Alaffia, The Vintage Cosmetic Company top buyers’ picks at ECRM’s Everyday and Holiday Cosmetics session
Alaffia won the Drug Store News Buyers Choice Award for its Authentic African Black Soap All-in-One during ECRM’s Everyday and Holiday Cosmetics, Skin, Fragrance & Bath Session held earlier this month. The Vintage Cosmetic Company, was a finalist for its Spa and Sleep Stocking.
The products were selected from dozens of entries submitted by participating suppliers. Buyers were able to evaluate each entry and cast their votes based on product packaging and innovation via the Drug Store News-branded Buyers Choice Awards section of the ECRM Connect platform.
“Product innovation comes in many forms, as both Buyers Choice Award winners demonstrate,” said Craig Chmielowicz, senior vice president of health and beauty care for ECRM. “Allafia uses clean, plant-based ingredients that support social and environmental causes, and The Vintage Cosmetic Company is creating fun products to spread some joy through the holidays. Each provides a compelling reason for consumers to buy their products. Congratulations to both winners.”
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Togolese native Olowo-n’djo Tchala founded Alaffia in 2004 with Prairie Rose Hyde, a Peace Corp worker, after experiencing many injustices including witnessing the unfair systems that the women around him faced when trading valuable natural resources. Preserving cultural traditions and knowledge, Alaffia handcrafts its award-winning clean and plant-based collections with unrefined shea butter, African black soap, neem extract and baobab, coconut and moringa oils from its women-led Alaffia Village Co-op.
The company’s Empowerment Projects are its mission in action, funded by the sale of its products, and provide immediate and sustainable support for maternal health care, job creation, education, reforestation and regenerative agriculture.
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Alaffia’s Authentic African Black Soap All-In-One is handcrafted with fair trade unrefined shea butter from the company’s Alaffia Village Co-op in Togo. The black soap, which has a naturally pearlescent bronze color, is saponified using plantain ash that's cooked extensively and then cured for weeks in the hot sun. This multi-purpose soap can be used head-to-toe and is ideal for all ages, skin and hair types.
It’s cruelty-free, and contains no sulfates, parabens, phthalates, silicones, petrolatum, artificial color or synthetic fragrance.
The Vintage Cosmetic Company is a British brand offering bath, body, hair and sleep accessories, beauty tools and gifting. Consumers’ continued and growing fascination with everything vintage has seen the brand grow extensively over recent years, now with a worldwide distribution of products. The brand operates through an EDI capable 3PL DC in Indianapolis, Ind., and offers drop shipping from Long Island, N.Y.
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The company’s festive stocking was created to be a perfect holiday gift. Designed in a beautiful pink and white stripe, the stocking houses three matching beauty accessories: a spa headband, a satin sleep mask and a pair of ultra-soft, cozy socks.
Retailing at $14.99 this gift set can provide consumers with a playful, beauty twist to a holiday favorite, at a giftable price point.