doing my makeup and giving me tutorials. One thing we both agree on is clean beauty and moisturizing our skin twice a day. We both rely on Winnow to hydrate, calm and balance our skin.

Tracy Wydra Co-Founder, Winnow Skincare

When my mother introduced me to beauty, it was only about makeup. I learned about eyeshadow (blue), lipstick, blush(rose) and nail polish (wine). There was never a discussion of skincare.

By contrast, when I speak to my daughter about beauty, it’s all about skincare. I talk about clean ingredients, what she is washing her face with, what moisturizer she is using (Winnow) and making sure she is wearing sunscreen. It’s about preserving the beauty we were born with through smart choices.

I believe this focus on skincare and quality ingredients is reflected in the changes in the beauty industry today. Consumers are more educated, and as a result, companies are being held accountable. Ironically, as I am teaching my daughter about taking care of her skin, I’m also teaching my mother about it. She is now a Winnow user who cares about the ingredients in all of her skincare.

Darci Rosenblum Co-Founder, Stryke Club

Some of my strongest memories are sitting on the floor while my mom sat at her makeup table in front of a three-way mirrored vanity doing her daily makeup routine. All around her were carefully selected Dior products, and no matter the occasion, her makeup was always the same. She was beautiful, but it was always the same. Her beauty ritual was her solo endeavor, something I only watched and learned.

When it came time for my daughters to take that place on the floor and watch me do my makeup, I knew I wanted it to be something we had fun doing together.  Not only would I teach them how things are done, experiment together, use different products, but, most importantly, teach them less and more. Also, for my mom, her routine was all about the makeup, I wanted to make sure my daughters knew that beauty started with taking care of your skin, whether it was daily washing, moisturizer, and of course, always sunscreen!

In my opinion, there are two big differences about the beauty industry today. One is the selection, availability and accessibility. In my mom’s time, you bought your products in a department store, which sold upscale, premium brands. Today, there are the [beauty] retailers (Ulta, Sephora, etc.) and even the drugstores that have a wide range of great products at different price points, giving you the freedom to try and not stick to the same routine.

The second difference is that we’ve made taking care of your skin part of the beauty routine. I’m sure my mom put on moisturizer, etc., but it wasn’t part of the beauty ritual. Today’s kids, both boys and girls, are learning the most important beauty lesson is to take care of their skin first.

If you have a question you’d like Beauty Independent to ask beauty entrepreneurs and executives, please send it to editor@beautyindependent.com.