Cardiff-based Mallows Beauty is a vegan beauty brand that promotes self-love and acceptance.
Founded in 2020, the company has gained a cult following since going viral on TikTok with its brightly packaged products such as the ‘Unicorn Shave Butter’ and ‘Pineapple Enzyme Peel Mask’.
Despite only beginning its export journey at the end of 2021, international sales already account for one third of Mallows Beauty’s sales with its products currently sold in Ireland, Europe, the US and Australia. The company hopes to double this figure over the next year by expanding its distributor networks across the globe and focusing on growing sales in the US – a primary target market for the company.
The company is set to expand its presence in the US after securing its first major deal in the region with the help of the Welsh Government. The deal will see six of Mallows Beauty’s bestselling products sold in 177 American Urban Outfitters stores, with a starting order of 4,000 units.
Alongside this partnership, Mallows Beauty is also in discussions with a US-wide distributor which would open it up to thousands of independent retailers across the country. It is similarly eyeing up expansion in Australia, launching its products with leading online retailer, Glam Raider.
Support from the Welsh Government has played a key role in Mallows Beauty’s export growth. The company has benefitted from tailored market research as well as help identifying and setting up meetings with suppliers and distributors, including those that the company has recently signed contracts with in the US and Australia. Crucially, it has received specialist trading advice, including compliance checks on ingredients to ensure its products meet the varying market regulations in countries overseas.
Laura Mallows, Founder of Mallows Beauty, said: “Our exporting journey has been a whirlwind, playing a significant part in our growth over the last year. International demand for our products has been huge, thanks to TikTok in particular, with people asking where they can buy our products in their countries. It’s opened up a whole new world of customers for us that we’re itching to get our products to.
“The US in particular is an area where we would like to focus our sales drive as we continue to see growing demand for our products there. The new deal with Urban Outfitters, along with us securing a nationwide distributor, will play a vital role in helping us achieve that.
“When we were presented with our first opportunity to export, we were so overwhelmed we actually turned it down as we didn’t know where to begin. We were worried about the different regulations for international markets and the logistical challenges that came with exporting. “Skincare and beauty products have an added layer of complexity when it comes to exporting since different countries have different market regulations so support from our export advisors at the Welsh Government has been invaluable, enabling us to adapt our formulas to ensure we meet the requirements of the different markets we’re exporting to, while also opening doors to potential distributors.”