The Real Reason I Became a Beautycounter Consultant

I’ve been sitting on this post for a few months now and wasn’t sure I wanted to publish it. If you follow me on social media, you’ve seen me talk about Beautycounter and my side hustle as a consultant. I was unsure about posting it here because I try to keep this space focused on health policy and medical school. But then I realized that those parts of my life are exactly WHY I joined Beautycounter in the first place. So today, I’m going to let you in on why I really became a Beautycounter consultant and why I love it!

In all honestly, I never gave much thought to my skincare or makeup — I didn’t learn how to wear makeup until college and my idea of skincare until recently was taking off my makeup with a remover wipe at night. But as I’m approaching the big 3-0 this year, I decided it was time to be more proactive and take care of my, admittedly, pretty great skin (#thanksgenetics). I want it to look this good years down the road!

I had no idea what products I needed and I’ve always felt overwhelmed by the department store counters and Sephora. I start sneezing thanks to the perfume and then have no idea if something is good quality or worth the cost. So when a blogger I’d been reading for years mentioned that she was a Beautycounter consultant, I was intrigued. She shared a lot of concerning facts about the personal care product industry that spoke to my public health and almost-a-medical-student heart.

The Alarming Truth about the Personal Care Product Industry

• The last major bill regulating the personal care product and cosmetics industry was passed in 1938!
• Since then, over 80,000 chemical ingredients have been introduced into the beauty and personal care industry, but fewer than 10% have been tested for human safety.
• There are over 1,400 chemical ingredients banned from personal care products in the European Union that are commonly found in products in the U.S. The U.S. has only banned 30 ingredients from personal care products.
• There are links between these chemicals and chronic health conditions. These toxic chemicals can cause hormonal imbalances, impact fertility, and have been linked to cancer. As a future physician, it seems like a no-brainer to get these chemicals out of everyday products!

Once I learned these facts, I knew I needed to start paying more attention to the ingredients in my skincare and cosmetics products. I still didn’t know what products to try, but I was getting ready to move to Florida and figured that a daily SPF couldn’t hurt. I ordered Dew Skin, a tinted moisturizer with SPF, a little over a year ago and I’ve been hooked on Beautycounter ever since. Over the last year, I’ve tried so many products and have loved every single one — from the foundation brush to the lipsticks. I NEVER thought I’d be a lipstick girl, but now I have four and I’m planning to order more! Who am I?!

A typical “waiting for the elevator” selfie — wearing my fave Color Intense Lipstick in Little Black Dress

Finding this company, falling in love with their products, and ultimately working as a consultant seems so strange sometimes! But this opportunity fell into my lap when I was looking to make a little extra money (med school ain’t cheap!) and the benefits have been more than I could have ever imagined. I’m in medical school because I believe in health, science, and research AND I’m a health policy nerd, so I believe that more health protective laws to allow the FDA to regulate the personal care product industry can have a positive impact on our personal and collective health. It’s a natural extension of those interests that pushed me to work with Beautycounter.

I’m not going to pretend to be perfect and tell you that I have every healthy habit — but honestly, small things add up. I might still use plastic containers (slowly transitioning over to glass) and I LOVE the smell of Mrs. Meyers hand soaps even though I know the fragrance in them is so bad for my health (and on Beautycounter’s Never List!) but using Beautycounter products is a step in the right direction.

Beautycounter is Changing Everything

Beautycounter was founded by Gregg Renfrew, with the mission of puting safer products in the hands of everyone. The regulation of the personal care product industry that does exist is only about two pages in length — and it doesn’t allow the Food and Drug Administration to recall any beauty products even if they’re found to contain toxic ingredients. Beautycounter is committed to a health and safety standard beyond what is legally required in the United States. Their Never List is made up of more than 1,500 questionable or harmful chemicals that will never be used as ingredients in their products. Medical school has opened my eyes even more to the importance of what we put on our bodies (the skin is the largest organ and anything we put on our skin gets absorbed into the bloodstream!) and not simply what we ingest.

Beautycounter is also an active advocate in D.C. for more health protective laws and recently endorsed the Personal Care Products Safety Act, which was introduced by Senators Feinstein (D-CA) and Collins (R-ME). This legislation would require the FDA to evaluate a minimum of 5 ingredients per year to determine their safety and appropriate use. If you can’t tell, my public health soul LOVES this aspect of the Beautycounter!! There are also opportunities for consultants (like me!) to meet with elected officials to advocate for more health protective laws. I hope I have that opportunity soon!

High-Performing Products and Safety Can Coexist

Beautycounter’s products are a bit more expensive than what is sold at drugstores, but in all honestly I’ve found a lot of the prices comparable to brands sold at Sephora, Ulta, and department stores. The added bonus with Beautycounter is that they have proven you do not have to sacrifice high performing products in the name of safety. Beautycounter uses synthetic and organic ingredients but has also developed a rigorous ingredient screening process that looks at every potential ingredient for information on specific hazards like cancer, developmental toxicity, hormone disruption, and infertility. They have even partnered with Tufts University to study key ingredients commonly used in personal care products.

Medical School Isn’t Cheap

I won’t lie — the money is a huge reason why I decided to become a consultant. And not only do we earn a commission, but we get a pretty solid discount on products too. I was already making a lot of purchases, so why not get the discount and make a little money?! There are some consultants who do this as their full time job and make a lot of money, but most of us are just like me — someone with a full-time job/in school just looking to share their love of Beautycounter and get paid for it 🙂 Even though I’m not doing this as a full-time or even part-time job (I spend maybe 2 hours a week on it) I do make money — some months I make more than others — but it’s awesome to have even just a little bit of an income that isn’t my student loans! 

Beautycounter is a Movement and You Can Join In!

• Become a Client! Try out some products and vote with your dollars! Our purchasing power can prove to the industry and legislators that there is demand for high-performing, safer products! Join my Facebook group to learn more about the products, science, and special promos! You can also take my 1 minute skincare survey and I’ll send you some personalized recommendations!
• Be a Host! You gather up some friends and family to learn about Beautycounter, I do the work and you earn the rewards! Hosts can earn up to 5 free products and 50% off others. If you’re a Miami local, contact me to host a social. You can also host FACEBOOK socials online to earn rewards from anywhere! Send me an email at mollyb.beautycounter@gmail.com to learn more!
• Become a Band of Beauty Member! You can join our loyalty program for $29 and receive free shipping on orders over $100, a free gift, and 10% product credit to spend on future purchases.
• Become a Beautycounter Consultant! If you’re like me and find yourself fired up about the Beautycounter mission, you can build a small business with Beautycounter! Consultants receive a 25% savings on all product purchases and earn income based on sales and the sales of those recruited to be on their team. The best part: there is not an expensive buy-in and you don’t have to carry inventory. You are an educator and helping put safer skincare into the hands of your friends and family! I’m so glad I said YES!

Disclaimer: Earnings as a Beautycounter Consultant in the U.S. may vary significantly and depend on many factors, such as dedication to selling/mentoring. Not all Consultants will earn money. To see more about the earnings and costs of Beautycounter Consultants, please view the 2020 Income Disclosure Statement at www.beautycounter.com/ids