From fragrance to face oil, Non Gender Specific’s nature-based beauty products are designed for all genders
When Andrew Glass used to shop for skincare products, he found that 90 per cent of what was sold in department stores was targeted at women. Glass worked in the cosmetics industry himself and had noted the wastefulness of an industry that produced so many overlapping products marketed solely at women, occasionally at men, but never at both. For an industry that was progressive in so many ways, this seemed strangely old-fashioned.
In 2017, Andrew responded by founding Non Gender Specific, an innovative company based in Atlanta, Georgia, which makes products “for all humans”, whatever their gender. “When we launched almost six years ago, we had one product, the Everything serum,” he says. Andrew’s idea was to resolve skin concerns that are common to all genders. “The Everything serum was designed to address essential issues in a single formula with a goal of reducing consumer waste in a less-is-more approach to beauty. It was an instant hit and sold 60,000 bottles in our first year.”
The brand is carefully curated and Andrew, who has worked in the industry since he was 18, including in product development, is particular about what to formulate. “We will only release a product if I feel it is needed in the market,” he says. Products include Flooid, a premium genderless fragrance with ingredients including sweet orange, amber and vetiver, and Phytonutrient Concentrate, a luxurious face oil formulated with 23 of the world’s most nutrient-rich botanicals. “We hear a lot of stories of couples sharing our products,” says Andrew. “They become a bonding experience, a ritual that can be shared together at morning and night.”
Andrew grew up in South Africa, surrounded by nature, and Non Gender Specific incorporates a sustainable ethos in the products and the packaging. Products are vegan, made without harsh chemicals, artificial fragrances or dyes, and packaging uses recycled materials where possible and is biodegradable. Each multi-correctional product uses a propriety phytonutrient infusion to target the seven common essential aspects of skincare – hydration, wrinkles, pore size, barrier protection, acne, hyperpigmentation and healing properties. “Our phytonutrient blend allows us to control which botanicals go deeper into the skin, so ingredients meant for repair and healing can go deeper, while protective ingredients can stay on the surface level,” says Andrew.
Andrew uses the phrase “botanical armour” to embody what he wants to achieve with Non Gender Specific products. This concept is visualised in the company’s marketing, which features diverse models wearing clothes made from plants and flowers. For Andrew, this goes right back to his upbringing on the edge of the Kruger National Park in northeast South Africa, where he became attuned to the bewitching power of nature. He plans to bring this experience directly to his next product for Non Gender Specific, another fragrance to follow the success of Flooid.
“Flooid is very pure with very little alcohol and only the best quality ingredients,” he says. “It’s a lot of fun to make a fragrance and I am working on our second, which will be called Biodiversity and is inspired by my time in Africa, with a lot of incense and wood mixed with florals and grasses. I hope to launch that in 2023 but it could be 2024 as I am a perfectionist. I am obsessed with the idea of botanical armour because that is what our products are for your skin. Everything by Non Gender Specific is designed to be revitalising, protective and healing.”
www.nongenderspecific.com