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Danah Mims, Director of Regulatory Compliance at Macadamia Beauty, talks about strategies for overcoming the key regulatory and compliance challenges facing independent cosmetics brands. Come hear Danah speak at the Cosmetic Compliance Summit, September 30 - October 2, 2019, in New York City.

Beauty brands were some of the first companies to leverage the power of “influencers” to create buzz and business on Instagram, YouTube, and other social media channels, and there’s no question that it’s paying off for them. “Influencer marketing” – where people with large followings on social media are paid by companies to promote or recommend products -- yields an average earned media value of more than $5 for every dollar spent, and top influencers can generate significantly higher levels of engagement and awareness than even the best known brands can by themselves.

But for all the upside, Beauty’s embrace of influencer marketing carries risks. If a brand fails to make its relationship with an influencer fully transparent to the consumer, for example, or an influencer makes a claim about a cosmetics product that can’t be substantiated, the brand could be fined or face litigation. And indications are that influencer marketing has a compliance problem: One study of more than 2,000 beauty posts by influencers in the fourth quarter of 2018 found that only 11% were fully compliant.

Cannabis has become the most talked-about ingredient in the skincare industry. In this interview, Matt Lewis, Managing Partner at Davis & Lewis, talks about how this trend is impacting the beauty industry. Come hear Matt speak at the Cosmetics Compliance Summit September 30 to October 2, 2019, in New York City.

Cannabis-infused personal care products have become one of the hottest trends in beauty, with mainstream companies, from Estee Lauder to Unilever, are vying to grab their share of the market. Analysts estimate the revenue generated by CBD skin care products in North America in 2019 to be around $645 million and expects the market to expand at a staggering 33% annually through 2027. But the FDA has expressed concern over impermissible and unsubstantiated claims for the benefits of CBD, and regulation is coming -- eventually. IN the meantime, what should brands do? Jump into the market or wait till the FDA formulates a response? Here's what you need to know to make that call.